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Vitamin B12 supplements essential as part of your weight loss program. What are the benefits of vitamin B12 for weight loss? Vitamin B12 boosts metabolism, in addition to providing energy and stabilizing your mood.

The Many Benefits of Vitamin B12…

B12 boosts metabolism

Vitamin B12 contains cobalt; together, the minerals that make up vitamin B12, cobalamin, are essential coenzymes that increase metabolism by converting food to energy in the body.  In diagnosing vitamin B12 deficiency, researchers often take into account changes in the metabolic rate, in addition to measuring levels of B12 and homocysteine.

“Elevated methylmalonic acid levels might be a more reliable indicator of vitamin B12 status because they indicate a metabolic change that is highly specific to vitamin B12 deficiency.” – National Institutes of Health

People with high metabolisms tend to lose weight more quickly and efficiently than others who have slower metabolic rates.  In order to burn fat at an optimal rate, it is essential to maintain healthy stores of vitamin B12.

B12 boosts energy

If you have symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, then you experience symptoms such as tiredness, muscular weakness, decreased motor skills, and lack of energy. 

Unfortunately, many people who suffer symptoms of low B12 don’t even know it. Often, comorbid conditions such as clinical depression, anxiety disorder, fibromyalgia, diabetes, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), or hypothyroidism (low thyroid) mask the signs of vitamin B12 deficiency.  So, despite taking treatments such as antidepressants, insulin, thyroid medications, or pain relievers, they continue to feel sad and tired all the time, battling with constant “brain fog” without knowing why.

Increasing your energy level provides mental focus, determination, and emotional wellness, in addition to improving your quality of life.  These things together assure weight loss success by enabling you to stick to a workout routine, increase your sports performance and stamina, challenge yourself in the gym, and stay on track.

B12 boosts mood

Common symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are depression, chronic fatigue, anxiety, paranoia, and unusually aggressive behavior.  When you are in a bad mood, you are more likely to make poor lifestyle choices, such as smoking, drug use, oversleeping, eating fattening, salty or sugary foods, and sedentary activities like television watching and playing video games.

Eating Your Way Out of Depression with B-12

Scientists have proven a high correlation between depression and weight gain.  If you feel sluggish, depressed, or more fatigued than usual, then you are statistically less likely to follow an exercise regimen or commit yourself to a new weight loss diet. 

Only by taking vitamin B12 supplements can you begin to recover from symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency and achieve an overall sense of well-being.

Read more about the benefits of vitamin B12:

Balance your B12, Balance your Nerves

Vitamin B12- How much do you need?

Sources:

Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin B12

Does B12 Speed Up Metabolism?

How Can a B12 Deficiency Affect the Metabolism? Livestrong

What Are the Benefits of Vitamin B12 for Weight Loss? Livestrong

Image credits, from top:

Ambro, photostock

Being tired all the time is a symptom of B12 deficiency, but it can also signal hypothyroidism (low thyroid), a thyroid disease that occurs with low B12 levels.  Because hypothyroid symptoms are similar, vitamin B12 deficiency often goes undetected.

B12 deficiency causes fatigue, depression, and other mood disorders often associated with an underactive thyroid. If you’ve been diagnosed with thyroiditis, then it’s also important also to recognize the symptoms of B12 deficiency, and know whether you might require more vitamin B12 (cobalamin).

What is hypothyroidism?

Hypothyroidism is an autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD) that occurs in the thyroid gland, causing inflammation, and reducing its ability to produce sufficient amounts of thyroid hormones.
Hashimoto’s disease is one example of thyroiditis that causes low thyroid levels.  

Sometimes, thyroid treatment for hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid), such as radioactive iodine or surgery, can backfire, causing underactive thyroid symptoms.

Why am I always tired?  Symptoms of hypothyroidism

Symptoms of low thyroid include:

• Empty facial expressions
• Husky, gravelly voice
• Chronic fatigue, tiredness
• Sluggish, droning speech patterns
• “Brain fog,” or confusion
• Depression
• Uncontrolled weight gain
• Droopy eyelids
• Puffy, bloated face
• Constipation
• Diarrhea
• Dry skin and hair
• Sparse hair, including eyebrows
• Tingling and numbness in the hands and feet
• Muscular pain
• Feebleness
• Slow resting heart rate
• Orange-colored skin on the hands and feet
• Heavy menstrual periods in women

Vitamin B12 for Healthy Hair, Skin and Nails

Vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms

Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble nutrient that is responsible for making red blood cells, controlling DNA synthesis, regulating the nervous system, and improving cognitive functioning.  Without proper levels of vitamin B12, you may suffer neurological damage, dementia, or heart attack resulting from elevated homocysteine levels.

