Thiamin deficiency and heart and blood vessel problems
What it found
Thiamin deficiency may play a part in heart and blood vessel diseases, and in risk factors like diabetes, obesity and heart failure.
The authors say future studies should test whether thiamin supplements can reverse these conditions.
What they found
Studies in people and animals
Deficiency and disease
Thiamin deficiency could have a role in the development of heart and blood vessel diseases. The authors say this based on the human and animal studies they gathered.
Linked risk factors
Thiamin deficiency has been suggested to be associated with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, obesity, ongoing blood vessel inflammation, unhealthy blood fats, heart failure, heart attack, conduction defects and depression.
Thiamin supplements
The effect of thiamin supplements on the conditions of patients with heart and blood vessel diseases was described. The authors say future studies should focus on whether supplements can reverse these diseases and the risk factors linked to the deficiency.
Other findings
What thiamin does
Thiamin, also called vitamin B1, works as a cofactor in the breakdown of carbohydrates and amino acids.
What the authors conclude
“Thiamine deficiency could have a role in the development of CVDs.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that thiamin deficiency could have a role in the development of heart and blood vessel diseases.
- They advise that future studies should focus on the impact of thiamin supplementation on reversing heart and blood vessel diseases and risk factors associated with its deficiency.
How it was done
Thiamin deficiency has been linked to many heart and blood vessel diseases and their risk factors, including type 1 and type 2 diabetes, obesity, ongoing blood vessel inflammation, unhealthy blood fats, heart failure, heart attack, conduction defects and depression.
Human and animal studies were gathered from scientific databases following PRISMA guidelines, with no limit on publication year. Studies on how common thiamin deficiency is in patients with heart and blood vessel diseases, and on the effect of thiamin supplements on their conditions, were summed up.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This paper gathered other studies rather than running its own experiment, so it cannot prove that thiamin deficiency causes heart and blood vessel diseases.
- It cannot show whether thiamin supplements reverse these conditions, because the authors say that question still needs to be studied.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Minia University, Egypt; Osaka University, Japan; Beni-Suef University, Egypt
The paper
- Title
- Thiamine deficiency and cardiovascular disorders
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Eshak ES, Arafa AE (2018). Thiamine deficiency and cardiovascular disorders. Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2018.06.013PubMed 30143411DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error