Vitamin B5
Pantothenic acid, a B vitamin
A B vitamin found in almost all foods, also called pantothenic acid, with supplement forms including calcium pantothenate, pantethine and panthenol. This page covers only studies in people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy, tiredness or quality of life, so it is not all research on vitamin B5. Few studies give it on its own, and most give it in a B complex or multivitamin, which this page counts but doesn't list.
- Found in: meat, eggs, mushrooms, avocado and wholegrains
- Dose not stated in the one study on its own
- Mostly studied inside blends
From every paper to the studies that matter
Most research on vitamin B5 is in the lab, in animals or about its role in the body. This page counts only studies in people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy, tiredness or quality of life, and only a very small number give vitamin B5 on its own.
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455 papers mention vitamin B5.Every record in PubMed, all years
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56 are about people.The rest: 167 lab and animal studies, 61 reviews, 171 on chemistry, farming and more
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1 give vitamin B5 on its own and measured these topics.9 more give it in a B complex, multivitamin or other blend
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0 are randomised against a placebo.Randomised controlled trials In a randomised controlled trial, people are put into groups by chance, one taking the treatment and one a placebo or other comparison. Chance spreads differences such as age and health evenly, so a difference between the groups is more likely to be down to the treatment., the strongest kind of study
Bar lengths use a square-root scale so the small numbers stay visible.
How much research there is
- 1 studies giving vitamin B5 to people and measuring these topics
- 0 of them randomised against a placebo A placebo-controlled trial compares a real treatment with a dummy that looks the same, the placebo. People often feel better when they expect to, so comparing against a placebo shows how much of the change comes from the treatment itself.
- 0 people taking part, where studies say
- 5 systematic reviews A systematic review searches for every study on a question in a set, written-down way, judges the quality of each and sums up what they show together. Many include a meta-analysis. The Atlas lists these as pooled reviews. pooling the trials
Studies in people, by year published
Vitamin B5 on its own. Studies giving it in a blend are counted but not charted.
What the studies looked at
Each study can measure several things. Choose a topic to see its studies in the list below.
Studies in people with a diagnosed condition are counted here and listed with their population. We describe what they measured, not what they might treat. Most studies also report safety; see below.
What was tested, and how much
Vitamin B5 comes as several forms (calcium pantothenate, pantethine, panthenol), and the one study of it on its own gave a single large dose of pantethine without stating the amount in its summary, so there is nothing to chart yet. Doses given inside a blend are the vitamin's own share where the paper states it.
Daily amount, one dot per study
Studies per extract
Named extracts are the maker's brand. "Not named" means the study didn't say.
All studies in people
Only one study gives vitamin B5 on its own, from 1987. Most studies give it in a B complex or multivitamin, which this page counts but doesn't list. Filter the list, then open a study on PubMed. Each row comes from the study's published summary.
| Study | Who took part | People | Extract and daily dose | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sellini 1987Single-arm or open-label | Healthy subjects | – | Pantethine | – |
What's known about safety
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In trials
We found no review of side effects in trials of vitamin B5 for these topics, and the few studies on its own are old and small. Safety information from trials is therefore very limited.
Evidence library for vitamin B5, 2 studies on its own, Oct 2026
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In the UK
The NHS says no amount has been set in the UK for how much pantothenic acid you need, and that most people get enough from a varied diet. It says taking 200 mg or less a day in supplements is unlikely to cause any harm, and that there isn't enough evidence to know the effects of higher daily doses.
NHS, Vitamins and minerals, B vitamins and folic acid (pantothenic acid), opened Oct 2026
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Check first
We found no trial or UK guidance on vitamin B5 in pregnancy or breastfeeding, or on how it mixes with medicines. Speak to a pharmacist or doctor first if either applies to you, or if you want to take more than 200 mg a day.
No trials or UK guidance found on these, Oct 2026
Where these studies come from
We list every published study of vitamin B5 in people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy, tiredness or quality of life. Pantothenic acid, calcium pantothenate, pantethine, panthenol and dexpanthenol all count. Studies that only measure it, such as blood levels or diet surveys, are left out, as are studies where only the control group or both groups got it as background. Given with other vitamins, minerals or actives the comparison group didn't get, it counts as in a blend. This first version is built from each study's summary; full-paper checks come next.
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We search
PubMed, the world's main library of medical research, for every paper on L-theanine.
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We keep studies in people
Lab and animal work is counted but left out of the list, because it doesn't tell you what happens in people.
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We note the basics
Who took part, how many, how much and for how long, from each study's published summary. A second check corrects what the first read gets wrong.
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We read them in full
Results appear once we've read the whole paper and checked every number. The date at the top shows when this entry was last updated.
Download the study list
Every study in people as a spreadsheet, 1 rows, free to reuse with a link back.
Versions
Each update to the data gets a new version number, so you can tell what changed and when.
See every version
1.0 · 24 Oct 2026. First release. Every published study giving vitamin B5 to people that measured thinking, memory, mood, stress, sleep, energy or quality of life is listed from its summary. None is read in full yet.