Low B12 symptoms include:

• Depression
• Chronic fatigue, tiredness
• Anxiety
• Short-term memory loss
• “Brain fog,” or confusion
• Difficulty concentrating
• Neurosis
• Altered taste perception
• Swollen, red tongue
• Tingling and numbness in the hands and feet
• Awkward hand movements
• Loss of balance
• Clumsiness and stumbling
• Sleep problems

Balance your B12, Balance your Nerves

Thyroid disease and low B12 levels

In a study conducted in Sapir Medical Center, Kfar Saba, Israel, patients with autoimmune thyroid disease received blood screening for vitamin B12 deficiency.  Researchers noted a significantly high percentage of people with AITD who also had vitamin B12 deficiency caused by pernicious anemia, a disease that inhibits proper absorption of vitamin B12.

Another study conducted in Pakistan by Aga Khan University produced similar results; namely, a 40% prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency among patients with hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism treatment

If you are a patient of hypothyroidism, then physicians strongly recommend routine blood testing for vitamin B12 deficiency, regardless of thyroid hormone levels.

Read more about B12 deficiency:

6 Degrees of Vitamin B12- B12 Deficiency and Autoimmune Disease

Worried about Low B12 Lab Results?

Female Rapper Missy Elliot, 15 Celebs with Thyroid Disorders

Sources:

Prevalence and evaluation of B12 deficiency in patients with autoimmune thyroid disease- PubMed NCBI

Hypothyroidism- PubMed Health

Vitamin B12 deficiency common in primary hypothyroidism- PubMed NCBI

Hypothyroidism & Vitamin B12 Deficiency- LIVESTRONG.COM

Vitamin B12 deficiency common in primary hypothyroidism

Image credits, from top:

vitasamb2001, jscreationzs, Ambro

Did you know that Vitamin B12 is one of the most important vitamins for bones? Osteoporosis is one of many illnesses triggered by vitamin B12 deficiency. Studies prove that elderly individuals who maintain high levels of vitamin B12 are less likely to suffer from fractured or broken bones than those who neglect to supplement with vitamin B12 shots.

What is the cause of osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis happens with age for millions of Americans- there exist many factors that cause loss of bone mass, brittle bones, and other symptoms of osteoporosis.  Low calcium absorption is one cause of broken bones and fractured hips in old age, but other causes include:

• Estrogen deficiency in women
• Testosterone deficiency in men
• Thyroid disorders
• Smoking and alcohol use
• Vitamin deficiency, including calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12

What is B12 deficiency?

Vitamin B12 deficiency occurs from neglecting to eat a diet rich in sources of vitamin B12, such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and milk, but it can occur if your body is unable to extract vitamin B12 from foods that you eat.  Such is the case for millions of individuals, either because

• (a) they lack “intrinsic factor,” a protein required for digesting vitamin B12 naturally from foods
• (b) because of drug interactions, such as metformin for diabetes, or
• (c) because of post-gastrectomy complications that resulted in pernicious anemia.

(Read Vitamin B12 deficiency after Bariatric Surgery Weight Loss)

What are the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency?

Unless treated, B12 deficiency causes red blood cell depletion, neurological damage, dementia, osteoporosis, malnourishment, and increased risk for heart attack, stroke.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are:

• Fatigue, listlessness
• Depression
• Memory loss
• Anxiety
• Psychosis
• Numbness and tingling sensations in hands and feet
• Muscular feebleness
• Frequent stumbling
• Altered taste perception
• Red, swollen tongue
• Unusually pale complexion

What do studies say about the benefits of vitamin B12?

In a study conducted by Tufts University that focused on low-plasma vitamin B12 and bone mineral density (BMD), researchers found that men who had the lowest levels of B12 in their blood also had the lowest bone mineral density, particularly in their hipbones.  Similarly, women who suffered vitamin B12 deficiency exhibited severely low BMD in their spine.

They concluded that vitamin B12 deficiency is a significant risk factor for osteoporosis, which explains why the loss of bone mass occurs so frequently among the elderly:

As you age, your body produces fewer stomach acids needed for digesting vitamins and minerals.

