Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid): Benefits, Skin, Hair, Acne and Dosage (The Complete 2026 Guide)

★ Vitamin B5: 50 mg per capsule

B Vitamin Complex (30 capsules)

Vitamin B5 produces Coenzyme A, the central hub of sugar and fat metabolism. It only acts surrounded by the seven other B vitamins, brought together here in active forms in a daily plant-based capsule made in France.

8 B vitamins Active forms 1 capsule per day Vegan

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1. Pantothenic acid, coenzyme A, panthenol

Isolated in 1933 by Roger Williams from yeast, pantothenic acid received its name from the Greek pantothen, "from everywhere," because the researcher found it in absolutely all the tissues he analyzed. Its structure is simple: an acid linked to a derivative of amino acid, beta-alanine. Its function, on the other hand, is far from minor: it is the obligatory starting point for the synthesis of coenzyme A, often abbreviated CoA.

This coenzyme is probably the most solicited molecule in metabolism after ATP. In the form ofacetyl-CoA, it constitutes the crossroads where the degradation of sugars, fats and certain amino acids converge, before entry into the Krebs cycle which produces energy. It also feeds the construction pathways: the synthesis of fatty acids, that of cholesterol and therefore everything derived from it (steroid hormones, vitamin D, bile salts), and that ofacetylcholine, neurotransmitter of memory and muscle control. It is finally involved in the acetylation of proteins, a regulatory mechanism that extends to gene expression. Another part of the vitamin is used to produce the acyl-carrying protein, essential for the construction of fatty acids.

Cosmetics, on the other hand, do not use pantothenic acid but dexpanthenol, also called provitamin B5 or panthenol: the same molecule whose acidic function has been replaced by an alcohol. This small change makes the compound more stable, less irritating and above all capable of crossing the stratum corneum, where it transforms back into pantothenic acid. This is the version you find in repair ointments, soothing creams and hair care products, and whose data we will see in section 6.

2. What is vitamin B5 for? The claims recognized by EFSA

European regulation No. 432/2012 authorizes five claims for pantothenic acid, provided that the product provides at least 15% of the NRV (0.9 mg) per serving. Vitamin B5 contributes to:

• a normal energy metabolism ;
• to the synthesis and normal metabolism of steroid hormones, vitamin D and certain neurotransmitters ;
• to normal intellectual performance ;
• à reduce fatigue ;
• to normal energy metabolism as part of combined formulations.

The second one deserves mention, because it is unique across the entire European list. It reflects the fact that coenzyme A is essential for the manufacture of cholesterol, the raw material for steroid hormones (cortisol, estrogens, testosterone, aldosterone) and vitamin D, as well as for acetylcholine production. This is a claim of possibility, not of potency : without B5, these syntheses do not occur; with more B5 than necessary, they do not occur better. The entire section 10 stems from this distinction.

3. How much vitamin B5 per day?

As with biotin, requirements are expressed as "adequate intake" rather than as a nutritional reference value, due to lack of data to establish a precise average requirement: the value retained corresponds to what healthy populations consume. European dietary surveys place average intakes between 4 and 7 mg per day in adults, that is around or above the target.

Theabsence of a safety limit rests on remarkable safety. Doses of several grams per day were administered in trials, particularly for acne and cholesterol, without notable effects except mild digestive disturbances and sometimes diarrhea at very high doses. Calcium pantothenate, the form used in supplements, is stable and well absorbed. That said, absence of danger does not mean presence of benefit: beyond the requirement, nothing indicates that a supplement changes anything in a well-nourished person.

4. Foods rich in vitamin B5

The logic of B5 is the inverse of that of vitamin B12, concentrated in a few foods of animal origin: here, almost everything contains some, and the total adds up without thinking about it. A varied vegan diet covers the requirement without difficulty, unlike what happens with B12 or riboflavin.

Two factors nonetheless reduce intake. The refining removes approximately half of the vitamin from cereals, along with the bran and germ. And industrial processing weighs more heavily than one might think: vitamin B5 is sensitive to prolonged heat, freezing-thawing, and acidic or alkaline environments, with losses of 30 to 50% for canned foods, prepared meals, and long cooking times. A diet predominantly composed of industrial foods therefore provides significantly less B5 than the tables suggest, though this is not enough to create a deficiency.

5. Burning feet syndrome: the only known deficiency

During World War II, physicians observed a strange syndrome in prisoners of war held in Southeast Asia: intense burning of the feet, with tingling and throbbing pain that prevented walking and sleeping, in severely malnourished men. Other B vitamins made no difference. Pantothenic acid, on the other hand, relieved the symptoms. This burning feet syndrome remains, eighty years later, the only manifestation clearly attributed to a lack of vitamin B5 in humans.

Researchers subsequently confirmed the condition through deliberate experiments, administering to volunteers a diet lacking B5 or a vitamin antagonist. The symptoms observed were: intense fatigue, headaches, sleep disturbances, irritability, apathy, nausea, abdominal cramps, numbness and burning of the extremities, and an abnormal response to stress. Nothing specific, except the feet.

