Benfotiamine
Benfotiamine in SciatiEase
Benfotiamine in SciatiEase is 200 mg per 4-capsule serving and 100 mg per 2 capsules. It is a man-made, fat-soluble form of vitamin B1 that the body turns into thiamin. The BENDIP neuropathy trial used 300 or 600 mg a day for 6 weeks, with mixed results. It has not been tested for sciatica.
Written by the SciatiEase label deskUpdated
First stop01
What is benfotiamine?
Benfotiamine is a lab-made form of vitamin B1 (thiamin) that dissolves in fat instead of water. Once you swallow it, the body converts it back into thiamin (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)).
Thiamin helps cells turn sugar into energy, and nerve cells rely on that process. Adults need only 1.1 to 1.2 mg of thiamin a day, and no upper limit has been set (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)).
Benfotiamine is popular as a neuropathy supplement because of small trials in people with diabetic nerve damage. Those trials are the whole evidence base; none involved sciatica.
| Name on the label | Benfotiamine |
|---|---|
| What it is | Fat-soluble form of vitamin B1 (thiamin) |
| Group on the panel | Nerve nutrients |
| Amount per 4 capsules (label serving) | 200 mg |
| Amount per 2 capsules | 100 mg |
| % Daily Value | No DV |
| Amount used in research | 300-600 mg a day in the BENDIP trial |
| Strength of evidence | Small trials, mixed results |
| Marketed or traditional use | Vitamin B1 source |
| Main caution | Generally well tolerated in trials. |
On the label02
How much benfotiamine is in SciatiEase?
SciatiEase lists 200 mg of benfotiamine per 4-capsule serving, or 50 mg in each capsule. It has its own line on the panel, just after acetyl-L-carnitine.
The panel gives benfotiamine by weight and shows no % Daily Value for it. So the vitamin B1 line you might expect at the top of the panel is missing; benfotiamine fills that role.
| Source | Benfotiamine a day |
|---|---|
| SciatiEase, 2 capsules | 100 mg |
| SciatiEase, 4 capsules | 200 mg |
| BENDIP low dose (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008) | 300 mg |
| BENDIP high dose (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008) | 600 mg |
Research03
Does benfotiamine help neuropathy?
Benfotiamine may help neuropathy symptoms a little, but the trials are small and the results are mixed. The best-known study, BENDIP, gave 165 people with diabetic nerve damage 300 mg, 600 mg or placebo daily for 6 weeks (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008).
The main symptom score improved only when the analysis counted people who followed the plan. When every enrolled person was counted, the result just missed significance. The total symptom score showed no clear difference.
A government fact sheet sums up studies at 120 to 900 mg a day as hopeful but calls for larger, longer trials (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)). An older Cochrane review found too little evidence to say B vitamins help or harm neuropathy (Cochrane, Vitamin B for neuropathy).
| Source | Dose | Finding |
|---|---|---|
| BENDIP trial (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008) | 300 or 600 mg a day, 6 weeks | One score improved in one analysis only |
| NIH fact sheet (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)) | 120-900 mg a day | Less severe symptoms in some studies; more research needed |
| Cochrane B vitamins (Cochrane, Vitamin B for neuropathy) | Various | Slight vibration-sense gain in one trial; no short-term pain benefit in two others |
Dose check04
Is 200 mg of benfotiamine close to the studied dose?
It is close but under: 200 mg is two-thirds of the 300 mg low dose in BENDIP, and 2 capsules give one-third. It does sit inside the wider 120-900 mg range the NIH fact sheet describes (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)).
Compared with the other nerve nutrient on the label, benfotiamine comes much nearer its research dose. Acetyl-L-carnitine reaches only a sixth of its lowest trial amount.
1 capsule
50 mg. Below every dose in the studies we cite.
2 capsules
100 mg. One-third of the BENDIP low dose.
4 capsules
200 mg. Two-thirds of 300 mg, inside the 120-900 mg range.
Safety05
Is benfotiamine safe, and what are its side effects?
Benfotiamine was well tolerated in the BENDIP trial, even at 600 mg a day. Thiamin has no set upper limit, because high intakes have not shown clear harm (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)) (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008).
The bigger safety point in SciatiEase is a different B vitamin. Four capsules hold 20 mg of vitamin B6, above Europe's 12 mg daily limit (NIH ODS, Vitamin B6). If tingling, burning or numbness gets worse, stop and call your doctor.