As a result, many senior citizens develop vitamin deficiencies, including B12 deficiency.  Since they are unable to absorb B12 through the digestive system, they must therefore deposit it directly into the bloodstream.

Another study by the University of Michigan recognized severe osteoporosis as correlating strongly with pernicious anemia-vitamin B12 deficiency.

What are the best vitamins for osteoporosis?

It is crucial to eat a diet rich in all essential vitamins and minerals, in addition to taking regular vitamin supplements.  The best vitamins for bones are vitamin D and vitamin B12.

If you suspect you have vitamin B12 deficiency, then ask your doctor for a blood test.  If diagnosed, then you will require routine vitamin B12 supplements until your B12 levels are back to normal.

Read more about preventing vitamin B12 deficiency:

Absorbing Vitamin B12, a Metabolic Gastrointestinal Journey

Nine Healthiest Canned Foods: Many Contain Vitamin B12

Pregnancy and B12 Deficiency

Sources:

Fight Osteoporosis: Bone Up On B12

Low plasma vitamin B12 is associated with lower BMD: the Framingham Osteoporosis Study- PubMed NCBI

Reversal of severe osteoporosis with vitamin B12 and etidronate therapy in a patient with pernicious anemia- PubMed NCBI

Post-Gastrectomy Syndrome Overview- Cleveland Clinic

What Causes Osteoporosis? And Why?

Image credits, from top:

starpause kid, Idea go, Paul, Carlos Porto

If you’re having trouble finding balance, B12 deficiency might be the culprit.  Symptoms of vitamin B-12 deficiency– dizziness and nerve damage like ataxia (unsteady gait, difficulty keeping balance), and numbness or tingling in hands and feet require B12 supplements.

Vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms

Vitamin B12 occurs naturally in all meat, cheese, and egg products, but if you are one of millions of people who cannot absorb B12 efficiently, then you will start feeling symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency.  Some common emotional and cognitive signs of B12 deficiency are:

• Chronic fatigue, sleepiness
• Memory loss
• Confusion
• Difficulty concentrating
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Aggressiveness
• Paranoia
• Psychoses
• Dementia

Nerve damage caused by B12 deficiency

In addition to psychiatric symptoms, vitamin B12 deficiency causes severe damage to your nerves, notably subacute combined degeneration (SCD) of the spinal cord– a severe neurological disorder caused by B-12 deficiency.  SCD causes damage in your spinal cord, brain, and peripheral nerves, beginning with the myelin sheathe.

1- The myelin sheathe- your nervous system’s “ozone layer”
The myelin sheath is a protective covering that surrounds many of your nerves, providing a shield from potential danger.  The myelin sheathe also accelerates communication between your nerves and your many bodily sensors (hands, feet, tongue, nose, eyes).  Vitamin B12 aids your body in maintaining this essential protective mechanism, and low levels of B12 often result in a breakdown of the myelin sheathe.  

2- Communication breakdown

The nerves of your spinal cord rely on a steady inflow of information from your nerve sensors throughout your body.  Messages from the nerves in your legs, for example, flow along the spinal cord and to the brain, thus controlling movements like running, walking, skipping, and tapping your feet.  Nerve damage causes these signals to become misinterpreted, resulting in poor coordination, or gait ataxia.

3- Gait ataxia- taking the spring out of your step

A typical sign of abnormal neurological behavior resulting from B12 deficiency is gait ataxia, which is difficulty walking.  Gait ataxia is also one of the symptoms of pernicious anemia, red blood cell disease associated with prolonged vitamin B-12 deficiency.  Symptoms of gait ataxia are:

• Unsteady gait, difficulty walking without stumbling
• Difficulty staying balanced on one leg
• Trembling awkward movements, clumsiness
• Muscular weakness in the legs and arms
• Spasticity
• Hypotension (low blood pressure)
• Vision problems, blurriness

4- Paresthesias- “pins and needles” and numbness sensations

An early sign of nerve damage related to vitamin B12 cobalamin deficiency is paresthesias, resulting in numbness and tingling in the hands and feet.  Paresthesias is a kind of peripheral neuropathy that affects the peripheral nerves that run along your spinal cord and to your extremities, thus causing that pins and needles sensation that you often feel in your hands and feet.

Do you have vitamin B12 deficiency?  Go ask a hematologist.

