Welcome to the Vitamin B12 Patch blog! Find information on topics related to vitamin B12. This blog is dedicated to providing up to date research, news and resources pertaining to vitamin B12 supplements, symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency and general health information surrounding the benefits of vitamin B12. Learn from, and contribute to information on B12, conditions caused by vitamin B12 deficiency and other connected subjects. This blog also provides B12 Patch product information and discusses some of the science behind the transdermal absorption method. Feel free to participate in blog discussions and contribute your opinion on the related topics covered in the Vitamin B12 Patch blog.
You might not realize this, but your prescription medications could be giving you vitamin B12 deficiency; certain drugs drain B12 from your system and prevent you from absorbing vitamin B12- cobalamin- naturally from food sources. If you currently take any of the following medications, then you could be at risk for severe neurological damage.
Who is at risk for getting vitamin B12 deficiency?
Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin that occurs naturally in most animal protein sources; beef, chicken, turkey, fish, shellfish, mussels, eggs, milk, cheese, and yogurt are all rich in this essential B vitamin. Unless you follow a vegan diet, you probably ingest sufficient amounts of B12.
However, there are certain conditions, demographics, and lifestyle choices that can inhibit your body’s ability to absorb vitamin B12, regardless of how many hamburgers you eat. They are:
Being among the elderly
Suffering from gastrointestinal disease, such as Celiac, Crohn’s, or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Submitting to bariatric surgery
Lacking the ability to produce intrinsic factor, a hormone that aids in vitamin B12 absorption
Suffering from fibromyalgia, or other autoimmune diseases
Certain medications may prevent your body from digesting vitamin B12- heartburn drugs, for example. If you experience symptoms such as chronic fatigue, memory loss, depression, brain fog, tingling or prickly sensations in your hands and feet, or altered sense of taste, you might have depleted your stores of vitamin B12. The only way to be certain is to get your vitamin B12 levels checked with a blood screening.
The following prescription drugs drain vitamin B12:
Anti-inflammatory medications
Beclomethasone
Budesonide
Dexamethasone
Fluticasone
Hydrocortisone
Methylprednisolone
Mometasone Furoate
Prednisone
Triamcinolone
Antibiotic medications
Aminoglycosides
Cephalosporin
Chloramphenicol
Macrolides
Penicillin Derivatives
Quinolones
Sulfa drugs
Tetracycline Derivatives
Anticonvulsant medications
Phenobarbital
Birth control medications
Ethinyl Estradiol and Desogestrel
Ethinyl Estradiol and Levonorgestrel
Ethinyl Estradiol and Norethindrone
Ethinyl Estradiol and Norgestimate
Cholesterol lowering medications
Cholestyramine
Colestipol
Diabetes medications
Metformin
Gout medications
Colchicine
Heart medications
Potassium Chloride
Proton pump inhibitors- heartburn drugs
Lansoprazole
Omeprazole
Ulcer medications
Cimetidine
Famotidine
Nizatidine
Ranitidine Bismuth Citrate
Ranitidine Hydrochloride
Read more about preventing vitamin B12 deficiency:
If you have vitamin B12 deficiency, then it is important to recognize the symptoms of pernicious anemia. Low levels of B12 (cobalamin) can, over time, lead to megaloblastic (pernicious) anemia, a life-threatening blood disease.
What is pernicious anemia?
Pernicious anemiais a type of megaloblastic anemia- a blood disease of the red blood cells. If you have vitamin B12 deficiency, then it may escalate into B12 deficiency anemia. In pernicious anemia, your body is unable to produce enough red blood cells, due to a lack of vitamin B12.
Avoid vitamin B12 deficiency
The best way to avoid getting vitamin B12 deficiency is to include animal-based protein foods in your diet, particularly beef liver, clams, oysters, poultry, eggs, milk, and yogurt. Still, eating meat and dairy products does not guarantee you will not become deficient in vitamin B12.
Who’s at risk?
People at risk for developing B12 deficiency are people who exclude primary sources of vitamin B12 from their diet (vegans), the elderly, people who have had bariatric surgery, diabetics taking metformin, anybody using long-term medication for acid-reflux, individuals with gastrointestinal disease (IBD, celiac) and people who cannot produce intrinsic factor, a necessary hormone for digesting vitamin B12.
Signs of megaloblastic (pernicious) anemia
The most common symptoms of pernicious anemia are:
Muscular weakness
Frequent tingling or numbness in your hands and feet, described as “pins and needles”
Difficulty walking balanced
Nausea
Diarrhea
Loss of appetite
Depression
Swollen, red tongue
Irritability
Chronic fatigue, constant tiredness
Hypertension
What tests diagnose pernicious anemia?
