Usage of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) is linked with B12 deficiency and other adverse effects, like osteoporosis.  Your body produces stomach acids for good reason- to absorb vitamin B12 (cobalamin), iron and other essential nutrients.  While heartburn is a painful symptom of acid reflux, having too few stomach acids can also cause debilitating symptoms.

What are PPIs?

Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are drugs that lower the amount of stomach acid your body produces.  It’s a popular treatment for preventing acid reflux symptoms like chronic heartburn, and it’s more effective than other acid secretion inhibitors like H2 blockers (Tagamet, Zantac).  Hospitals use PPIs to prevent stomach ulcers in 40%-70% of inpatients.  Examples of proton pump inhibitors are Prilosec, Prevacid, Nexium, Aciphex, and Protonix.

The following illnesses and conditions are treated with PPIs:

• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• Barrett’s esophagus
• Dyspepsia
• Gastrinomas
• Zollinger-Ellison syndrome
• Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR)
• Peptic ulcer disease (PUD)
• Stress gastritis prevention.

The 20 Do’s and Don’ts of the GERD Diet

What are possible adverse effects of PPIs?

Severe vitamin B12 deficiency

Long-term PPI usage has been linked with nutritional malabsorption of vitamin B12 (cobalamin) and iron.  Your body needs gastric acid in order to digest vitamin B12 foods sources like beef, chicken, fish, and eggs.  Without stomach acids, vitamin B12 remains bonded to the food you eat and never enters the bloodstream, eventually resulting in vitamin B12 deficiency.  Similarly, insufficient stomach acids also result in iron deficiency.

Because stomach acid production reduces with age, senior citizens, in addition to PPI users, are advised to check their vitamin B12 levels periodically.  Other people at risk for B12 deficiency are vegans, people who suffer from autoimmune and gastrointestinal disorders and anybody who has had gastric bypass or other gastrointestinal surgery.

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

Osteoporosis

Long-term PPI usage has been linked with increased risk of hip, spine, or wrist fractures resulting from severe osteoporosis.  Researchers believe that PPIs inhibit calcium absorption and bone growth.  In studies, high doses of PPIs were directly linked with osteoporosis, and that risk increased over time.

It should be noted that osteoporosis is also a vitamin B12 deficiency side effect from PPIs, as vitamin B12 benefits include sustained bone mass.

Increased chances of intestinal infection

Long-term and short-term PPI usage can lead to clostridium difficile infection (diarrhea), according to scientific studies published by the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Gut Bugs:Winning the Bacteria Battle

Community-acquired pneumonia

If you stay at a hospital and are given proton pump inhibitors, your chances of acquiring pneumonia during your visit is increased by 30%, according to studies. While the use of PPIs for preventing stress-related ulcers is a valuable life-saving procedure, a significant amount of hospital patients who receive PPIs are not at risk for suffering from ulcers.

Rebound acid hypersecretion

If you try to wean off proton pump inhibitors, you’re likely to experience severe withdrawal effects, including sudden overproduction of stomach acids- hypergastrinemia. For this reason, PPI users become dependent on the heartburn drugs, and may suffer from adverse effects such as diarrhea, stomach tumors, and neoplasia.  Dependence on PPIs happens quickly, as early as one month into prescription.

Heart disease

Studies have linked PPI usage with decreased effectiveness of clopidogrel (Plavix), a medication prescribed for heart disease.  Also, decreased vitamin B12 is linked with increased risk for heart disease and stroke through elevated levels of homocysteine.

12 Healthy Heart Habits, Including Vitamin B12 Supplements

Please tell us…

Have you been diagnosed with GERD, or one of the other illnesses treated with PPIs?  If so, have you noticed vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms like chronic fatigue, “pins and needles” in hands and feet, memory loss, and anxiety?

As always, we welcome your comments, inquiries, and suggestions!

Read more about vitamin B12 deficiency and your gut:

Leaky Gut Syndrome Symptoms and Causes

Absorbing Vitamin B12, a Metabolic Gastrointestinal Journey

5 Ways to Prevent Diverticulosis-Diverticulitis Gastro Illness

Sources:

Proton Pump Inhibitor Use Linked to Clostridium Difficile Infection

Proton Pump Inhibitors Should Have Black-box Warnings, Group Tell FDA

Long-term Proton Pump Inhibitor Therapy and Risk of Hip Fracture- JAMA

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease- NEJM

Acid Blockers Linked to Pneumonia Risk

Vitamin B12 deficiency causes pernicious anemia, which creates horrible symptoms like painful tingling in your hands and feet, numbness, chronic fatigue, memory loss, depression, and even chronic clumsiness.  What’s really behind all these debilitating symptoms, you wonder?  Deranged DNA…

You’re mad, I tell you- Mad!

Pernicious anemia (PA) tends to creep up on you, like a scary monster in a B movie.  You might not even realize you have B12 deficiency until you start noticing weird symptoms.  Your hands and feet fall asleep on you while you sit at your computer.  It feels like thousands of fire ants are crawling up your legs. Sometimes, you could swear that your mouth was on fire, like you ate a red chili pepper.

Only you didn’t…

Then PA attacks your brain, causing brain fog.  You struggle to find the right words in conversation, left hanging while you awkwardly try to remember what you were trying to say.  You walk into a room and immediately forget what you came in for.  You forget to buy things on your mental shopping list.  You wake up feeling drugged, exhausted, even though you had plenty of sleep the night before.

