What Disease Is Caused By Vitamin B Deficiency?

What Disease Is Caused By Vitamin B Deficiency
What is vitamin B12 deficiency anemia? – Vitamin B12 deficiency anemia happens when your body does not have enough healthy red blood cells because your body has a vitamin B12 deficiency. Vitamin B12 is needed to make red blood cells. Because of this, a lack of vitamin B12 can cause, People can have a vitamin B12 deficiency without having anemia.

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What happens if deficient in vitamin B?

Vitamin B12 Deficiency: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment What Disease Is Caused By Vitamin B Deficiency Do you get enough vitamin B12? You’ll want to make sure that you do, in order to stay healthy. Vitamin B12 does a lot of things for your body. It helps make your DNA and your red blood cells, for example. Since your body doesn’t make vitamin B12, you have to get it from animal-based foods or from supplements.

  1. And you should do that on a regular basis.
  2. While B12 is stored in the liver for up to five years, you can eventually become deficient if your diet doesn’t help maintain the levels.
  3. The answer depends on things including your age, your eating habits and medical conditions, and what medications you take.

The average recommended amounts, measured in micrograms (mcg), vary by age:

  • Infants up to age 6 months: 0.4 mcg
  • Babies age 7-12 months: 0.5 mcg
  • Children age 1-3 years: 0.9 mcg
  • Kids age 4-8 years: 1.2 mcg
  • Children age 9-13 years: 1.8 mcg
  • Teens age 14-18: 2.4 mcg (2.6 mcg per day if pregnant and 2.8 mcg per day if breastfeeding)
  • Adults: 2.4 mcg (2.6 mcg per day if pregnant and 2.8 mcg per day if breastfeeding)

You can get vitamin B12 in animal foods, which have it naturally, or from items that have been fortified with it. Animal sources include dairy products, eggs, fish, meat, and poultry. If you’re looking for a food fortified with B12, check the product’s Nutrition Facts label.

  • Most people in the U.S.
  • Get enough of this nutrient.
  • If you’re not sure, you can ask your doctor if you should get a blood test to check your vitamin B12 level.
  • With age, it can become harder to absorb this vitamin.
  • It can also happen if you have had weight loss surgery or another operation that removed part of your stomach, or if you drink heavily.

You may also be more likely to develop vitamin B12 deficiency if you have:

  • Atrophic gastritis, in which your stomach lining has thinned
  • Pernicious anemia, which makes it hard for your body to absorb vitamin B12
  • Conditions that affect your small intestine, such as Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, bacterial growth, or a parasite
  • Alcohol misuse or heavy drinking can make it harder for your body to absorb nutrients or prevent you from eating enough calories. One sign that you lack enough B12 may be glossitis, or a swollen, inflamed tongue.
  • Immune system disorders, such as Graves’ disease or lupus
  • Been taking certain medications that interfere with the absorption of B12. This includes some heartburn medicines including proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) such as esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid), omeprazole (Prilosec OTC), pantoprazole (Protonix), and rabeprazole (Aciphex), H2 Blockers such as cimetidine (Tagamet) and famotidine (Pepcid AC); and certain diabetes medicines such as metformin (Glucophage).

You can also get vitamin B12 deficiency if you follow a vegan diet (meaning you don’t eat any animal products, including meat, milk, cheese, and eggs) or you are a vegetarian who doesn’t eat enough eggs or dairy products to meet your vitamin B12 needs.

In both of those cases, you can add fortified foods to your diet or take supplements to meet this need. Learn more about the different types of vitamin b supplements. Are you a pregnant woman on a vegan or vegetarian diet, and plan to only breastfeed your baby? You should talk to your doctor before you have your baby, so that you have a plan in place for how you’ll get enough vitamin B12 to keep your baby healthy.

Without enough vitamin B12, your baby could have developmental delays and not thrive and grow like they should. If you have vitamin B12 deficiency, you could become anemic. A mild deficiency may cause no symptoms. But if untreated, it may lead to symptoms such as:

  • Weakness, tiredness, or lightheadedness
  • Heart palpitations and shortness of breath
  • Pale skin
  • A smooth tongue
  • Constipation, diarrhea, loss of appetite, or gas
  • Nerve problems like numbness or tingling, muscle weakness, and problems walking
  • Vision loss
  • Mental problems like depression, memory loss, or behavioral changes

If you have pernicious anemia or have trouble absorbing vitamin B12, you’ll need shots of this vitamin at first. You may need to keep getting these shots, take high doses of a supplement by mouth, or get it nasally after that. If you don’t eat animal products, you have options.

