Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid)
What it does and why you need it
Pantothenic acid is one of the eight B vitamins. Its central role is as part of coenzyme A, which sits at the centre of energy-releasing reactions and the synthesis of fatty acids, cholesterol, and several hormones. Because pantothenic acid is in almost every food, dietary deficiency in the UK is almost unheard of outside severe malnutrition or laboratory feeding studies.
The UK position, set out by SACN in 1991, is that there is enough certainty about a safe intake range and not enough basis to set a strict RNI. NHS guidance reproduces this approach.
Best food sources
Values per 100g from USDA SR Legacy and McCance and Widdowson 7th edition; the site's food entries currently store macros only.
| Food | Typical UK portion | Pantothenic acid per portion |
|---|---|---|
| Sunflower seeds (not currently in the site's food encyclopedia) | 30g | around 2.0mg |
| Mushrooms, cooked | 80g | around 1.2mg |
| Egg, whole | One medium, around 50g | around 0.7mg |
| Chicken, cooked | 100g | around 1.0mg |
| Avocado | Half, around 75g | around 1.0mg |
| Sweet potato, baked | One medium, 175g | around 1.4mg |
UK reference intake by age and sex
The UK has not set a strict Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) for pantothenic acid. NHS guidance reproduces SACN's position that pantothenic acid is so widely distributed in food that a varied UK diet covers the requirement comfortably.
| Group | UK guidance |
|---|---|
| All adults | No fixed RNI. Typical daily intake for healthy adults on a varied UK diet is around 3 to 7mg. NHS: "you should be able to get all the pantothenic acid you need from your daily diet". |
Deficiency signs and who is at risk
Pantothenic acid deficiency is essentially unknown in modern UK life from diet alone. Experimental deficiency in volunteers produces fatigue, headache, irritability, and digestive symptoms.
Severe malnutrition and very restrictive diets are the only realistic UK risk situations.
Too much: safe upper limit
NHS supplement guidance: taking 200mg or less of pantothenic acid in supplements daily is unlikely to cause any harm.
Very high doses (over 1 gram daily) can cause diarrhoea. There is no documented serious toxicity at typical supplement levels.
Supplements and UK guidance
Routine pantothenic acid supplementation is not needed for adults eating a normal mixed UK diet. B-complex multivitamins typically include it; that is fine but unnecessary.
Related
- The B-vitamin family: Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B6, Folate, Vitamin B12.
- Best food sources: Mushrooms, Eggs, Avocado, Sweet potato.
Sources and references
- NHS. Vitamins and minerals: Vitamins B. nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-b.
- SACN. Dietary Reference Values for Food Energy and Nutrients for the United Kingdom. Department of Health Report 41 (1991).
- Public Health England. McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods, 7th summary edition (2015).
This page is reference information for UK shoppers. It is not medical advice.