If you didn’t have your name printed clearly for you on your driver’s license, you just might forget it…

Pernicious Anemia and B12 Deficiency- Historically Fatal, Still Formidable

Pernicious anemia is Abby-normal

Pernicious anemia is an autoimmune disorder in which your body interferes with production of a very necessary protein- intrinsic factor.  Intrinsic factor is produced in your stomach, and you need it to digest vitamin B12 (cobalamin). Without intrinsic factor, your body cannot extract vitamin B12 from food sources like beef, chicken, fish, and eggs.  Instead, the vitamin B12 just passes through your intestines, without ever entering the blood stream.

Say goodbye to B12…

DNA production goes awry

If pernicious anemia sounds frightening, it’s because it does wicked things to your body.  You need vitamin B12 for many important bodily functions, like protecting the nervous system, enhancing cognitive development, and maintaining adequate supplies of energy.

Most importantly, your red blood cells need vitamin B12 for DNA synthesis.  With pernicious anemia, DNA synthesis in the red blood cells comes to a standstill, while RNA synthesis keeps chugging along.

And then, things get really weird…

Franken-DNA is born

The result is microcytic anemia, a type of megaloblastic anemia causing enlarged red blood cells.  Not only are your blood cells too big to function normally, but they are also deformed.  Your poor large red blood cells remain trapped inside your bone marrow, unable to leave because they have grown enormous in size.

Remember Alice, trapped in the White Rabbit’s house?  Yeah, it’s kind of like that.

Hey, where’re all the red blood cells at?

Trapped in your bone marrow!  And your body needs red blood cells to transport oxygen throughout the body.  But with vitamin B12 deficiency, very few red blood cells manage to escape their “prison” in your bones, because they are too big to exit. Your red blood cell levels go way down, and you start to feel tired, anxious, and wiry.

It’s because you are not getting enough oxygen.

Top Ten Signs of a Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Treating macrocytic anemia

Managing macrocytic anemia is simple enough if you know what’s causing it.  Pernicious anemia from low B12 levels is just one cause.  Other causes of enlarged red blood cells are alcoholism and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), among others.  With alcoholism, B12 deficiency symptoms can still be the underlying cause of macrocytic anemia.

Vitamin B12 deficiency can be treated with vitamin B12 supplements.  However, if your body can’t digest vitamin B12 because of lack of intrinsic factor, then you will have to use vitamin B12 supplements that bypass the digestive system and go directly into the bloodstream.

Examples of vitamin B12 supplementation used for pernicious anemia are routine B12 shots, sublingual B12 pills, and vitamin B12 patches.  The B12 shots require a doctor’s prescription, and can be painful, as they have to be inserted into thick muscular tissue.  B12 pills and vitamin B12 patches are readily available over-the-counter (OTC).  Many patients have reported a burning sensation while using sublingual B12 tablets that dissolve under the tongue.  No discomfort or irritation is reported with usage of the vitamin B12 patch.

Did you find this article helpful?  Please share your opinion!

Have you noticed any of the symptoms described?  If you know anybody who exhibits any of these symptoms, please share this information with them.

Read more about pernicious anemia and vitamin B12 deficiency

Pernicious Anemia: Your 13 Most Frequently Asked Questions, Answered!

Painful Tingling in Hands and Feet- What’s Up with That?

Sources:

Macrocytosis

Macrocytosis: What causes it?

Macrocytosis and Macrocytic Anaemia

Images, from top:

twm1340, Purestock

Chronic pain symptoms may indicate fibromyalgia, or one of many other illnesses like pernicious anemia from vitamin B12 deficiency.  If you constantly feel tired, bloated, nauseous, itchy, and wracked with crushing pain, you might be suffering from chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, B12 deficiency, or all of the above…

Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia, or fibromyositis, is a condition that causes the sufferer indescribable pain and fatigue for no apparent reason. Doctors are unsure as to the exact cause of fibromyalgia, which is classified as an autoimmune disorder involving the brain’s overreaction to pain stimuli.

Symptoms of fibromyalgia include:

• Persistent muscular pain in at least 11 of 18 specific “pain points” on the body, including the neck and shoulders
• Pain described as stiffness, burning, throbbing
• Pain spreads from one tender spot to another
• Sleep problems caused by pain and restless legs syndrome
• Depression
• Gastrointestinal woes, like stomach pain, nausea, flatulence, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), diarrhea, and constipation
• Bladder incontinence
• Dizziness
• Cognitive difficulties, “brain fog,” trouble concentrating
• Headaches
• Painful tingling sensations (“pins and needles”) and numbness in hands, feet, and ankles

Also read: How to Tell if Chronic Pain is Fibromyalgia: 18 Pressure Points

Pernicious anemia- Vitamin B12 deficiency

Pernicious anemia is an autoimmune disorder that prevents your body from producing intrinsic factor, a protein the body needs for vitamin B12 absorption.  As a result, pernicious anemia patients often have dangerously low levels of vitamin B12- a nutrient involved in producing red blood cells, protecting the nervous system, lowering homocysteine levels, maintaining healthy cognitive skills, and establishing DNA synthesis.  Vitamin B12 deficiency often overlaps with fibromyalgia, as gastrointestinal issues often inhibit vitamin B12 absorption.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency include:

• Chronic fatigue
• Depression
• Memory loss
• Difficulty concentrating
• “Brain fog”
• Anxiety
• Aggressiveness
• Hallucinations
• Sleep problems
• Shortness of breath
• Painful tingling and numbness in hands, feet, and ankles
• Sore tongue that is red and swollen
• Burning sensation in mouth and tongue
• Altered sense of taste
• Blurred vision
• Frequent clumsiness
• Difficulty walking without stumbling
• Difficulty balancing on one leg

Also read: Pernicious Anemia and B12 Deficiency- Historically Fatal, Still Formidable

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS)

Chronic fatigue syndrome shares comorbidity with fibromyalgia. Like fibromyalgia, the cause for CFS is still unexplained.  Patients complaining of chronic fatigue receive diagnosis based on their symptoms.

Symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome include:

• Persistent tiredness that is not caused by physical exertion, loss of sleep, or mental exhaustion
• Waking up fatigued, despite sleeping the whole night
• Pain in tender spots similar to the pain zones suffered by fibromyalgia patients, only less severe

Also read: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia- Is there a Difference?

Myofascial pain syndrome

Myofascial pain is similar to fibromyalgia.  While fibromyalgia patients experience soreness in “pain points,” sufferers of myofascial pain syndrome experience pain in “trigger points.”  Also unlike fibromyalgia symptoms, myofascial pain does not spread from one point to another.

Symptoms of myofascial pain syndrome include:

• Small pain points that occur in tense muscles
• Trigger points that produce a muscular twitch when stimulated
• Pain points are tiny lumps about the size of your pinky’s fingernail.

Chronic headaches

Fibromyalgia sufferers often experience chronic headaches such as migraines, tension headaches, daily persistent headaches, or hemicrania continua.  Scientists speculate that migraines happen in the same part of the brain as fibromyalgia triggers.

Symptoms of migraine headaches include:

• Throbbing head pain, typically on one side of the head
• Eye pain
• Migraine aura- visual disturbances, vertigo, hallucinations, speech slurring, loss of consciousness, or temporary paralysis
• Increased sensitivity to lights, sounds, and scents
• Nausea
• Uncontrolled vomiting
• Stomach cramps
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness

Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS)

Exposure to chemicals may cause symptoms that mimic fibromyalgia, although researchers are uncertain if MCS is a physical response or a psychological reaction.

Symptoms of multiple chemical sensitivity include:

• Significantly lower threshold for chemical tolerance than normal
• Pain reaction consistent with various unrelated chemicals
• Sensitivity occurs in more than one organ of the body
• Chronic pain reaction that occurs repeatedly from exposure to certain chemicals
• Removing the chemical trigger ends pain symptoms

Depression

Most fibromyalgia patients have experienced clinical depression in the past, and a substantial (but lower) percentage suffers from chronic depression. Depression is also a common symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency.  If depression stems from fibromyalgia pain, then it does not classify as major depression, but rather a secondary condition of fibromyalgia chronic pain syndrome.

Symptoms of major depression include:

• Spells of sadness that last for months
• Daily depression
• Difficulty concentrating
• Difficulty making decisions
• Agitation
• Anxiety
• Sleep problems like oversleeping or not sleeping enough
• Fatigue
• Feelings of low value or guilt
• Weight problems, either excessive weight gain or weight loss
• Contemplations of suicide

Also read: Vitamin Deficiencies can drive you Crazy- Seriously!  Part 1

Hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism (Hashimoto’s disease) is sometimes confused with fatigue associated with fibromyalgia or vitamin B12 deficiency anemia.  As opposed to hyperthyroid disorder, where the thyroid gland produces too many hormones, hypothyroid disorder involves underproduction of hormones in the thyroid gland.

Symptoms of hypothyroidism include:

• Joint or muscle pain that hurts “all over”
• Cold hypersensitivity
• Depression
• Fatigue
• Constipation
• Weight gain
• Altered sense of taste
• Dry thick skin patches

Also read: Low B12 means Low Thyroid- Hypothyroidism and B12 Deficiency

Lupus

Autoimmune disease symptoms like lupus may occur at the same time as fibromyalgia or B12 deficiency, making it harder to diagnose. Conversely, patients with lupus often don’t realize that their vitamin B12 levels have dropped to a dangerous low until they start to suffer severe nerve damage.

Symptoms of lupus include:

• Fatigue
• Fever
• Skin lesions
• Joint pain
• Shortness of breath
• Headaches
• Memory loss
• “brain fog”
• Confusion
• Dry eyes

Also read: Lupus and Vitamin B12 Deficiency- What’s the Connection?

Lyme disease

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread by ticks.  Because of delayed symptoms mimicking fibromyalgia, about 15-50% of fibromyalgia patients receives a misdiagnosis of Lyme disease, and is instructed to take strong antibiotics. A blood test sometimes excludes Lyme disease, but not always.

Symptoms of Lyme disease include:

• Itching all over the body
• Chills and fever
• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Muscular pain
• Stiff neck
• Numbness and tingling
• Partial paralysis
• Speech problems

Restless Legs Syndrome

A significant amount of fibromyalgia sufferers and pernicious anemia patients also experience restless legs syndrome at night. However, other causes of restless legs syndrome are kidney disorder, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, or drugs.

Symptoms of restless legs syndrome include:

• Uneasy feeling in lower leg
• Creeping, crawling sensations
• Intense need to shake leg in order to ease symptoms
• Achiness that disappears with exercise

Read more about diseases that mimic fibromyalgia and vitamin B12 deficiency

Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Movement Disorders- How They Relate

If Vitamin B12 Deficiency Mimics Multiple Sclerosis, How do you tell the Difference?

Sore Burning Tongue, Dry Mouth, and Weird Tastes- What’s the Cause?

Type 2 Diabetes and Vitamin B12 Deficiency- Are you at Risk?

Sources:

Fibromyalgia- University of Maryland Medical Center

Mayo Clinic

PubMed Health

Images, from top:

~jjjohn~, aussiegall, henna lion

What does Vitamin B12 deficiency have to do with movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease and restless leg syndrome?  Vitamin B12 protects your nervous system, and many of the symptoms of pernicious anemia from B12 deficiency result in poor muscle control, including muscular spasms, nervous eye twitching, decreased motor skills, and difficulty walking.

