As an energy releaser, riboflavin promotes the production of energy in the brain's blood vessels. There is speculation, after some research, that supplements of riboflavin may be able to help reduce the number of migraine headaches a person gets.
Riboflavin can help prevent cataracts, probably because of its close relationship with glutathione, an antioxidant. In a study of 408 Boston-area women, those who had the highest intake of riboflavin had the lowest level of cataract formation and lens opacity.
Riboflavin may be helpful to people with sickle-cell disease; 5 mg given two times a day increased the amount of glutathione and iron in patients' blood. In a different blood condition, iron-deficiency anemia, riboflavin helped improve iron levels when given along with an iron supplement.
Older adult women who exercise have higher riboflavin needs than their sedentary counterparts. This makes sense because of riboflavin's role in coaxing energy out of food. Supplementing helped prevent low blood levels, but didn't seem to alter endurance capacity in the women studied.
Large doses of riboflavin are not toxic. For general health purposes, 5 to 10 mg per day is adequate. The body may only be able to absorb 20 mg at any one time. Because of its fluorescent yellow quality, large doses will turn the urine bright yellow for several hours after ingesting it.
Dairy products are an excellent source of riboflavin, as are some meats and leafy green vegetables. Go to the next page to find out more about foods that contain riboflavin.