The only way to find out if your vitamin B12 deficiency has turned into pernicious anemia is to request the following diagnostic tests:
Complete blood count (CBC)
Vitamin B12 blood levels
Methylmalonic acid (MMA) levels
Holotranscobalamin II levels
LDH levels
Schilling test
Reticulocyte count
Bone marrow examination
What is the treatment for pernicious anemia?
Patients of pernicious anemia need to get routine doses of B12 supplements, usually in the form of B12 shots. The amount and frequency of B12 injections depend on the severity of the pernicious anemia symptoms. For extra doses of B12 between doctor visits, B12-anemia patients have the option of supplementing with oral vitamin B12 or B12 patches.
For years, vitamin B12 has been the staple energy vitamin for stars such as Madonna, Justin Timberlake, and Prince. Now, B12 vitamins are part of Glee star Lea Michele’s regimen against vitamin B12 deficiency. Find out why celebrities such as Lea Michele rely on B12 supplements for added stamina, strength, and mental focus.
The Glee star’s secret to weight loss
How does Lea Michele, who plays the bossy, competitive, (and sometimes infuriating) Rachel on Glee keep her figure? Recently, she confessed to following a strictly macrobiotic vegan diet, composed of mostly vegetables, grains, and beans. By cutting out meat, chicken, and dairy products from her diet, Lea has managed to lose ten pounds since she first started filming on the set.
Lea admits to also eating a few servings of fish per week, in order to avoid getting vitamin B12 deficiency. Since Vitamin B12 occurs only in animal-based foods, such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and milk, supplementing with extra vitamin B12 is crucial for avoiding low B12 blood levels. How does she justify introducing a non-vegan source into her vegan diet? Apparently, macrobiotic veganism makes special allowances for seafood. Lea Michele understands that a diet low in vitamin B12 is a diet that leads to B12 deficiency symptoms.
People who deplete their stores of vitamin B12 encounter symptoms such as extreme fatigue, muscular weakness, depression, diminished coordination, memory loss, and frequent numbness or tingling sensations (pins and needles) in their hands, arms, legs, and feet. Untreated, vitamin B12 deficiency escalates into pernicious anemia, dementia, neurological damage, osteoporosis, and increased risk for heart attack, cancer, and stroke.
Vitamin B12 influences a wide range of bodily functions- by ensuring balanced B12 levels in your blood supply, you feel more energized, stimulated, confident, and “gleeful.”
Vitamin B12 is instrumental in DNA synthesis
Vitamin B12 protects your nervous system
Vitamin B12 boosts your metabolism
Vitamin B12 controls homocysteine levels, reducing your risk of heart disease and stroke
Vitamin B12supports cognitive functioning
Vitamin B12 protects you from vitamin deficiency symptoms of fatigue, depression, anxiety, and “brain fog”
Vitamin B12 helps you stay on track with your fitness regimen and enables you to make better food choices
Read more about the many health benefits of vitamin B12:
Do you know how much B12 you need in order to avoid vitamin B12 deficiency? Unless you supplement B12 levels with a weekly B12 shot or B12 patch, you could wind up with dangerously lowB12. Find out if your B12 blood levels are normal and how much you need to meet the FDA’s RDA of 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 B12level 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 doseof 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.
One vitamin B12 patch contains a 1,000-mcg dose of b12 based on a B12 injection.
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. Alcohol abuse is not recommended- however, it’s important to understand the many ways Vitamin B12 benefits your liver health and brain functioning after a night of excessive alcohol consumption.
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.
Cyanocobalamin (B12)
Pyridoxine (B6)
Thiamine
Folic acid
Biotin
Niacin
Riboflavin
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 hangover. Also, remember to drink plenty of water throughout the day and evening.
Vitamin B12 deficiency is linked with so many types of autoimmune disease; it’s almost like the game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.” Guess what vitamin B12, IBS, cardiovascular disease, and many kinds of chronicdisease have in common…
B12 deficiency- why worry?
Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble nutrient, one of many B vitamins, that is crucial for optimum health. If you don’t get enough vitamin B12 from meat, chicken, fish, and eggs, from B12 shots or a B12 patch, then you could suffer severe vitamin B12 deficiency, which includes symptoms such as short-term memory loss, tingling in hands and feet, chronic fatigue syndrome, and depression. People who are at risk of developing vitamin B12 deficiency are vegans, patients of gastric bypass surgery, diabetes sufferers, individuals on heartburn medicine, and anybody with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) or Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Vitamin B12 deficiency is also linked with many autoimmune diseases.