Vitamin B12 benefits the nerves

Cyanocobalamin or Vitamin B12 benefits your body in many ways- it lends itself in red blood cell production, DNA synthesis, healthy cognitive functioning, energy production, and homocysteine control.  Also, vitamin B12 helps your body produce myelin, a fatty substance that protects your nervous system’s sensitive nerve fibers in the brain and the spinal cord.

Without sufficient levels of vitamin B12, you may develop severe nerve damage- peripheral neuropathy.

Some symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency- peripheral neuropathy include:

• painful tingling and numbness in the hands, feet, and ankles
• sore tongue
• burning mouth syndrome
• muscular weakness
• muscle spasms
• decreased motor control
• frequent clumsiness and tripping
• difficulty balancing on one foot
• eye twitching

Vitamin B12 deficiency and other movement disorders

It should come as no surprise, then, that other movement disorders like Parkinson’s disease (PD) have close ties with vitamin B12 deficiency.  Involuntary muscular movements may or may not be caused by low B12 levels, but

• In some movement disorder cases, scientists have noted improvement with vitamin B12 supplements.
• Even when pernicious anemia is not a cause of muscle spasms or walking difficulties, researchers sometimes notice a comorbid relationship with vitamin B12 deficiency.
• Another occurrence in diagnosing movement disorders is a tendency for doctors to misdiagnose vitamin B12 deficiency as a more serious illness, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) or Parkinson’s disease.

Parkinson’s disease

In a scientific report on Parkinson’s and neuropathy, researchers confirmed a high rate of vitamin B12 deficiency in patients with Parkinson’s disease, and recommended close monitoring of B12 levels and routine administration of vitamin B12 supplements. Results were published in Neurology.

Chorea- focal dystonia

Chorea is an abnormal involuntary movement disorder, part of a group of neurological disorders called dyskinesia.  Chorea is a symptom of Huntington’s disease, but it can also occur in other illnesses, including focal dystonia.  In one of many studies on vitamin B12 deficiency and focal dystonia, scientists saw a complete reversal in chorea symptoms with cyanocobalamin supplementation, attributing it to decreased homocysteine levels.

Restless leg syndrome

The most common symptom of restless leg syndrome is the urgent need to shake your leg to relieve “creeping, crawling” sensations, usually between the kneecap and ankle.Restless leg syndrome occurs often with peripheral neuropathy, a symptom of pernicious anemia.    Other possible causes are kidney disease, diabetes neuropathy, Parkinson’s disease, and drug interactions.

Stiff person syndrome

Stiff-person syndrome (SPS) is a rare neurological disorder that occurs with autoimmune disease. Symptoms of SPS are muscle spasms in the limbs and trunk, hypersensitivity to touch, noise, and stress, and stiff posture.  People who often suffer stiff person syndrome are patients of pernicious anemia (vitamin B12 deficiency), diabetes, thyroiditis, and vitiligo.

Gait ataxia

Ataxia is an inability to control muscular movements used in walking, jumping, balancing, or holding objects. Chronic ataxia is one of the earliest symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, along with muscular weakness, poor reflexes, spasticity, vision impairment, dementia, and psychosis, according to a Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center study of 153 patients suffering from cobalamin deficiency neuropathy.

Eye movement disorders

Nystagmus, uncontrollable movements of the eyeballs, might be caused by low vitamin B12 levels, according to a study focusing on downbeat nystagmus and vitamin B12 deficiency.  Another phenomenon common with B12 deficiency is myokymia- eyelid twitching.

Read more about B12 deficiency and your nervous system:

Balance your B12, Balance your Nerves

Myokymia is not a Hawaiian Island- Eyelid Twitching and Eye Spasms

If Vitamin B12 Deficiency Mimics Multiple Sclerosis, How do you tell the Difference?

Sources:

The Movement Disorder Society- MDS

Eye movement disorders in vitamin B12 deficiency: two new cases and a review of the literature

Neuropathy in Parkinson disease

Reversible Chorea and Focal Dystonia in Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Restless leg syndrome

Neurologic aspects of cobalamin deficiency- PubMed NCBI

Stiff-Person Syndrome

Images, from top:

eye2eye, milos milosevic

Many studies show similarities between the symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency and multiple sclerosis (MS).  There is also a very high rate of B12 deficiency among people diagnosed with MS.  How, then, does one differentiate between pernicious anemia (vitamin B12 deficiency) and multiple sclerosis?

What is MS?

Multiple sclerosis is a disease that affects your central nervous system- your brain and spinal cord.  It typically strikes young adults between the ages of 20-40, most of them women.  The exact cause of MS is unknown, but most scientists believe it is an autoimmune disorder.  With multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune reaction attacks myelin, a fatty substance that insulates your nerve fibers responsible for transmitting messages to the rest of your body.  Signs of demyelination are random lesions, or plaques (sclerosis) in the brain and spinal cord, in multiple areas, thus the term “multiple sclerosis.”

What is B12 deficiency?

Vitamin B12 deficiency occurs when your body is unable to maintain sufficient stores of vitamin B12 (cobalamin) in the blood.  There are several reasons this may happen, such as not eating food sources of vitamin B12 (meat, fish, and milk), or having a gastrointestinal disorder that interferes with vitamin B12 absorption.  With pernicious anemia (PA), your body cannot make intrinsic factor (IF), a protein necessary for digesting vitamin B12, due to an autoimmune disorder.  Among its many other benefits, vitamin B12 is essential for building up the fatty myelin sheath.  One of the symptoms of PA is demyelination, the same type of brain damage that occurs with MS.

