Special Test Needed For Vitamin B12 Deficiency

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http://www.mercola.com/2004/nov/24/vitamin_b12_deficiency.htm

 

Special Test Needed For Vitamin B12 Deficiency

 

Getting tested for vitamin B12 deficiency is extremely important;

however, scientists have indicated that the standard test -- measuring

blood levels -- may not be sensitive enough to detect a deficiency.

Due to this insensitivity, scientists have discovered an alternative

way to detect vitamin B12 deficiency.

 

It seems that elevated levels of the body's natural compound,

methylmalonic acid (MMA), indicate low levels of vitamin B12. Low

vitamin B12 levels have been linked to several neurological

conditions, such as:

 

* Dementia

* Spinal cord disease

* Peripheral neuropathy

 

While vitamin B12 deficiency is most commonly found in the elderly, it

can affect people of all ages. Other high-risk groups include:

 

* Vegetarians and their newborns

* Those who have undergone stomach stapling bariatric surgery

* Those exposed to laughing gas anesthesia or nitrous oxide

 

Nitrous oxide, a general anesthetic commonly used in dental offices

and hospital operating rooms, can inhibit the action of B12 when

tissue stores are low. This has become a major health problem

particularly for the elderly undergoing surgery that have been either

undiagnosed or untreated for a deficiency. For this reason, doctors

are strongly encouraged to check for vitamin B12 deficiency by

measuring both vitamin B12 as well as MMA in patients prior to surgery.

 

Another problem that stems from nitrous oxide: Nitrous oxide abuse.

This remains a concern among certain medical personnel, teenagers and

young adults who use it for its euphoric effects. Such abuse can lead

to severe neurological damage to the spinal cord or peripheral nerves.

 

Science Daily November 5, 2004

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

About 40 percent of the United States population is deficient in B12.

With such an enormous number of people suffering from this deficiency,

I have made special efforts to research information on this incredibly

common condition

 

For those of you who are suffering from vitamin B12 deficiency, it is

important to know that most oral vitamin B12 supplements do not work

well at all. Vitamin B12 is the largest vitamin known; it is a very

large molecule, and it is not easily absorbed. Your body has developed

a very sophisticated system to absorb B12, which involves the

production of intrinsic factor in the stomach that attaches to the B12

and allows it to be absorbed in the end of the small intestine.

 

If your stomach lining is damaged from an ulcer or a Helicobacter

infection, you will not produce intrinsic factor very well, and you

will not be able to absorb B12 very well, if at all. An imbalance of

bacteria in the small intestine can also produce impaired absorption,

as would removal of a portion of the small intestine (commonly done in

Crohn's disease).

 

Vitamin B12 deficiency is quite common in vegetarian and vegans who do

not supplement with B12 or use fortified foods, since B12 is not

readily available, if available at all, in plants. If you are a

vegetarian who eats eggs or fish, the risk for B12 deficiency is

considerably reduced, though you should still consider B12

supplementation. If you are a vegan avoiding all animal products, and

you do not already supplement with B12 (it seems many already do), you

should seriously consider it.

 

So, if you suspect you are deficient in vitamin B12, I would encourage

you to obtain your B12 in a more absorbable form. The common

recommendation is to use injections. My recommendation for that would

be to use 1 ml once a day for two weeks and then three times a week

until the 30-ml bottle is finished.

 

An alternative to the injections would be to use DMSO and vitamin B12.

The DMSO causes the B12 to be absorbed very similarly to an injection

without the cost or pain of a needle. Intranasal B12 is also

available, but unless you have a prescription card I would not

recommend it, as it is VERY expensive.

 

One strong inhibitor of vitamin B12 absorption is the very popular

drug Prilosec, which has been clearly shown to decrease B12 absorption.

 

Related Articles:

 

You Can't Get All the Vitamin B12 You Need From Plant Sources

 

Many People May Be Deficient in Vitamin B-12

 

Screening for Vitamin B-12 Deficiency

 

Low Vitamin B-12 Can Cause Bone Loss

 

Vitamin B12: Are You Getting It?

 

Vitamin B12 for Depression