You can change your diet to include vitamin B12-fortified grains, a supplement or B12 injections, or a high-dose oral vitamin B12 if you are deficient. Older adults who have a vitamin B12 deficiency will likely have to take a daily B12 supplement or a multivitamin that contains B12. For most people, treatment resolves the problem.

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But, any nerve damage that happened due to the deficiency could be permanent.

  • Most people can prevent vitamin B12 deficiency by eating enough meat, poultry, seafood, dairy products, and eggs.
  • If you don’t eat animal products, or you have a medical condition that limits how well your body absorbs nutrients, you can take vitamin B12 in a multivitamin or other supplement and foods fortified with vitamin B12.
  • If you choose to take vitamin B12 supplements, let your doctor know, so they can tell you how much you need, or make sure they won’t affect any medicines you’re taking.

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  1. SOURCES:
  2. University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) Extension: “Facts About Vitamin B12.”
  3. University of Arizona’s Arizona Telemedicine Program: “Vitamin B12 Deficiency: Pernicious Anemia.”
  4. Harvard Health Publications: “Vitamin B12 Deficiency: Vegetarians, elderly may not get enough vitamin B12, says the Harvard Health Letter.”
  5. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute: “Pernicious Anemia.”
  6. Oregon State University’s Linus Pauling Institute: “Vitamin B12.”
  7. Kaiser Permanente: “Vitamin B12 Deficiency Anemia.”
  8. National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements: “Vitamin B12.”
  9. MedlinePlus: “Anemia – B12 deficiency.”
  10. UpToDate: “Nutritional status in patients with sustained heavy alcohol use.”

: Vitamin B12 Deficiency: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Which B vitamin deficiency is most common?

Do you have a vitamin B deficiency? – Feeling tired and weak? Many of us live busy, hectic lives that warrant feelings of exhaustion. But if this feeling consumes your daily life, it may be time to take a closer look at your diet, particularly your vitamin B intake.

  1. B vitamins, also known as energy vitamins, are a group of eight vitamins that play a role in converting food into energy.
  2. These vitamins are essential for many reasons.
  3. They help reduce stress, anxiety, memory loss, and heart disease risk, to name a few.
  4. They also help keep the skin, nervous system and digestive system healthy.

Jennifer Teems, MS, RD, LD, a clinical dietitian at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, believes most of us will get all of the B vitamins we need by eating a well-balanced diet. But there are some folks who need a little extra help. “The most common vitamin B deficiency is the B12 vitamin and sometimes folate, which is B9,” says Teems.

  1. B12 helps make healthy red blood cells, which keep the nervous system working properly, and folate is crucial in the development of DNA.
  2. Folate or folic acid plays a large role in cell growth and tissue formation.
  3. Teems always recommends a nutritious diet first, but the following people may benefit from taking a vitamin B supplement.

Discuss your individual needs with your physician before you begin taking any new supplement or medication.

The elderly. As people age, they tend to produce less intrinsic factor, which is a protein made in the stomach that helps absorb vitamin B12 from food. This causes a form of anemia to set in, which leads to fatigue. Women of childbearing age. Folate promotes healthy child development. Many studies have shown that women who get 0.4 milligrams of folic acid daily prior to conception and during early pregnancy reduce the risk of birth defects to the brain and spinal cord by up to 70 percent. Antacid-takers. Prolonged use of antacids to relieve heartburn or acid reflux can cause folate and B-12 to be depleted from the body. Those with stomach complications. People who suffer from gastric conditions like celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, or have had intestinal surgeries or even gastric bypass surgery may have a harder time absorbing essential B vitamins. Vegetarians. B-12 is found only in animal sources, so strict vegetarians may need a supplement for this important vitamin.

Is vitamin B deficiency serious?

What is vitamin B12 deficiency? – Vitamin B12 deficiency occurs when there are inadequate levels of the vitamin B12 in the body. This important vitamin is necessary for the production of red blood cells and the healthy functioning of the nervous system.