*Multiple sclerosis and vitamin B12 deficiency- pernicious anemia are both autoimmune disorders.

*Multiple sclerosis and vitamin B12 deficiency-pernicious anemia both involve damage to the nervous system’s myelin sheath.

What are the symptoms of multiple sclerosis?

The earliest symptoms of MS may include:

• Muscular weakness in one or more limbs
• Tingling or numbness
• Loss of balance
• Vision problems or eye pain
• Slurred speech

As the disease advances, symptoms worsen, including:

• Chronic fatigue, despite getting plenty of rest and not overexerting yourself
• Hypersensitivity to heat, such as hot showers or baths
• Muscular spasms in the legs and arms
• Bladder or bowel control problems
• Lightheadedness, or vertigo caused by nerve damage
• Cognitive impairment- “brain fog,” slowed thinking, lack of concentration, or memory loss
• Vision problems- blurring or graying of vision, or temporary blindness in one eye
• Painful “pins and needles” sensations, numbness, itching, or burning
• Speech and swallowing problems caused by damaged nerves
• Seizures
• Difficulty walking without stumbling, caused by muscle weakness, spasticity, or loss of balance from vertigo
• Paralysis

What are the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency?

The most common symptoms of B12 deficiency and pernicious anemia are:

• Chronic fatigue
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Paranoia
• Aggressive behavior
• Painful “pins and needles” or numbness in hands and feet
• Sore, swollen red tongue
• Burning mouth sensation
• Difficulty walking without stumbling
• Short-term memory loss
• Difficulty concentrating
• “Brain fog”
• Shortness of breath

*Multiple sclerosis and vitamin B12 deficiency-pernicious anemia both cause nerve damage, including painful tingling or numbness in the hands and feet and impaired gait.

*Multiple sclerosis and vitamin B12 deficiency-pernicious anemia both cause cognitive impairment, like brain fog, memory loss, and low concentration.

Which tests diagnose multiple sclerosis?

There is more than one test used to confirm MS, and your doctor will need to use the process of elimination to exclude other illnesses.  Some common tests and indicators are:

• MRI scan indicating at least two incidences myelin damage- scar tissue (lesions)
• Neurological exams
• Blood tests
• Spinal tap
• Evoked potentials, an electrical test of your nervous impulses

Which tests diagnose vitamin B12 deficiency?

Only one test is required to diagnose vitamin B12 deficiency- a blood test indicating low blood serum levels of vitamin B12.  Patients of pernicious anemia require routine blood tests in order to monitor their B12 levels.

What’s the best treatment for multiple sclerosis?

There is no cure for MS, but various medications are helpful for dealing with the symptoms.

• Some prescribed medicines work by controlling your body’s autoimmune response, thus reducing the frequency and severity of MS symptoms.
• Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a controversial surgery used to treat debilitating tremors in people with MS. Complications may include paralysis, loss of vision, or loss of speech.
• Alternative treatments for MS include physical therapy, exercise like yoga or tai chi, acupuncture, aromatherapy, meditation, massage, and vitamin therapy.

What’s the best treatment for vitamin B12 deficiency?

There are many kinds of B12 supplements on the market, but it’s important to be certain if you are able to digest vitamin B12 in the stomach. If you lack intrinsic factor, or if you’ve had gastrointestinal surgery like gastric bypass, then you will not benefit from dietary forms of vitamin B12.

• Physicians normally prescribe a series of B12 shots for patients with pernicious anemia.  These vitamin B12 injections require a prescription, and not all health care providers cover extensive supplementation of vitamin B12 shots.
• Sublingual vitamin B12 pills that dissolve under the tongue are another option, although they are not very effective, and they often require dosages of three times per day.
• A behind-the-ear vitamin B12 patch is an increasingly popular option for patients who wish to supplement B12 without the need for injections,  The B12 patch also allows you the freedom to take non-dietary vitamin B12 without a doctor’s prescription.

Read more about vitamin B12 symptoms:

Vitamin B12 Deficiency- 4 Causes, 1 Solution

Absorbing Vitamin B12, a Metabolic Gastrointestinal Journey

Sore Burning Tongue, Dry Mouth, and Weird Tastes- What’s the Cause?

Sources:

Multiple sclerosis

Vitamin B12, demyelination, remyelination and repair in multiple sclerosis

WebMD Multiple Sclerosis Guide – Better Information for Better Health

If you suffer from Inflammatory Bowel Disorder (IBD), then you probably won’t appreciate extravagant (albeit well-meaning) gifts like World’s Largest Cheese Ball, Seven-Spice fruitcake, or a subscription to the Beer of the Month club.  It’s hard for non-IBD sufferers to know what kind of gift to get for somebody with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.  Make it easier on them- print out this handy list, and avoid unnecessarily awkward gift-giving scenarios.

#1 The Vitamin B12 Patch

Most people don’t realize they suffer from low B12 levels until it’s too late, and they start feeling symptoms like extreme fatigue, fuzzy thinking, memory loss, difficulty concentrating, depression, and painfully tingling sensations in the hands and feet.  And if you suffer from gastrointestinal disorders such as IBD, then you are at high risk for getting vitamin B12 deficiency, as you are not able to digest vitamin B12 in the stomach.  The only way to prevent vitamin deficiency is to deposit vitamin B12 directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system completely.  Nip B12 deficiency in the bud by supplementing with vitamin B12 every day.