The only way to determine if you are indeed suffering from vitamin B12 deficiency is by getting a blood test.  If a physician diagnoses you with dangerously low levels of B12, then he may recommend B12 injections, which will require a prescription.

Sources:

• Vitamin B12- Evidence- Mayo Clinic
• Vitamin B12 Deficiency & Ataxia- LIVESTRONG.COM
• B12 and Gait Ataxia
• B12 Deficiency and Dizziness
• Neurologic aspects of cobalamin deficiency- PubMed NCBI
• Subacute Combined Degeneration – Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment of Subacute Combined Degeneration – NY Times Health Information

Image credits, from top:

• Stuart Miles
• Ambro
• anankkml
• Jeroen van Oostrom
• graur codrin

Vitamin B12 benefits your nervous system and many other biochemical reactions;  Find out how Vitamin B12 supplements can help you live a healthier lifestyle.

What is vitamin B12?

Vitamin B-12 (Cobalamin) is an essential nutrient that occurs naturally in protein food sources, such as beef, poultry, fish, eggs, and milk.  The B12 vitamin is one of the B-complex vitamins.  Other B vitamins are vitamin B9 (folate) and vitamin B3 (niacin).

B12 Benefits

Vitamin B12 is important for many bodily functions.  B12 helps your body produce red blood cells, regulates your nervous system, boosts your immunity, and protects cognitive functioning.  Some other benefits of vitamin B12 include lowering your risk for heart attack and stroke by regulating homocysteine levels.

B12 Deficiency: Don’t Ignore the Symptoms

What is the best way to get vitamin B12?

The best way to get enough vitamin B12 in your diet is by eating plenty of lean meats, chicken, fish, eggs, and dairy products. Foods that have the highest levels of vitamin B12 are clams, oysters, beef liver, and halibut. 

However, eating B12-rich foods does not guarantee against vitamin B12 deficiency.  Some people are unable to digest B12 naturally from foods, and must take B12 supplements in order to avoid symptoms of malnourishment, such as fatigue, depression, irritability, numbness in hands and feet, memory loss, and difficulty concentrating.

Most physicians prescribe vitamin B12 shots, sublingual B12, or b12 vitamins after diagnosing B12 deficiency.

Read more about vitamin B12 benefits:

Vitamin B12- How much do you need?

Cruising for a Bruising? Choose Vitamin B12 Shots or Anemia

Signs and Symptoms of 6 Types of Anemia Blood Disease

Sources:

Benefits Of Taking Vitamin B12- LIVESTRONG.COM

Image credits, from top:

jscreationzs, Maggie Smith, Idea go, Paul, Suat Eman

Do you know how much vitamin B12 you need in order to avoid vitamin B12 deficiency? Unless you supplement, you could wind up with dangerously low vitamin B12 levels.  Find out if your B12 blood levels are normal and how much you need to meet the FDA’s RDA for vitamin B12.

What are the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency?

Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin) is a water-soluble nutrient that your body gets from protein sources, such as beef, chicken, liver, fish, eggs, and dairy products.  Your body uses vitamin B12 for DNA synthesis, protecting your nervous system, and strengthening cognitive skills.  Symptoms that indicate a low vitamin B12 level include constant fatigue, difficulty concentrating, memory loss, tingling or numbness in your hands and feet, depression, agitation, altered taste perception, and red, swollen tongue.

How much B12 is in my blood right now?

By performing a blood test, your doctor can tell you if you are deficient in vitamin B12, or if you have normal B12 levels.  Vitamin B12 blood screening requires a 6-8 hour fast before testing.  Laboratory tests will measure how many picograms (pg) of cobalamin you have per milliliter (ml) of blood in your body.

How much B12 should I have?

• Scientists agree that a normal level of vitamin B12 in your blood is 200 – 900 picograms per milliliter (200-900 pg/ml).
• Test results showing less than 200 pg/ml signal vitamin B12 deficiency.
• For elderly adults, the recommended vitamin B12 level is much higher- Test results showing less than 500 pg/ml indicates B12 deficiency.
• In order to find the cause of a vitamin B12 deficiency, doctors may perform a Schilling test.

What is the recommended dose of vitamin B12?

• The FDA’s RDA of vitamin B12 for healthy adults is approximately three mcg daily for males and females alike, including pregnant and nursing moms.
• For elderly individuals, the recommended dose of vitamin B12 is 25-100 mcg per day.