In clinical practice today, B5 deficiency is encountered only in contexts of major malnutrition, and never alone: it then accompanies deficiencies in thiamine, in niacin and other micronutrients, in situations of severe alcoholism, anorexia, malabsorption, or artificial nutrition without supplementation. Blood or urine testing exists but is neither standardized nor routinely available, which explains why it is practiced almost exclusively in research.

6. Panthenol and skin: what is really proven

Dexpanthenol arrived in dermatology in 1944, in an ointment whose name became generic in several European countries. Its logic is simple: pantothenic acid is essential for skin renewal, but it penetrates poorly; its alcohol version, however, crosses the stratum corneum and transforms back into the vitamin once inside. The result is a high local concentration where it is needed.

The uses where dexpanthenol makes the most sense are those where the skin barrier is damaged: dry and rough skin, irritations, redness after exposure or aggressive treatment, rubbed or macerated areas, aftermath of minor procedures, chapped lips, nursing-related nipple irritation, atopic dermatitis as adjunctive care between flare-ups. Two honest nuances: it is a repairing and soothingagent, not an anti-aging or depigmenting one, and some of the available research comes from the historical manufacturer of the ointment, which invites reading the most enthusiastic conclusions with caution. This does not undermine the essentials, confirmed by decades of use: it works, it's certain, and it's inexpensive.

The comparison with other B vitamins for skin is instructive. Niacinamide acts on pigmentation, sebum and fine lines; dexpanthenol on barrier, repair and soothing. The two complement each other well and are often found in the same formulas. Neither replaces sunscreen protection, and neither can be taken orally to act on skin.

7. Vitamin B5 and acne: what is the value of the only published trial?

The idea of using pantothenic acid against acne comes from a hypothesis formulated in the 1990s: since coenzyme A is necessary for the breakdown of fatty acids, a relative deficiency would lead to their accumulation and thus increased sebum production. The theory is appealing but has never been demonstrated, and it long served to justify doses of several grams per day, without the slightest controlled trial. Then, in 2014, a trial was published.

This result deserves to be known, and it also deserves to be read with precision. Forty-one evaluable participantsis small: at this size, a difference can appear or disappear depending on recruitment chance. The twelve-week duration is appropriate for acne but short for judging a long-term strategy. The product tested was not pantothenic acid alone but a supplement based on this vitamin, which does not allow the effect to be attributed to B5 alone. The study was conducted and funded by the manufacturer of the product. And most importantly, twelve years later, it has still not been replicated by an independent team, even though a positive trial on such a commercial subject usually attracts replications.

What should be made of this? If you have mild acne and wish to try it, the risk-benefit ratio is favorable: the vitamin is harmless, the cost is low, and you will know within three months. But do not do it instead of proper treatment: inflammatory acne that leaves scars can be treated, and zinc, which several trials support for its effect on inflammatory lesions, has a more solid evidence base, as do the topical and systemic treatments prescribed by a dermatologist. Our Zinc provides 14 mg of elemental zinc in gluconate form, with vitamin B6.

8. Hair: where the panthenol myth comes from

Since the 1940s, panthenol has been one of the most widely used ingredients in hair cosmetics, so much so that entire brands have built their messaging around it. What it does is documented and holds no mystery: a humectant molecule of small size, it slightly penetrates the cuticle, retains water, coats the fiber, increases its flexibility, reduces friction and therefore mechanical breakage, and improves shine. Treated hair appears thicker and smoother. All of this is true, measurable, and stops at the next wash.

The slip happened naturally: since panthenol "does good for hair," it was assumed that ingesting it would do even better. It's the same confusion as with biotin, except that biotin at least has a European claim regarding the maintenance of normal hair, while vitamin B5 has none. There is no no randomized trials showing that oral supplementation with pantothenic acid modifies hair density, diameter, growth rate, or hair loss in a non-deficient person. Hair formulas containing it always combine it with other active ingredients anyway, which makes its individual role impossible to demonstrate.

If your hair is falling out, the useful approach is the one we detail in our article on proven actives against hair loss : find a cause (ferritin, thyroid, vitamin D, hormones, effluvium after a shock), correct it, and ensure complete nutritional intake in the meantime. Our Sublimator® works on this basis by combining nineteen vitamins and minerals with sulfur-containing amino acids, MSM, horsetail and bamboo, rather than betting on a single vitamin at high dose.

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Pantethine is not vitamin B5: it is a derivative closer to coenzyme A, used at 600 to 900 mg per day. Two North American trials show LDL reductions of 4 to 11%, modest but real, with manufacturer funding. Vitamin B5 from a complex, on the other hand, has no effect on cholesterol. Pantethine is an intermediate located between pantothenic acid and coenzyme A. Used since the 1980s in Japan and Italy as a lipid-lowering agent, it would work by modulating the activity of enzymes involved in cholesterol and fatty acid synthesis. The first trials, conducted in high-risk patients, showed significant effects; the question remained what this would look like in a Western population at more modest risk, under controlled diet.