  1. A lack of vitamin B12 can cause anemia and other health problems.
  2. Ref1 ref2 Anemia is a condition where the body either cannot make enough healthy red blood cells or cannot produce enough of the substance hemoglobin that allows red blood cells to transport oxygen around the body.
  3. There are several different types of anemia, each with their own causes and symptoms.
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For example, vitamin B12 deficiency can cause megaloblastic anemia, a condition where the red blood cells are larger than normal and cannot function properly. ref2 ref9 For many people, a balanced and varied diet provides all the vitamin B12 they need.

Ref2 Good sources of vitamin B12 include meat, fish, eggs and dairy products. Despite the availability of vitamin B12 in a balanced diet, deficiency is not all that uncommon, particularly among people over 50 years of age, premenopausal women and people who follow strict vegan diets. ref5 ref6 Low levels of vitamin B12 may be the result of a number of different factors and conditions.

One of the most common causes of vitamin B12 deficiency is pernicious anemia, a condition where a person’s immune system mistakenly reduces their ability to absorb the vitamin. Less common causes of deficiency include conditions affecting the stomach or intestines that interfere with absorption of vitamin B12, inadequate dietary intake, and certain medications.

ref1 ref3 Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency usually develop gradually and can be wide-ranging. These may include general symptoms of ((/conditions/anemia/), such as fatigue and lethargy, as well as the symptoms specific to the deficiency, such as yellow tinge to the skin and a sore tongue. If left untreated, the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency tend to worsen and irreversible problems involving the nerves and brain may develop.

The risk of experiencing a number of serious complications, including heart failure, may also increase. ref9 ref7 For this reason, it is important to seek medical advice without delay should any of these symptoms be present.

Can vitamin B12 deficiency cause joint pain?

Vitamin B12 is essential for making red blood cells, keeping nerves healthy, forming DNA, and helping your body carry out various functions. It’s necessary for maintaining both mental and physical health. Not getting enough vitamin B12 to the point of a deficiency can cause a variety of serious symptoms including depression, joint pain, and fatigue.

Who is at most risk of a deficiency of vitamin B12?

Overview – Vitamin B-12 (cobalamin) plays an essential role in red blood cell formation, cell metabolism, nerve function and the production of DNA, the molecules inside cells that carry genetic information. Food sources of vitamin B-12 include poultry, meat, fish and dairy products.

Vitamin B-12 is also added to some foods, such as fortified breakfast cereals, and is available as an oral supplement. Vitamin B-12 injections or nasal spray might be prescribed to treat vitamin B-12 deficiency. Vitamin B-12 deficiency is not common in the U.S. However, people who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet might be prone to deficiency because plant foods don’t contain vitamin B-12.

Older adults and people with digestive tract conditions that affect absorption of nutrients also are susceptible to vitamin B-12 deficiency. Left untreated, a vitamin B-12 deficiency can lead to anemia, fatigue, muscle weakness, intestinal problems, nerve damage and mood disturbances.

How does vitamin B deficiency affect the brain?

Neurological changes – A lack of vitamin B12 can cause neurological problems, which affect your nervous system, such as:

vision problems memory loss pins and needles (paraesthesia) loss of physical co-ordination (ataxia), which can affect your whole body and cause difficulty speaking or walking damage to parts of the nervous system (peripheral neuropathy), particularly in the legs

If neurological problems do develop, they may be irreversible.

What causes vitamin B deficiency in adults?

What Causes Vitamin B Deficiency? – Different B vitamins yield different deficiency levels, for example, in the U.S., research indicates that approximately 6% of adults younger than 60 years have vitamin B12 deficiency, and around 20% of those older than 60 have a deficiency Hunt A, Harrington D, Robinson S.

Inadequate intake due to certain diets Malabsorption due to certain conditions (such as Crohn’s disease) Interactions with certain medications Alcohol abuse Certain genetic disorders

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How quickly can you fix vitamin B deficiency?

How long does it take to recover from B12 deficiency? Once you begin treating your vitamin B12 deficiency, it can take up to six to 12 months to fully recover. It is also common to not experience any improvement during the first few months of treatment.

What happens when your B12 is extremely low?

Extreme tiredness (fatigue) lack of energy (lethargy) breathlessness. feeling faint.

How do you feel when lacking B12?