Scientific study proves that the RDA for B12 is off.

• According to a study conducted in the Netherlands, elderly sufferers of vitamin B12 deficiency need more than the recommended daily allowance (RDA) in order to achieve normal levels of B12.
• Using methylmalonic acid (MMA) levels as a gauge, scientists established that cyanocobalamin supplementation amounting to 200 times the RDA of vitamin B12 is required in order to stabilize B12 levels in patients showing signs of vitamin B12 deficiency.

How much vitamin B12 do you really need?

• Vitamin B12 shots administering a daily dose of 1,000 mcg of cobalamin are  prescribed for the first 10 days following diagnosis of vitamin B12 deficiency, continuing with a weekly dose of 1,000 mcg for a consecutive 4-week period.
  

  Read more about B12 deficiency:

  • Vitamin B12 deficiency after Bariatric Surgery Weight Loss
  • Cruising for a Bruising? Choose Vitamin B12 Shots or Anemia

  Sources:

  • Vitamin B12 level: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
  • Vitamin B12 Level – Tests, Test Results & Diagnosis – NY Times Health Information
  • Vitamin B12: Dosing – MayoClinic.com
  • Oral cyanocobalamin supplementation in older people with vitamin B12 deficiency: a dose-finding trial- PubMed NCBI
  • Learn More about Vitamin B12 Deficiency.
  • USDA: National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference: B-12

  Image credits (from top):

  Danilo Rizzuti, mconnors, jscreationzs

If you’ve had bariatric surgery (gastric bypass surgery, lap band surgery), then you’re at risk for vitamin B12 deficiency. Weight loss surgery causes vitamin B12 malabsorption, in addition to difficulty absorbing other vitamins and minerals. Learn about vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms, and ways to get your B12 levels back to normal.

How many types of bariatric surgery procedures are there?

There are many types of weight loss surgeries, including gastric bypass and lap band surgery, but there are two general categories:

• Malabsorptive surgery rearranges and/or removes part of your intestines so that you are unable to absorb vitamins from foods, thus bypassing the digestive process.  There are no longer any strictly 100% malabsorptive weight loss surgeries, but many such as the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass include a combination of (mostly) malabsorptive and restrictive techniques.
• Restrictive surgery shrinks your stomach, thus causing you to feel full earlier and avoid overeating.  Examples are the gastric sleeve and gastric banding (lap band surgery).

Gastric Bypass Stomach Surgery in Mexico- Would you?

Why do I need to take bariatric vitamins and minerals after having bariatric surgery?

If you’ve had weight loss surgery, then you are at a high risk for vitamin deficiencies, particularly vitamin B12 deficiency.  There are two reasons for this:

If you’ve had malabsorptive surgery, such as a mini-gastric bypass or duodenal switch, then your body is unable to digest water-soluble vitamins such as vitamin B12 from food sources. 

One of the procedures of malabsorptive bariatric surgery is the removal of the ileum, the part of your small intestine responsible for digesting vitamin B12.  

The only way for you to receive enough B12 to avoid vitamin deficiency is to put it directly into your bloodstream, through vitamin B12 shots (Sublingual B12 pills are not your best option for absorbing vitamin B12.)

With restrictive surgery, such as gastric sleeve, your stomach is unable to contain enough food at one time to avoid vitamin deficiency.

10 Mistakes Gastric Bypass Patients Often Make

What are the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, and why should I be worried?

Vitamin B12 supports many important functions in your body- B12 boosts energy and mental clarity, aids in producing red blood cells, maintains your metabolism, protects your >nervous system, strengthens cognitive functioning, and reduces your risk of heart attack or stroke.

Vitamin deficiency is one of many possible gastric bypass complications. In one study on diminished B12 absorption after gastric bypass, 30% of gastric bypass patients suffered from B12 deficiency.

The most common symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are:

• Chronic fatigue
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Short-term memory loss
• “Brain fog”
• Disorientation
• Difficulty concentrating
• Loss of physical balance
• Altered taste perception
• Tingling and/or numbing sensation in hands and feet
• Blurred vision

Left untreated, symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency could escalate into severe neurological damage, early-onset dementia, and even premature death.

Read more about weight loss surgery and vitamin B12 deficiency:

Gastrointestinal Surgery for Crohn’s (IBD) and B12 Warnings

Bariatric Surgery- 13 Reasons you still need to Exercise

Tired of getting Dumped? 4 Ways to avoid Gastric Bypass Dumping.