Here are 12 illnesses that are“6 degrees” away from vitamin B12 deficiency:
1) Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a digestive disease that includes illnesses such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is one of many IBD symptoms, such as chronic diarrhea, stomachcramping, nausea, heartburn, and constipation. IBD can cause severe damage to the intestines, including the colon. People with inflammatory bowel disease have difficulty digesting vitamins and minerals from food, which is why they must take regular vitamin supplements. Because their illness occurs in the digestive system, many IBD patients take vitamin B12 shots in order to avoid B12 deficiency, as vitamin B12 pills are ineffective.
Celiacs disease is an autoimmune disease that attacks the digestive system with the consumption of gluten. Celiac disease symptoms include indigestion, diarrhea, malnourishment, and nausea. Gluten intolerance symptoms occur whenever a celiac disease patient consumes a product containing gluten, a protein that occurs in wheat, rye, and barley. Because of their difficulty digesting vitamins, celiac disease sufferers should supplement regularly with non-oral forms of vitamin B12.
Auto [fibromyalgia symptoms] [symptoms of fibromyalgia]
Fibromyalgia symptoms strike 1 in 50 Americans. Many people don’t realize that fibromyalgia is an autoimmune disease. Symptoms of fibromyalgia include chronic pain, fatigue, depression, insomnia, and “fibro fog” (disorientation). Many people who suffer from fibromyalgia also exhibit signs of vitamin B12 deficiency.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is another autoimmune disease, similar to fibromyalgia, which is closely linked with vitamin B12 deficiency. Scientists have noted an extremely high correlation between all three conditions- fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and B12 deficiency. Symptoms of CFS are extreme tiredness upon waking up in the morning, fatigue following minimal physical exertion, achy joints, and fibro fog.
Diabetics who take the drug metformin are susceptible to vitamin B12 deficiency, say scientists. Scientific studies linking low B12 levels with long-term usage of metformin indicate a 77% chance of developing peripheral neuropathy.
Some symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are often misdiagnosed as psychiatric disorders, such as depression, anxiety disorder, manic depression, or paranoia.
Stomach acids are essential for digesting vitamin B12 naturally from food sources. That is why people who take heartburn medication frequently, such as people with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) or pregnant women, must take care to avoid B12 deficiency.
Some weight loss surgery procedures involve removing the terminal ilium, a part of the digestive system that is responsible for absorbing vitamin B12. For that reason, patients of bariatric surgery are strongly advised to supplement with non-oral vitamin B12.
Vitamin B12, vitamin B6, and folate all work together in lowering your body’s level of homocysteine; an amino acid that scientists believe may contribute to heart disease and stroke.
Autoimmune thyroid disease, also called Hashimoto’s disease, is an autoimmune disease that causes hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid gland. There is an unusually high correlation between instances of autoimmune thyroid disease and pernicious anemia caused by vitamin B12 deficiency. Because some of the symptoms of thyroid disease mimic pernicious anemia, many doctors overlook the possibility of vitamin B12 deficiency.
12) Dementia
In many studies, scientists have noticed that elderly individuals with low levels of B12 are more likely to suffer from early onset dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease, than elderly individuals who maintain adequate levels of vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 deficiency also correlates with decreased cognitive ability.
As reported by the Huffington Post, type 2 diabetes is on the rise, and many people who have it don’t even know it.
The following symptoms of type 2 diabetes are often misdiagnosed as old age, fatigue, stress or eating disorder:
Decreased energy
Weight gain
Insatiable need for carbohydrates
Increased appetite
Over 7 million people in the US are unaware that they suffer from type 2 diabetes.
The warning signs of type 2 diabetes tend to accumulate gradually, so many diabetics who are unaware of their condition chalk it up to old age or stress. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 8.3 % of us have type 2 diabetes; that’s almost 26 million Americans.
What you can do about it:
Get yearly check-ups. Every year your physician should perform the following tests to monitor your blood sugar levels:
Glucose blood test- a standard fast followed by a blood test to check blood sugar. A healthy level is under 95.
Glycosylated hemoglobin A1C test. This is a blood test which reveals your blood sugar levels over the previous three months. A healthy diagnosis is anywhere between 4 and 6.
Triglyceride levels- your doctor should also include this test as part of your cholesterol monitoring. A triglyceride level over 200 could indicate the onset of type 2 diabetes.
Keep a food journal. You might be unconsciously craving carbs, which could mean an unhealthy response to insulin.
Keep track of your waist size. A large waist circumference is often indicative of a diabetic condition; men with a waist size of over 40 inches and women over 35 inches should visit a doctor and be checked for type 2 diabetes.
Include more vitamin B12-rich proteins in your diet, in addition to plant-based carbohydrates.