Benfotiamine is not a stand-in for diabetes or nerve-pain medicine. Keep every prescribed dose as directed and raise any change with your doctor.
The warning panel is not in the images we have; follow the bottle you receive. Timing and daily routine are on how to take SciatiEase.
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See packsAsk first06
Who should ask a doctor before taking benfotiamine?
People with diabetes, anyone pregnant or nursing, and anyone with unexplained numbness should ask a doctor before taking benfotiamine.
With diabetes, steady blood sugar matters most for nerves, and the NIH advises talking with a doctor before using supplements for neuropathy (NIDDK, Peripheral Neuropathy).
- Numbness in both feet: a doctor can check for diabetes or low B12, which have their own treatments (MedlinePlus, Peripheral Nerve Disorders).
- Pain down one leg from the back: that pattern points to sciatica, a different problem.
- Nerve symptoms with heavy drinking: these need a full medical exam.
How sciatica differs from nerve damage in the feet is explained in sciatica basics.
What the brand says07
What do the SciatiEase sales page and official site say about benfotiamine?
Neither the sales page nor the official site gives benfotiamine any detail; only the Supplement Facts panel lists its 200 mg. The official comparison chart covers PEA, R-ALA and ALCAR, not benfotiamine (SciatiEase official site).
The sales page promises “a very specific nerve vitamin” without naming one (SciatiEase sales page). Benfotiamine is the closest match on the label, and its research is mixed.
The two sources also split on capsules: the sales page says 2 with breakfast and 2 with dinner, the official site 2 a day. At 2 a day you get 100 mg of benfotiamine, and a bottle lasts 60 days, not 30.
Next stops08
Which other B vitamins are in SciatiEase besides benfotiamine?
SciatiEase adds four more B vitamins: B2, B6, folate and B12, each in an active form. Benfotiamine stands in for B1, which is why the panel has no separate thiamin line.
Read vitamin B12 and folate in SciatiEase next, or check every amount on the SciatiEase supplement facts page.
FAQ09
Benfotiamine questions, answered
Is benfotiamine the same as vitamin B1?
It is a form of vitamin B1, not plain thiamin. Benfotiamine is a man-made, fat-soluble version that the body converts into thiamin after you swallow it (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)). SciatiEase lists 200 mg of benfotiamine per 4 capsules and has no separate thiamin line.
How much benfotiamine is in 2 SciatiEase capsules?
Two capsules hold 100 mg of benfotiamine, half of the 200 mg in the 4-capsule label serving. Each capsule has 50 mg. That is one-third of the 300 mg low dose given in the BENDIP diabetic neuropathy trial, and a sixth of its 600 mg high dose.
Is 200 mg of benfotiamine enough for neuropathy?
It is below the BENDIP doses of 300 and 600 mg a day but inside the 120-900 mg range other studies used (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)) (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008). Even at those trial doses the results were mixed, so no amount of benfotiamine has a clear, settled effect on nerve symptoms.
Does benfotiamine help sciatica?
No study has tested benfotiamine for sciatica. Its trials involved diabetic nerve damage in the feet, while sciatica usually comes from pressure on a nerve root in the lower back (MedlinePlus, Sciatica). Treat any sciatica benefit as unknown, and see a doctor if leg pain lasts past 4 weeks.
Can you take too much benfotiamine?
No upper limit has been set for thiamin, and BENDIP found 600 mg a day well tolerated for 6 weeks (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)) (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008). With SciatiEase, the limit to respect is the 4-capsule serving, mainly because of the 20 mg of vitamin B6.
Is benfotiamine better than regular thiamine?
Our sources do not show that it works better for nerves. Benfotiamine is built to dissolve in fat, and the body changes it into thiamin (NIH ODS, Thiamin (benfotiamine)). Many vitamin B1 neuropathy studies tested benfotiamine, which may explain why nerve formulas use it.
What did the BENDIP trial find about benfotiamine?
BENDIP gave 165 people 300 mg, 600 mg or placebo a day for 6 weeks. One symptom score improved only among people who stuck to the plan, and the total score showed no clear difference (BENDIP trial, benfotiamine 2008). The authors asked for more studies.
Who wrote this10
Written and reviewed by
Pages built from the label, the official site, the sales page and linked NIH, FDA, FTC and peer-reviewed sources.
Last updated . Read our editorial standards and how we check reviews. This website is run by a SciatiEase authorized U.S. retailer, not by the manufacturer. We are paid a commission when you buy through our order links.
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