What are the causes of B12 deficiency? What are the signs? What does vitamin B12 do and why is it important? Should raw foodists and vegans supplement? These questions will be answered here. Why is vitamin B12 so important? What does this vitamin do? It supports our nerves, energy production and red blood cells. It helps to decrease our homocysteine and thereby the risk of heart disease and weakening of the arteries and nerves. If you don't get enough B12, you might become anemic. You don't carry enough oxygen to your blood. You look pale and your immune system might become weak. But there are be many other signs of B12 deficiency: In babies or toddlers, the child may start to look pale, fail to thrive or have weak muscles. There can also be many "slow" symptoms. Symptoms that you don't notice immediately, but show only over time. Actually, it might be a reason why some people don't feel well on raw, vegetarian or vegan diets. The main causes of B12 deficiency is age.
As you get older, it becomes harder for your body to absorb B12. This may be due to low stomach acid that comes with age or intestinal problems such as ulcers or having part of the intestine removed or taking medications such as antacids and laxatives on a regular basis. Other causes of B12 deficiency: when you don't eat meat, fish or dairy. Because these are vitamin B12 foods and you don't find this vitamin in fruits or plants. That's why 80% of all vegans - who don't supplement - are deficient in this vitamin. Consistent research has shown that vegans (including raw food vegans) have a high chance of not getting enough B12. This is especially true for babies and toddlers! You store this vitamin in your body. This stored B12 is not transferred to the baby through the breast milk. A vegan or vegetarian mother should take daily supplements in order to supply her baby through breast milk! Even among mothers who do eat animal products, the babies may not get enough of this important B vitamin.
However, research has shown that as long as the mother supplements during breast feeding, the baby should be OK. When you have vit B12 deficiency symptoms you might consider taking B12 Vitamins or shots. You should know however that many people suffer from side effects to B12 vitamins or get vitamin B12 shot problems. Most of the time, the side effects are the result of chemical (synthetic) version vitamin B12 used in the shots or vitamin supplements, the "stabilizers" or preservatives used in the injections and/or the unusual large amount of B12 that your body has to deal with suddenly (especially with shots). Some common side effects are: Mild diarrhea, upset stomach, nausea, a feeling, or a sense, of being swollen over the entire body, headache, joint pain. More severe (less common) side effects: Generally, the side effects are easily avoided by taking NATURAL supplements. Below you can find a list of natural sources and supplements of vitamin B12. The best (raw) food sources of vitamin B12 are (per 100 gr serving:
The RDA for B12 (for adults) both men and women is 2.4 mcg. Some people believe sea vegetables are a good source of B12, but I haven't found sufficient research that shows sea greens contain B12. Especially if you are breastfeeding or are pregnant, I wouldn't take the chance. If you're on a raw vegan diet, causes of B12 deficiency can be prevented by taking supplements. You don't need much vitamin B12. Methylcobalamin - 1000 mcg (sublingual) is a great source (i.e. from Natural Factors). It contains ingredients that most people react well to (rarely any side effects) Nano B-12 is another good source. This is probably the best B12 supplement because it is 100% natural and is absorbed easily (but a bit more expensive). It's recommended by Gabriel Cousens and David Wolfe. Some great internet sources for natural B12 supplements are: Rejuvenac (fermented wheat drink) is also a good source of vitamin B12. However, though this is a natural and vegan drink, you should know that the Hippocrates Health Institute (Raw food institute in Florida) advises not to drink this because of the high amount of fermentation.
And personally, I have difficulty with the taste... Victoria Boutenko's, a long time raw foodist and vegan, research lead her to the conclusion that people who do NOT wash their produce are rarely B-12 deficient, while raw foodist who DO are. Victoria suspects that B-12 can be found in the soil. If you are lucky to get fresh produce from a reliable natural source or if you have your own vegetable garden you may be able to get your B-12 from your veggies IF you do not wash them. Healing with Raw Food How to Test Your pH Delicious Raw Food Diet Recipes This content on your website or in your E-zine? Return from causes of b12 deficiency to the HomePageI recently received an excellent pair of questions from a client of mine and wanted to share the dialogue with you. To bring you up to speed, I urged caution in providing 800 mcg of methylfolate to younger children or immediately starting at a higher dose as it can cause side effects. Instead, I mentioned that he should start with a small amount and work up gradually in order to avoid side effects.
This caused some concern among his family members making them not want to take methylfolate at all – yet they all suffer from the MTHFR mutation. Here is his question to me: I am enjoying this tablet. It makes me feel grounded and secure. I have most of my relatives taking it now. I have two more questions that will help specific relatives: 1) Is the Metafolin portion of this supplement absorbed sublingually, like the B-12 component is? Or does the Metafolin portion mainly get absorbed by the stomach when it is swollowed? 2) You say that getting too much methylfolate can be “too much of a good thing”, or as bad as not getting enough. So we want to know, how dangerous is this? Is the resultant agitation and irritability just a feeling of discomfort? Or is the body suffering from an imbalance as much as it would be harmed by a deficiency? I have not been able to find where you clarify this disturbing concern anywhere on your site. Let me quickly say that the population that I work with is very ill and highly sensitive so I am extra careful in my recommendations.
The general population is not likely to experience any ill effects from taking methylfolate in higher amounts. According to the Alt Med Review: Side Effects and Toxicity of Methylfolate: In doses typically administered for therapeutic purposes, 5-MTHF is considered non-toxic. At doses of up to 50 mg daily, gastrointestinal complaints, insomnia, irritability, and fatigue have been mentioned as occasional side effects. Folic acid and 5-MTHF are considered safe during pregnancy, with a recommended intake of 800 mcg daily. To answer your questions: 1) The metafolin is going to be directly absorbed just like the methylfolate – sublingually. 2) Taking too much of anything is not good. Is taking too much methylfolate dangerous? In most people, no. It is not going to cause long term issues or death or a serious health concern – and not even any side effects. People take upwards of 50 mg of methylfolate daily for their depression or other mental dysfunctions.
I am very conservative when it comes to dose suggestions as I don’t like people being ‘macho’ and thinking that if they take 10 mg of methylfolate, that will be better than 1 mg. Sometimes yes it will and sometimes it won’t. What could you experience if you do take too much methylfolate? Will these symptoms go away upon reducing the levels of methylfolate or stopping it? Will these symptoms go away quickly? – In most people – yes – these symptoms will stop within 24 hours if not earlier. Can you ‘neutralize’ these side effects faster if they occur? – Many times, yes. – By taking niacin as niacin binds methyl groups and also increases the breakdown of glutamte – which is the excitatory neurtransmitter. – By taking vitamin B6 – for many people – as B6 converts glutamate to GABA and GABA is the inhibitory neurotransmitter. As a physician, it is my job to: – Do no harm That said – I encourage people to start low and work up carefully to avoid these side effects.