Sources:

Types of Bariatric Surgery – The 16 Established & Experimental Weight Loss Surgery Procedures

Evidence for diminished B12 absorption after gastric bypass: oral supplementation does not prevent low plasma B12 levels in bypass patients- PubMed NCBI

Vitamin B12 Absorption & Gastric Bypass- LIVESTRONG.COM

Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin B12

Image credits (from top):

kornnphoto, nattavut, alancleaver_2000, o5com

Having a hangover is not fun- Hangovers signal alcohol-poisoning symptoms resulting from vitamin B12 deficiency. For that reason, many hangover remedies include vitamin B12 and folate, another member of the B complex vitamins.

It’s best to avoid drinking too much alcohol, and chronic alcohol abuse is detrimental, not only for your health, but for the mental health of your loved ones.  If you suffer from alcohol addiction, please seek help from a professional, or call your local Alcoholics Anonymous.

What is a hangover?

• A hangover (medical term: Veisalgia) is the aftereffect of your body’s reaction to sudden vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms, in addition to intoxication, hypoglycemia, and dehydration.
• Hangovers are symptoms of alcohol poisoning that many happen after binging on alcoholic beverages.  Certain factors affect your chances of suffering a hangover after drinking, such as body weight, amount of alcohol consumption, and emptiness of stomach.
• A hangover can last for several days following an alcoholic binge.
• Common symptoms of a hangover may include throbbing headache, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, increased sensitivity to bright light and loud noise, and severe thirst.

Vitamin B12– one of many essential B vitamins

Vitamin B12 is crucial for healthy brain development and functioning, in addition to stabilizing the nervous system, producing red blood cells, and reducing your risk for heart attack or stroke.  Vitamin B12, or Cobalamin, is part of the family of B-complex vitamins.

1. Cyanocobalamin (B12)
2. Pyridoxine (B6)
3. Thiamine
4. Folic acid
5. Biotin
6. Niacin
7. Riboflavin
8. Pantothenic acid

B12 deficiency symptoms include fatigue, loss of energy, “brain fog,” short-term memory loss, increased risk of early-onset dementia, and neurological damage.

Vitamin B12- a hangover cure?

Scientists have noted a strong correlation between hangover symptoms and low B12.

• According to Dr. David Katz of the Yale Prevention Research Center, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol inhibits your body’s ability to absorb nutrients such as vitamin B12 and vitamin B6.
• Depending on your level of intoxication, B12 deficiency could be mild- resulting in tiredness, disorientation, and dizziness- or severe, causing extreme depression, nervousness, paranoia, and neurological disorders.
• Taking extra doses of B-complex vitamins, especially vitamin B12 and vitamin B6, before drinking alcohol and the following day, are excellent ways of avoiding vitamin B12 deficiency.  Also, remember to drink plenty of water throughout the day and evening.

Read more about vitamin B12 deficiency:

B12 and Alcohol Consumption

Vitamin Deficiencies can drive you Crazy- Seriously! Part 1

Sources:

• Ten Tried And True Hangover Cures- Forbes.com
• Vitamin B12 vs. The Hangover
• Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)
• Top 10 Hangover Cures
• How to Prevent a Hangover with Vitamin B Complex- eHow.com
• Hangover Cures Causes and Remedies

Image credits:

(From top) Rob Wiltshire, Stuart Miles, ahmet guler, Tina Phillips

Celiac disease and vitamin B12 deficiency are interrelated, but many celiacs are unaware of the high risk for developing vitamin B-12 deficiency. Like celiac disease, vitamin B12 deficiency is sometimes an autoimmune disorder brought on by pernicious anemia.

What is vitamin B-12?

Vitamin B12, “cyanocobalamin,” is an essential nutrient that occurs in protein foods, such as beef and chicken liver, oysters, shrimp, cheese, yogurt, and eggs. Vitamin B12 is water-soluble, and is stored in the liver. 

B12 is crucial for healthy red blood cell production, for protecting your nervous system, for supporting cardiovascular health, and for sustaining normal cognitive functioning, such as memory, thinking skills, and logic.

What are the symptoms of vitamin B-12 deficiency?

If you are unable to sustain sufficient amounts of B12 in your liver, then you may start to feel tired, depressed, and disoriented.  You might notice a numbing or tingling sensation in your hands and feet, described as “pins and needles.” 

