Getting enough Vitamin B12

[kristenn]

Hi, I had a question on ways to get vitamin B12. I realize we store this vitamin, so it's not like I will become deficient in this vitamin immediately. I also put nutritional yeast on salads, soups etc.
Dr. McDougall had said in his book that it is not wise to take vitamin B supplements, does that mean it is not safe to take a multi vitamin?
I have various auto immune diseases and in the past I have been low in different vitamins. Taking a multi vitamin has seemed to help. Any info on this would be great.
Thank you in advance!
Kristen

[Rosey]

When I was at Vegfest I asked one of the doctors if I would get enough B12 if I had nutritional yeast every day and he said I'd only have to have a little bit a couple of times a week to have enough.

[kristenn]

Thanks Rosey for replying. Your progress is amazing by the way!
I have celiac disease too, so in the past I have had trouble absorbing vitamins. This is good to know on the nutritional yeast.
Kristen

[sweetfruitlover]

I had (have) celiac disease, and after two years of being mostly vegan I checked my B12 and it was below the lowest detectable level. I think this was too soon to deplete myself of B12 if my body had been able to properly absorb it during my non-vegan years, and celiacs are known for having difficulty absorbing B12 and other nutrients.

So I supplemented this past year. Sublingual supplements don't rely on the body absorbing it in the digestive system, and instead are absorbed under the tongue. But you only absorb a very small fraction of the amount, and that's why you will see typical doses of 1000 ug when you only need a few ug per day. When I checked my blood level again this summer it was at the top of the normal range - yippee!

I think that best thing to do is to check your own levels, and make sure they are high enough. If you need to supplement with B12, this isn't a general multivitamin, just a specific one for if you test low. You can try eating nutritional yeast and if you absorb it, then great. But you won't know unless you get tested. The next time you have your blood drawn for something, just ask you doctor to test for that too.

[kristenn]

Thank you Sweetfruitlover for your response. I will definately be getting tested every 6 months. Being celiac do you have a hard time with iron stores as well?

[sweetfruitlover]

Hi Kristenn,

I was low iron when I was a kid - I remember my mom forcing us to take these horrible-tasting drops, blech. But I've never been since, and my doc usually tests for that too. I eat lots and lots of greens though. If you have trouble with iron, try eating lots of greens and doing as much of your cooking as possible in a cast iron pan.

I did find out that I have really low bone density, and I'm sure that's from the celiac disease since I've always eaten lots of alkalizing fruits and veggies and been physically active. Such a bummer. But I checked again after a year and my density had improved, so that means that now that I'm not eating gluten, my body is busy remineralizing my bones.

Cheers, Gretchen

[mary47]

I was diagnosed with Pernicious Anemia about 2 years ago. I asked my doctor if it was due to my eating vegan and he said no. The crisis that preceded this discovery was third nerve palsy - similar to Bell's Palsy. Apparently B12 is important for nerve health. The third cranial nerve controls eye muscles, so I had double vision and a very droopy left eye. I don't know whether the B12 deficiency was the sole contributing factor to the failure of the nerve, but it did eventually heal on its own. I now give myself regular B12 shots. Not fun, but practical since I can do it myself more inexpensively than going to the Dr's office every 3 or 4 weeks. Have your doctor check your B12 level anytime blood is drawn for other routine tests - mine does but I have to remind her. And have him/her check for Pernicious Anemia. One symptom I had that no one could explain to me for years, is white spots on the skin of my arms. Also be aware that the low normal range for B12 in the USA is a lot lower than what is considered the minimum in most European countries and Japan.

[blondie]

One symptom I had that no one could explain to me for years, is white spots on the skin of my arms.

To clarify, was that a symptom of B12 deficiency or pernicious anemia?

[mary47]

It is a symptom of B12 deficiency. Try putting "B12 deficiency and white spots" into a search engine.

PA, as I understand it. is a condition where the "intrinsic factor" needed to process the B12 is missing from your gut. Hence the need to inject it rather than take a pill. There is a school of thought that says B12 pills can work for PA, especially the sublingual pills. For now I am going with the injections.

[blondie]

Thanks for clarifying. I think you are correct in treating pernicious anemia with injections.