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- What is beri beri?
- Symptoms of beri beri
- Causes of beri beri
- Prevention of beri beri
- Risk factors for beri beri
- Complications of beri beri
- When to see a doctor about beri beri
- Diagnosis of beri beri
- Conventional treatment of beri beri
- Alternative/complementary treatment of beri beri
- Living with beri beri
- Caring for someone with beri beri
These are the risk factors that can mostly be prevented from causing beri beri:
- Alcohol abuse - people who drink heavily may not be getting enough vitamin B1 (thiamin) in their diet and are the main group of people who are at most risk for developing beri beri. People who drink excessively need to have blood tests to monitor their level of the nutrients and may require supplementation (administered intravenously by their doctor or nurse) to prevent nutritional deficiency conditions such as beri beri
- Baby formula - babies who are only fed baby formula can get beri beri if it does not contain adequate levels of vitamin B1 (thiamin) and while this is not a regular occurrence, it can happen
- Extreme dieting - people who go on extreme diets that restricts their food intake and especially if they restrict the amounts of foods from the different food groups, can become deficient in vitamin B1 (thiamin) and if the extreme diet continues long term, beri beri can develop
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These are the risk factors that may not be preventable:
- Dialysis - this procedure can often cause a deficiency in all nutrients but especially of the water soluble ones like vitamin B1 (thiamin)
- Diuretics - long term use of diuretic drugs can cause a deficiency in all nutrients but especially of the water soluble ones like vitamin B1 (thiamin)
- Genetic factors - some people have a rare genetic condition which causes them to lose the ability to properly absorb vitamin B1 (thiamin) from their food
- Malnutrition - people who are not eating enough food will not be getting enough of all the nutrients required by the body (including vitamin B1) which means beri beri may develop
- Mother to child - if a pregnant woman has a severe enough deficiency of vitamin B1 (thiamin), it can possibly cause an infantile form beri beri in the baby. Pregnant women must ensure they have adequate intake of all the vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other nutrients, to ensure these nutrients are passed to their baby, to prevent risk of any type of nutritional deficiency, including infantile beri beri
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< 4: prevention 6: complications > Last reviewed: 3 January 2009 || Last updated: 21 January 2010
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NOTE: Mega doses of any type of vitamin, mineral, amino acid or herbal supplement cannot cure illnesses and in fact can be very dangerous and produce toxic side effects and interfere with medicine you are taking. Always ensure you consult your doctor before taking any type of complementary supplements.
Disclaimer: This guide is not intended to be used for diagnostic or prescriptive purposes. For any treatment or diagnosis of illness, please see your doctor.