You might also notice that you have a hard time remembering important dates or meetings, or finding the right word while talking to somebody or sending an e-mail.

(Read Feed your Brain Something You’ll never Forget)

Some side effects and/or complications that may arise unless you receive treatment for vitamin B12 deficiency:

• Chronic fatigue
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Paranoia
• Aggressiveness
• Distractedness
• Short-term memory loss
• Loss of physical balance
• Tingling-numbing in extremities
• Red, swollen tongue
• Altered taste perception
• Malnourishment
• Anemia
• Increased risk for heart disease or stroke
• Osteoporosis
• Liver disease
• Dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease
• Severe neurological damage

What is celiac disease?

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley.  Celiac patients and others with gluten intolerance must avoid all products containing gluten- baked goods, packaged snacks, and a long list of food additives- in order to avoid symptoms.

Celiac disease is one of many autoimmune diseases that occur with vitamin B12 deficiency.  With celiac, patients who eat any foods containing gluten experience painful symptoms such as stomach cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and achiness.  That is because their immune system identifies gluten as a threat, and begins to attack traces of gluten in the digestive system, causing severe damage to the intestinal tract. 

Why are celiac disease patients at risk for vitamin B12 deficiency?

Scientists don’t claim that celiac disease is an outright cause of low vitamin B12, but they have noted a strong correlation- enough to warrant extensive research and recommendations.

In order to digest nutrients such as vitamin B12 properly, you need to have a healthy digestive system.  People with autoimmune diseases that cause gastrointestinal damage, such as Hashimoto’s disease, Crohn’s disease, and celiac diseases, are unable to absorb nutrients from dietary sources because of damage to their stomach linings, small intestines or colon.  

For them, malabsorption often leads to anemia, osteoporosis, chronic fatigue, and peripheral neuropathy in the hands and feet (thus the tingling and numbness).

Parasitic Worms for Crohn’s Disease- Friendly Gut Bugs

Celiac disease patients, and others who can’t absorb vitamin B12

Besides celiac disease, other factors can make it difficult for your body to absorb enough vitamin B12:

• Chronic alcoholism
• Crohn’s disease
• Inability to produce intrinsic factor, a necessary protein for B12 vitamin absorption
• Gastrointestinal surgeries (gastric bypass, IBD surgery) that involve removing your ileum, a part of your small intestine that helps you digest vitamin B12 from food
• Long-time usage of heartburn medications
• Following a vegan diet

Does following a gluten-free diet cure vitamin B12 deficiency?

Not entirely; according to research by the University of Edinburgh, people who suffer celiac disease, but do not receive treatment, have a 41% chance of developing vitamin B12 deficiency. 

In celiac patients who started following a gluten-free diet, most of their symptoms disappeared.  However, a significant amount of celiacs continued to suffer neuropathic symptoms such as tingling and numbness, and those side effects did not disappear until they brought their vitamin B12 levels back to normal with routine vitamin B12 supplements.

Read more about preventing vitamin B12 deficiency:

Absorbing Vitamin B12, a Metabolic Gastrointestinal Journey

6 Degrees of Vitamin B12- B12 Deficiency and Autoimmune Disease

Gastrointestinal Surgery for Crohn’s (IBD) and B12 Warnings

Sources:

Anemia-B12 Deficiency- University of Maryland Medical Center

Celiac Disease & Vitamin B12 Deficiency- LIVESTRONG.COM

Vitamin B12 deficiency in untreated celiac disease- PubMed – NCBI

Images, from top: Artis.Rozentāls, photostock, rmkoske, Cooking Gluten Free

Vitamin B-12 (Cobalamin) originates in most protein foods, but even meat-eaters can get vitamin B12 deficiency. Absorbing vitamin B12 is a tricky process, and people who lack the intrinsic factor protein are unable to digest vitamin B12 from natural sources.  Learning about B12 supplement absorption is essential for avoiding B-12 deficiency symptoms.

Vitamin B12- What is it?

Vitamin B12, a member of the B-complex family of vitamins, is a water-soluble protein.  Most of the vitamin B12 that you eat comes from meat sources, as animal microorganisms produce it. Beef, liver, chicken, fish, and shellfish are some of the richest sources of vitamin B-12, in addition to eggs, cheese, and other dairy products.  The only widely confirmed vegan form of B12 occurs in brewer’s yeast.