Key points about vitamin B12 deficiency anemia –

With this condition, your body does not have enough healthy red blood cells, due to a lack (deficiency) of vitamin B It is one of several types of megaloblastic anemia. Without enough red blood cells, your tissues and organs don’t get enough oxygen. Without enough oxygen, your body can’t work as well. Symptoms include weak muscles, numbness, trouble walking, nausea, weight loss, irritability, fatigue, and increased heart rate. Treatment may include vitamin B 12 supplements. It is also important to eat a well-balanced diet.

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What is the main cause of vitamin B12 deficiency?

Diet – Some people can develop a vitamin B12 deficiency as a result of not getting enough vitamin B12 from their diet. A diet that includes meat, fish and dairy products usually provides enough vitamin B12, but people who do not regularly eat these foods can become deficient.

Are vitamin B deficiencies common?

Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient that your body needs for processes, like DNA synthesis, energy production, and central nervous system function ( 1 ). Even though the vitamin is found in many foods, B12 insufficiency and deficiency are relatively common.

This is often due to limited dietary intake, malabsorption, certain medical conditions, or the use of B12-depleting medications ( 2, 3, 4 ). In fact, studies suggest that up to 20% of people over the age of 60 in the United States and the United Kingdom are deficient in the vitamin ( 5 ). For reference, B12 levels above 300 pg/mL are considered normal, levels of 200–300 pg/mL are considered borderline, and levels below 200 pg/mL are considered deficient ( 2 ).

Because the ability to absorb B12 from food declines with age, deficiency is more common in older adults. Still, that doesn’t mean children and younger adults, including those who are pregnant and breastfeeding, can’t develop B12 deficiency ( 5, 6 ).

Unfortunately, B12 deficiency is often overlooked and misdiagnosed. Oftentimes, this is due to inadequate laboratory testing or because the symptoms are not specific to vitamin B12 deficiency alone ( 7 ). If you suspect you might have a B12 deficiency, it’s important to visit a healthcare professional to discuss your symptoms and undergo appropriate testing.

This article covers nine of the most commonly reported symptoms related to B12 deficiency and how this deficiency is diagnosed and treated.

Which B vitamin is most important?

– B-complex supplements usually pack all eight B vitamins into one pill. B vitamins are water-soluble, which means your body does not store them. For this reason, your diet must supply them each day. They have many important functions and are vital for maintaining good health. Vitamin B complex supplements usually contain the following:

B1 (thiamine). Thiamine plays an essential role in metabolism by helping convert nutrients into energy. The richest food sources include pork, sunflower seeds, and wheat germ ( 1 ). B2 (riboflavin). Riboflavin helps convert food into energy and also acts as an antioxidant. Foods highest in riboflavin include organ meats, beef, and mushrooms ( 2 ). B3 (niacin). Niacin plays a role in cellular signaling, metabolism, and DNA production and repair. Food sources include chicken, tuna, and lentils ( 3 ). B5 (pantothenic acid). Like other B vitamins, pantothenic acid helps your body obtain energy from food and is also involved in hormone and cholesterol production. Liver, fish, yogurt, and avocado are all good sources ( 4 ). B6 (pyridoxine). Pyridoxine is involved in amino acid metabolism, red blood cell production, and the creation of neurotransmitters. Foods highest in this vitamin include chickpeas, salmon, and potatoes ( 5 ). B7 (biotin). Biotin is essential for carbohydrate and fat metabolism and regulates gene expression. Yeast, eggs, salmon, cheese, and liver are among the best food sources of biotin ( 6 ). B9 (folate). Folate is needed for cell growth, amino acid metabolism, the formation of red and white blood cells, and proper cell division. It can be found in foods like leafy greens, liver, and beans or in supplements in the form of folic acid ( 7 ). B12 (cobalamin). Perhaps the most well-known of all the B vitamins, B12 is vital for neurological function, DNA production, and red blood cell development. B12 is found naturally in animal sources like meats, eggs, seafood, and dairy ( 8 ).

Although these vitamins share some characteristics, they all have unique functions and are needed in different amounts. While another essential nutrient, choline, was formerly considered to be a B-complex vitamin and shares some similarities with them, it is in fact neither a vitamin nor a mineral.

What happens if you lack vitamin b2?

History and Physical – Riboflavin deficiency can cause fatigue, swollen throat, blurred vision, and depression. It can affect the skin by causing skin crack, itching, and dermatitis around the mouth. Hyperemia and edema around the throat, liver degeneration, and hair loss can also occur along with reproductive issues.