Benefits
Nerve health
In randomized trials, benfotiamine improved measures of diabetic nerve discomfort, supporting its use for nerve health in people with elevated blood sugar.
Healthy glucose metabolism
Benfotiamine supports pathways that reduce the harmful byproducts of high blood sugar, supporting metabolic and circulatory health.
Better-absorbed vitamin B1
As a fat-soluble form, benfotiamine raises active thiamine levels far more effectively than standard thiamine.
Mechanism of action
Transketolase activation
Benfotiamine boosts the thiamine-dependent enzyme transketolase, which diverts excess glucose breakdown products away from damaging pathways.
AGE and oxidative-stress reduction
By redirecting glucose metabolism, benfotiamine lowers the formation of advanced glycation end-products and related oxidative stress that harm nerves and vessels.
Clinical trials
Three-week randomized controlled trial of benfotiamine in diabetic polyneuropathy. (Haupt et al. 2005, International Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics)
Adults with diabetic polyneuropathy.
Benfotiamine improved nerve-symptom measures versus placebo, supporting its nerve-health positioning.