This is your Body on B12

The benefits of vitamin B12 for your body are expansive.

• Vitamin B12 assists in producing oxygen-carrying red blood cells.
• Vitamin B12 also protects the myelin sheathe, which protects your nervous system.
• Vitamin B12 benefits cognitive functioning– Cognitive health treatments are essential for treating symptoms of autism, and to delay the early onset of dementia.
• Supplementing with vitamin B12 boosts stamina, sustains the memory, enhances mental focus, and imparts feelings of well-being in individuals who suffer from vitamin B12 deficiency.
• Long-term vitamin B12 deficiency causes depression, anxiety, fatigue, memory loss, and numbness/tingling in the extremities.(B12 Deficiency: Don’t Ignore the Symptoms)

Most People Digest B12 like this…

Vitamin B12’s journey through your body is a complicated, tricky procedure, and many things can go wrong.

• 1. When you consume dietary vitamin B12 (from food), it immediately clings to hydrochloric acid and pepsin, a gastric enzyme that your body makes- except for when it doesn’t. (More on this later.)
• 2. In your stomach, digestive acids separate vitamin B12 (cobalamin) from its protein part.  Also in your stomach, gastric parietal cells produce a substance called intrinsic factor– a necessary glycoprotein for digesting B12.
• 3. Vitamin B12 combines with “R protein,” thus becoming B-complex.  B complex, along with intrinsic factor, travels to the small intestine.
• 4. In the small intestine, R protein and B-complex separate.  B12 then attaches itself to intrinsic factor.
• 5. The B12/intrinsic factor complex travels through the small intestine, finally arriving at the very bottom, where it reaches the terminal ileum.  The ileum then absorbs the vitamin B12 and distributes it into your bloodstream, where it is then stored in the liver.

Things that can go wrong with vitamin B12 Absorption

Some people are unable to digest vitamin B12 properly from food, and must instead receive vitamin B12 injections, which go directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the need for digestion.

• You don’t have intrinsic factor. Lack of intrinsic factor is an autoimmune response, in which autoantibodies destroy intrinsic factor proteins produced in the stomach.  Since intrinsic factor is required in order to digest B12, the only way to avoid B12 deficiency is to bypass digestion by taking vitamin B12 supplements.
• You are among the elderly. The majority of senior citizens don’t produce the amount of stomach acids needed to break down B12 for digestion.  Even the minimum amount of vitamin B12 recommended by physicians is not enough to avoid dementia caused by B12 deficiency, so elderly individuals are a high-risk group.  To prevent early-onset Alzheimer’s disease or neurological damage, transdermal vitamin B12 is advisable.
• You take heartburn medication. As with the elderly, people who have GERD, or others who frequently take medicine for acid-reflux, including pregnant women, are susceptible to B12 deficiency.
• You have had your ileum removed. Gastric bypass patients are at high risk for developing vitamin B12 deficiency, as are other patients of gastrointestinal surgery, such as sufferers of Crohn’s disease.  Unfortunately, many surgeons neglect to warn their patients about complications regarding vitamin B12 deficiency, and many bariatric surgery patients don’t find out about it until the symptoms- depression, fatigue, brain fog- become too hard to ignore.
• You are a vegan. The vegan diet is largely devoid of B-12 sources, so unless you are a vegetarian who eats eggs, fish, or dairy, then you must take regular vitamin B12 supplements in order to avoid B12 deficiency.
• You are diabetic. Metformin, a diabetes drug, interferes with the absorption of vitamin B12.
• You have an autoimmune disease. Many autoimmune diseases such as celiac disease, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue syndrome are highly correlated with B12 deficiency.  Scientists are unsure as to the exact cause, but they have noted a decrease in symptoms such as fatigue, irritability, and depression with the inclusion of vitamin B12 supplements.

Related:

Getting Enough Vitamin B12? Three Reasons Why You Might Not Be

Vitamin Deficiencies can drive you Crazy- Seriously! Part 1

Parasitic Worms for Crohn’s Disease- Friendly Gut Bugs

Sources:

The Importance of Vitamin B12 for Your Body

Where is b12 absorbed in the body?

How Is Vitamin B12 Absorbed by the Body?

What Do You Know About Vitamin B12 Deficiency?

Low Vitamin B12 Level in Elderly May Spur Dementia

myelin sheath (anatomy) — Britannica Online Encyclopedia

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