A nutrition label lists vitamin B2, B6, B12 and vitamin C. A patient asks why these don't need to be taken with a fatty meal. Which explanation best reflects the absorption characteristic of these vitamins?

• A. They must first be esterified in the intestinal wall to fat-soluble esters before absorption, which requires dietary fat and pancreatic lipase activity.
• B. They are small fat-soluble molecules that are transported in chylomicrons and must be co-ingested with long-chain triglycerides to enter circulation.
• C. They are water-soluble and therefore absorbed into the portal circulation without requiring micelles, bile salts, or dietary fat.
• D. They are absorbed by the colon only when bile acids are present and therefore need dietary fat to trigger bile release and subsequent uptake.

Answer: (C)