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

#2 Numi Organic Tea Flowering Gift Set

Who wouldn’t appreciate this lovely, aesthetically appealing gift of tea?  Drop a tea bud into a pot of hot water, and watch as it slowly “blossoms” into a breathtaking underwater bouquet.  Choose from an assortment of organic black, white, green or oolong teas.

7 Natural Remedies for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)

#3  Charmin To Go

Part of coping with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis means always being prepared for bathroom emergencies, and these flushable bathroom wipes are the best thing since sliced bread! This is a great stocking-stuffer for anybody with IBD.

On the Run with Crohn’s? 6 Ways to Ease Public Restroom Anxiety

#4 Travelon Hand Soap Toiletry Sheets

Let’s face it- you can’t always count on hand soap.  And while you’re ready to negotiate on comfort and convenience at rest stops, you’re not about to invite extra bouts of diarrhea from fecal contamination.  These soap sheets from Travelon are amazing- they’re compact, they last forever, they dissolve easily with very little water, and one small pack contains 50 sheets! Also available- body wash, shampoo, conditioner, shaving lotion, and laundry soap.

#5 Leather Toiletry Bag

Take your bathroom supplies with you without looking conspicuous.  This leather toiletry bag lets you bring your basic bathroom necessities like flushable wipes, Travelon soap sheets, and an extra vitamin B12 patch without raising any eyebrows.

#6 Heating Pad

Sooth lower back pain, ease hemorrhoids, or just get rid of an annoying headache by keeping an electric heating pad handy.  This should be a staple in the home of every chronic pain sufferer.

#7 Coca-Cola Personal Fridge with AC Adapter

If you spend an inordinate amount of time in bed, then you’ll appreciate having a compact refrigerator for storing things like iced tea, water, meds, or a soothing snack.  This cooler is great for people who live on a second floor, and don’t have the ability…or energy to climb up and down stairs.  Or, keep this in your car for emergency trips to the hospital.

#8 Uncle John’s Bathroom Readers

Uncle John has been entertaining restroom readers for 25 years, and it’s easy to see why.  Each tome is chock full of miscellaneous bits of interesting stories, anecdotes, facts, trivia games, and mini biographies.  It’s like having a compact library, right where you need it most.  You’ll probably never get through the whole book, but if you do, there are dozens of Uncle John’s Bathroom Readers to choose from, including one for kids!

#9 The Foul Bowel

By John Bradley, the Foul Bowel offers helpful facts, tips, and resources for all people suffering from Crohn’s disease.

101 Helpful Sites for Kids ‘n Teens with Crohn’s (and their Parents)

#10 Creative Colitis Cookbook

Not sure what to cook that won’t upset your tummy?  Take the blah out of your staple dinner routine by following some of the innovatively healthy recipes in the Creative
Colitis Cookbook for people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Read more about vitamin B12 and Crohn’s disease:

Dressing after Crohn’s Surgery- 5 Post- Ostomy Fashion Tips

Crohn’s- 9 Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD) Myths to Ignore

Walk into a convenience store, and you can’t even see the sugary sodas for all the energy drinks cluttering up the aisles, touting vitamin B12 among their many other energy-boosting ingredients.  Why are more Americans turning to vitamin-infused 5-hour energy shots for instant get-up-and-go, and do these products work?

Energy drinks- is it all bull?

The label on the can promises extra vitamin B12 -cobalamin- for “maximum energy,” athletic endurance, and increased mental focus, without causing nasty side effects associated with most energy drinks (nervousness, paranoia, and insomnia).  At least, that’s the claim.  But how healthy are vitamin B12 drinks, and does the “energy blend” of vitamins and nutrients really have that much impact on your energy level?

Let’s look at the most common ingredients in a 2-ounce bottle:

• Niacin- 30mg (150% RDA)
• Vitamin B6- 40mg (2000% RDA)
• Folic acid- 400mcg (100% RDA)
• Vitamin B12- 500mcg (8333% RDA)
• “Energy Blend”- 1870mg

Oh, and don’t forget the caffeine

Yes- all energy drinks contain loads of caffeine, in addition to all the healthy nutrients.  That “energy blend” referred to on the label includes about 138mg of caffeine- ounce for ounce, the same amount of caffeine as in a cup of brewed coffee, and twice as much caffeine as you’ll find in a cup of instant coffee.

Boost Energy Now! 20 Practical Tips for Fighting Fatigue

Why include vitamin B12?

Vitamin B12 has gained a lot of popularity these days as the “energy vitamin,” and for good reason.  Vitamin B12 helps your body convert carbs into energy.  Vitamin B12 also helps produce amino acids, promotes a healthy metabolism, builds red blood cells, improves cognitive functioning, protects your nervous system, and lowers your risk of getting a heart attack or stroke.  (See B Vitamins prevent Cardiovascular Disease- B6, B12 and Folate)

Some side effects of having low vitamin B12 in your system include

• chronic fatigue, despite getting plenty of sleep
• exhaustion after exercise
• depression
• trouble concentrating
• memory loss
• confusion
• paranoia
• hallucinations
• irritability

Tired of being Tired all the Time…It’s Tiring!

Some of the more physical, neurological side effects of having B12 deficiency include

• arms or feet constantly going numb, or “falling asleep”
• painful tingling sensations in the hands, feet, or tongue
• sore, reddened tongue
• altered taste perception
• tinnitus (ear ringing)
• weak muscles
• poor motor control
• clumsiness
• frequent stumbling while walking or running
• inability to balance on one leg

Painful Tingling in Hands and Feet- What’s Up with That?

Over a long period, low vitamin B12 levels could lead to pernicious anemia, early onset dementia like Alzheimer’s disease, neurological damage, osteoporosis, cancer, stroke, heart attack…even death.