Exercise regularly. Type 2 diabetes is often a result of excess weight gain, so stay fit by lifting weights and walking or jogging every day.
New research indicates that the vegan diet, while low in animal based fats, is nevertheless not as heart healthy as previously thought.
According to experts, eating an exclusively vegan diet may elevate your chances of developing blood clots and atherosclerosis- both of which may lead to heart attack and stroke.
The vegan diet excludes protein sources such as fish, meat, eggs and dairy, which are rich in essential vitamin B12 and omega-3 fatty acids.
The report, published by the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, scientists have collected data over the past 30 years relating to cardiovascular health of vegans versus omnivores. They concluded that vegetarians have a statistically high risk of accumulating blood clots and suffering from atherosclerosis as a result of not including vitamin B12 and omega-3 fatty acids in their diet.
Good sources of vitamin B12 include beef liver, lamb, oysters, clams, cheese and eggs. Foods which are rich in omega-3 oils include oily fish such as salmon and canned tuna.
Vegans and vegetarians are advised to supplement their diet with adequate amounts of vitamin B12 and omega-3 in order to prevent heart disease, stroke and vitamin B12 deficiency.
We all know you need to work your body at least 2-3 times a week to stay flexible, build muscle and keep the metabolic juices flowing. Many of us either go to the gym, walk during our lunch breaks or ride a bike to work.
What about your brain? Your mind also needs a good workout to stay limber, build neurotransmitters and keep the cerebral juices flowing.
Where’s your mental gym?
Use it or lose it.
Your body has over 800 muscles and joints which need to be flexed every day.
Your brain has 5 cognitive functions which need to be practiced, too.
These 5 habits will keep your mind stimulated and sharp; try incorporating them into your daily schedule:
(1)
Memories…
Your memory skills need training in order to avoid short-term memory loss.
Every time you memorize something like a password code, for example, you increase the amount of neurotransmitter acetylcholine in your brain.
Some good memory exercises: try tying your shoes with your eyes closed or feeling your way around a familiar room in the dark.
(2)
Say what?
Become distracted easily by outside noises? Find yourself repeating the same paragraph over and over? These are all signs of low attention skills.
Do you often pass your freeway exit on the way to work? During very routine tasks we tend to go into “autopilot.”
Shake things up a bit to stay in the zone; take an alternate route to work every other day or listen to an audio book while cooking dinner.
(3)
Learn the lingo.
Language skills practice your ability to recognize, remember and understand words.
Increase your vocabulary- check out an online thesaurus and make an effort to read a wide range of literature for word exposure.
(4)
Know you personal space.
Visual-spatial skills help you focus better on your surroundings; they help you stay subconsciously aware of your environment while you concentrate on other tasks.
Try this memory game once a day: stand in a room and look around at your surroundings.
Choose 3 items to concentrate on; let’s say a pen on your desk, a wall calendar or an interesting flower arrangement.
Exit the room.
Summon the items in your mind, trying to remember exactly where they were in relation to where you were standing before you left the room.
Now try to picture them again an hour later.
Work up to remembering more items, or increase the amount of time to several hours later.
Practice seeing objects in your peripheral vision and remembering them later.
(5)
Take Charge.
Executive function skills are used for logic and reasoning.
Go to Barnes and Nobles or Borders and check out some magazines which specialize in brain-busting riddles and logic puzzles; Games monthly magazine has a wide selection of mind-benders to keep your brain sharp.
Hook up with a chess partner; strategy board games like Monopoly or Stratego emphasize cause and consequence.
From the small-time offenders to the major heavyweights, here is a top ten list of the fattiest fast food meals that you should avoid, rated from the least to worst:
Blimpie BLT 12-Inch Super Stacked- 640 calories
At a mere 640 calories, the Blimpie BLT weighs in as the lightest of the fattiest, although you might wonder why anybody would name their restaurant Blimpie if they’re trying to attract customers…
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Steak ‘n Shake Chili Mac, Supreme- 1067 calories
The vanilla milkshake won’t be the only thing that’s jiggling if you make this fat-filled orgy a part of your regular diet.
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Quiznos Large Tuna Melt Sandwich with Cheese and Dressing- 1220 calories
Oh, yeah. Don’t want to forget that dressing. As if the mayo and the extra cheese were not saturated enough for ya.
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Burger King Texas Triple Whopper Sandwich- 1310 calories
The only thing higher than this monstrosity will be your blood pressure and your cholesterol levels.
You might want to call your doctor and let him know you’re coming in before you sit down to eat this caloric catastrophe. If the resulting indigestion doesn’t send you to the hospital then the obstructed coronary artery will.
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Watch this hilarious, live Taco Bell drive-through video:
Birth control medications