Three remarks to contextualize these results. The sample sizes are small, especially in the second trial, and the reductions obtained in the first (4 to 6 mg/dL) are of much smaller magnitude than those of a statin, which lowers LDL by 30 to 50%. Both trials were funded by the Japanese manufacturer of the molecule, and several authors are linked to it. Finally, what these studies evaluated is pantethine at 600-900 mg, a specific product, and not the pantothenic acid from a B vitamin complex at 5 or 50 mg, which has never shown any lipid effect.

If cholesterol is your concern, the documented levers are elsewhere: diet, physical activity, and treatment prescribed when indicated. Our article on elevated LDL cholesterol reviews the nutrients and plants that have data, and our formula Cholisine relies on red rice yeast, guggul, garlic and policosanol, with the intent to support rather than treat.

10. The "anti-stress vitamin": what's true

The "anti-stress vitamin" label has stuck to B5 since the 1970s, and it rests on a logical chain that isn't wrong, only incomplete. Coenzyme A is necessary for cholesterol production; cholesterol is the raw material for cortisol, the hormone that the adrenal glands produce in response to stress; the adrenals are in fact one of the body's organs richest in coenzyme A; and in animals made B5-deficient, we observe adrenal damage with decreased hormone production. Apparent conclusion: B5 "supports the adrenals."

The problem is the final logical leap. Everything above describes a necessary condition : without B5, no cortisol. This says nothing about what happens when you add it to someone who isn't deficient, and the answer, as with most vitamins, is: nothing. No controlled trial has shown that pantothenic acid supplementation reduces perceived stress, fatigue, or cortisol levels in a person with normal intake. The European claim is moreover worded with a caution that should alert: "contributes to synthesis and normal metabolism of steroid hormones." Normal, not increased.

A word on " adrenal fatigue ," a concept very prevalent online and often associated with B5: it corresponds to no recognized entity in endocrinology. Scientific societies have examined the question and found no evidence that adrenal exhaustion explains chronic fatigue. What does exist, however, is adrenal insufficiency, a rare, serious, and perfectly diagnosable disease, treated with hormones rather than vitamins. If you're exhausted, our chronic fatigue guide details the causes worth exploring first, and adaptogenic plants such asashwagandha do have controlled trials on perceived stress.

11. Vitamins B4, B10, B15, B17: setting the record straight

The gap-filled numbering in the B group always intrigues: why jump from B3 to B5, B6 to B8, B9 to B12? Because early 20th-century chemists numbered as they made discoveries, before realizing that certain compounds weren't vitamins: either the body can make them, or they're not essential, or they corresponded to a molecule already named. These orphaned numbers continue to circulate in commerce nonetheless.

Two of these molecules deserve clarification, because they appear in serious formulas: the PABA andinositol are not vitamins, but they are not fanciful ingredients either. PABA has been studied in certain skin fibroses and absorbs ultraviolet rays, which led to its use in sunscreen, now abandoned due to allergies. Inositol has real evidence in polycystic ovary syndrome. Finding them in a supplement is therefore not a red flag; what should raise concern is seeing them presented as "B vitamins" with a number attached.

12. When the coenzyme A pathway breaks down

The PKAN, for pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration, is caused by mutations in the PANK2 gene, which codes the only mitochondrial form of pantothenate kinase, the enzyme that initiates the conversion of vitamin B5 into coenzyme A. It is the most common of the neurodegenerative diseases with iron accumulation in the brain, a group of rare diseases affecting children and young adults.

The condition combines progressive movement disorder with dystonia and rigidity, speech difficulties, cognitive impairment, and retinitis pigmentosa. Imaging shows a characteristic sign in the globus pallidus, described as a "tiger's eye," which corresponds to iron accumulation (Hayflick, Handb Clin Neurol, 2018; Hartig, Curr Drug Targets, 2012). There is no curative treatment: management is symptomatic, with demonstrated benefit from deep brain stimulation on dystonia, and consensus recommendations published in 2016 (Hogarth, Mol Genet Metab, 2016). Approaches are exploring pantethine, capable of feeding an alternative pathway for coenzyme A synthesis, and iron chelators.

Why mention it here? Because this disease provides information that ordinary nutrition never gives: it shows what happens when the coenzyme A pathway is truly defective, and how dependent the brain is on it. It also reminds us of the difference between a genetic enzyme defect and a nutritional deficiency: in PKAN, the vitamin is present, it's the lock that is broken, and providing more key is not enough.

13. Choosing wisely: which form, which route?

• The form : calcium pantothenate is the form in supplements, stable and well absorbed; dexpanthenol or panthenol is the cosmetic form, to be applied; pantethine is a distinct derivative, to be reserved for studied uses.
• The dose : 5 to 50 mg per day cover all nutritional needs with a comfortable margin. The grams used in some trials are not part of routine use.
• The route : irritated, dry, or healing skin, local application is where the evidence is. Ingesting B5 for skin or hair has never been demonstrated.
• The supporting cast : B5 produces energy with B1, B2, and B3; a balanced complex is more coherent than an isolated vitamin.
• The claims : "supports the adrenal glands," "anti-stress," "promotes hair growth," "treats acne" are not authorized claims. The five valid claims are listed in section 2.

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