Why you’re better off getting your B12 elsewhere

Nobody’s disputing that it’s important to get your daily fix of vitamin and minerals. But it’s important to make sure you get a potent, fully digestible form of vitamin B12.  The problem with many energy drinks is that they only work if your body is able to absorb vitamin B12.  And most people who suffer severe fatigue and loss of concentration because of low vitamin B12 levels lack the necessary chemicals for vitamin B12 absorption from dietary sources and distributing it to the blood supply.

In fact, if you don’t produce “intrinsic factor,” then no amount of vitamin B12 food sources, drinks, sprays, or pills will give you the boost of energy and mental focus you need to get through the day.  To get vitamin B12 into your blood, you will have to bypass the digestive system.

First, find out if you have B12 deficiency by asking your doctor for a blood test. Supplementation may include vitamin B12 shots.  Additionally, many people who require extra vitamin B12 opt to use a vitamin B12 patch.

Read more about vitamin B12 for energy:

The Vitamin B12 Patch for Energy

Is Vitamin B12 the Secret to the Fountain of Youth?

I was Blinded by B12 Deficiency, says Vitamin B12 Patch Fan

Sources:

Caffeine in 5-Hour Energy

5 HOUR ENERGY DRINK INGREDIENTS

Image credits, from top:

nattu, Nina Matthews Photography, Annie Mole

Recently, scientists discovered an ancient mutant gene putting vitamin B12 deficiency around the timeline of 11,600 B.C., causing a rare form of vitamin B12 anemia known as Imerslund-Gräsbeck Syndrome (IGS) – the second-oldest disease-causing mutant gene known to mankind.

What causes Imerslund-Gräsbeck syndrome (IGS)?

According to researchers, mutations in either the amnionless (AMN) or the cubilin (CUBN) gene cause this rare form of vitamin B12 deficiency (IGS), which inhibits vitamin B12 absorption in children born with either mutated gene.  Children born with IGS lack intrinsic factor, a chemical required to digest vitamin B12 in food sources, such as beef, chicken, fish, cheese, and eggs, and eventually show symptoms of severe juvenile cobalamin deficiency.  This discovery adds to our knowledge that B12 deficiency is an inherited disorder.

What is vitamin B12, and why is it so important?

What are the symptoms of Imerslund-Gräsbeck syndrome (IGS)?

IGS originated in the Middle East, affecting children of Jewish, Turkish, or Arabic descent.  Children with (IGS) vitamin B12 deficiency exhibit the following symptoms:

• Increased risk for infection
• Everyday fatigue, regardless of diet or sufficient sleep
• Difficulty concentrating, symptoms similar to Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
• Partial paralysis

Untreated, childhood vitamin B12 deficiency can also lead to pernicious anemia, a potentially fatal disease.  A blood test is required to diagnose vitamin B12 deficiency anemia, and treatments include constant vitamin B12 injections, as prescribed by your physician- possibly for the rest of your life.  Vitamin B12 without prescription is also available in pill form or as a transdermal vitamin B12 patch system.

Top Ten Signs of a Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Who is at risk for getting vitamin B12 deficiency?

Aside from individuals with the inherited vitamin B12 deficiency disorder, other people that are at risk for vitamin B12 deficiency include:

• Anybody who has had gastrointestinal surgery, such as gastric bypass,  involving the removal of the ileum, a portion of the small intestines required for vitamin B12 absorption
• Anybody taking medications that inhibit absorption of vitamin B12, including the diabetes drug Metformin, acid reflux medication, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatory medications
• Vegans who don’t supplement with vitamin B12 regularly
• Many patients of autoimmune disorders that affect the stomach, such as fibromyalgia, Crohn’s disease, or celiac disease
• Alcoholics
• Elderly individuals who lack sufficient stomach acids to digest vitamin B12

Read more about vitamin B12 deficiency causes:

Brain Drain Medications- Drugs that Drain the B12 out of you

Pernicious Anemia: Your 13 Most Frequently Asked Questions, Answered!

Sources:

Scientists Discover Second-Oldest Gene Mutation

Ancient founder mutation is responsible for Imerslund-Gräsbeck Syndrome among diverse ethnicities

Image credit:

sassiinsa

Are constant eyelid twitching and eye spasms driving you batty?  Myokymia might be a sign of pernicious anemia caused by low B12 levels.  Learn how to stop eye twitching by stopping vitamin B12 deficiency in its tracks.

What is myokymia?

Myokymia is a disorder that causes muscles in your body to twitch involuntarily.  Myokymia twitches can affect any groups of nerves or muscles in your body, including your arms, legs, fingers, and back.  It can also occur on your face- hemifacial spasms are muscular twitches that begin on one side of your face, usually the eye.  Over time, hemifacial spasms can expand to include the rest of your face, on one side.

Balance your B12, Balance your Nerves

Why is my eye twitching?

Myokymia is a type of nerve damage called trigeminal neuralgia.  When your eyelid keeps twitching out of control, it is because the nerves that control the opening and closing of your eyes have been damaged. Eye twitches can occur in either the lower eyelid or upper eyelid,

Causes of myokymia

Causes of eye twitching may include stress, excessive alcohol usage, and staring at a computer screen for long periods of time.  Eye spasms can also be a reaction to caffeine, or may signify low levels of cobalamin- vitamin B12.

B12 deficiency symptoms

Vitamin B12 benefits include red blood cell production, protection of the nervous system’s myelin sheathe, cognitive functioning, DNA synthesis, and lowered homocysteine levels. If your body does not store adequate amounts of vitamin B12, you may get B12 deficiency, and ultimately severe pernicious anemia, a type of megaloblastic anemia blood disease.

B12 deficiency causes emotional and cognitive disorders such as:

• Chronic fatigue
• Memory loss
• Decreased mental focus
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Paranoia
• Aggressiveness
• Hallucinations

Top Ten Signs of a Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Pernicious anemia symptoms include severe nerve damage, including eyelid spasms caused by myokymia.  Lower eyelid twitches are most common with B12 deficiency patients.  Other symptoms of nerve damage caused by pernicious anemia include:

• Numbness and painful tingling in the hands and feet
• Arms or legs constantly “falling asleep”
• Prickly feeling in the tongue
• Altered taste perception
• Sore or swollen tongue

Why do my Arms and Legs often Fall Asleep? B12 and Paresthesia

Stop eye twitching

If you suspect that you have vitamin B12 deficiency, then consult your physician and request a blood test for B12 levels. If diagnosed with low B12, then your doctor will prescribe vitamin B12 supplements.  If you have pernicious anemia, then you might have to get routine B12 shots indefinitely. Once you start taking vitamin B12, you will notice a decrease in pernicious anemia symptoms immediately, and total reversal of symptoms by the time your B12 levels return to normal.

Find out why more people diagnosed with pernicious anemia are supplementing with a vitamin B12 patch…

I was Blinded by B12 Deficiency, says Vitamin B12 Patch Fan

What’s the Difference between B12 Patches and B12 Pills, Anyways?

Multiple Sclerosis and Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Sources:

Hemifacial Spasm Information Page: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Signs of B12 Deficiency

Myokymia – Types, Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

Eyelid Myokymia

Image credits, from top:

cameronparkins, graur codrin, Tambako the Jaguar

If you’re planning a pregnancy, you might want to check your B12 levels- numerous reports link vitamin B12 deficiency during pregnancy with miscarriage, spontaneous abortion, and other fertility problems.  B12 deficiency anemia- pernicious anemia- makes it harder for women to conceive, as well as for men to produce fertile sperm.

Medical research proves the fertility-B12 deficiency link

One of the most famous studies on fertility and B12 deficiency examined fourteen women of childbearing age who suffered vitamin B12 deficiency:

• All women who participated in the study suffered severe vitamin B12 deficiency anemia in addition to low fertility- Four had been trying unsuccessfully to conceive for two to eight years, and eleven experienced repeated miscarriages and spontaneous abortions.
• Dr. Michael Bennett, hematologist of the Ha’Emek Medical Center in Afula, Israel, implemented vitamin B12 supplementation to see if it would have any effect on their ability to conceive and have healthy pregnancies.
• If fetal loss were to continue despite elevating B12 levels, it would prove that infertility was unrelated to B12 deficiency or pernicious anemia symptoms.
• Instead, result showed that ten out of the fourteen test subjects conceived after starting rounds of vitamin B12 supplements.  Out of the ten women, six became pregnant after only three months of starting vitamin B12.  One, who had seven miscarriages before the B12 study, was finally able to conceive after starting her vitamin B12 regimen, and had three healthy babies.

Dr. Bennett explains the connection

• Bennett notes that B12 deficiency, combined with folate deficiency, led to thrombophilia (blood clotting) in seven of the women studied, thus increasing their risk for miscarriage.
• He believes that taking large amounts of folic acid, a nutrient prescribed to women of childbearing age, often masks B12 deficiency symptoms, making it harder to diagnose and treat.
• In his conclusion, Dr. Bennett attributes raised homocysteine levels, a symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency, with repeated fetal loss, and over time, ovulation disorder.

“Correcting this deficiency can rapidly lead to a normal pregnancy,” states Bennett.  “This study illustrates the importance of measuring B12 levels…in every patient investigated for infertility or recurrent (miscarriage).”

Report findings are available by The Journal of Reproductive Medicine.

Why does my body need B12?

Vitamin B12 benefits your body in many ways- it helps to produce red blood cells, promotes DNA synthesis, guards the nervous system’s myelin sheath, maintains cognitive functioning, lowers homocysteine levels, and supports metabolism.  Left untreated, vitamin B12 deficiency can cause illnesses such as pernicious (megaloblastic) anemia, brain atrophy, osteoporosis, heart attack, and stroke.

B12 Deficiency: Don’t Ignore the Symptoms

What symptoms are associated with vitamin B12 deficiency?

Since vitamin B12 interacts with so many different areas of the body, many seemingly unrelated symptoms indicate vitamin B12 deficiency.  Pernicious anemia masks itself as mental illness, diabetes, celiac disease, fibromyalgia, hypothyroid, and other chronic conditions.

Some common symptoms of B12 deficiency:

• Depression
• Chronic fatigue
• Memory loss
• Difficulty concentrating
• “Brain fog”
• Anxiety
• Paranoia
• Hallucinations
• Painful tingling, numbness or “prickly” sensations, mainly in the hands and feet
• Sore, swollen tongue
• Altered sense of taste
• Loss of balance while walking, running, or jumping
• Decreased fine motor skills
• Muscular feebleness
• Heart palpitations

Read more about B12 deficiency and pregnancy:

Pregnant Moms and Low B-12 Levels: Let ‘em Eat Steak!

Avoiding Vitamin B12 Deficiency while Breast Feeding

Are Vegans in France Responsible for Breast-fed Baby’s Death?

Sources:

Vitamin B12 deficiency, infertility and recurrent fetal loss- PubMed, NCBI

Lack Of Vitamin B12 Linked To Repeat Miscarriage

Vitamin B12 deficiency, infertility and miscarriage

Pernicious Anemia

Image credits, from top:

Stuart Miles, Ambro, photostock, winnond