More B-12 Information

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WOW! thanks for the info!!

 

Monte

 

rawfood , carlo7 <carlo7@p...> wrote:

> THE VITAMIN B12 ISSUE

>

> by Dr Gina Shaw, D.S., M.A., AIYS (Dip. Irid.)

>

> The subject of Vitamin B12 is not new to most vegans, vegetarians or

> raw fooders. The supplement companies have many people running to

> their local health (drug) stores in an effort to make themselves

> deficiency-free, but is this a good idea? A number of issues will

be

> raised in this article and I will attempt to piece together some

> information from many different and reliable (non-financially-

> oriented) sources.

>

> A vitamin B12 deficiency is a serious disorder, but it is never just

> a B12 deficiency because vitamin and mineral deficiencies never

> happen in isolation. Indications of a deficiency of vitamin B12,

> when they do reach a stage where they have shown up, can be quite

> severe. Fatigue, paleness, anorexia, mental confusion, delusions,

> paranoia, weight loss, etc. are just some indications that a person

> may have a B12-deficiency. In my opinion, ME is a B12-deficiency

> disorder. If you do think you may have a B12-deficiency, it would

be

> wise for you to seek the advice of a health practitioner (such as

> myself) who is knowledgeable about B12-deficiencies, for immediate

> advice. This disorder can eventually lead to death if left

unchecked.

>

> UK official recommendations have decreased in recent years, the

> body's needs having been previously over-estimated. Indeed, the

> Department of Health recognises that some people have lower than

> average requirements of B12. A whole lifetime's requirement of B12

> add up to a 40 milligram speck of red crystals, about one-seventh

the

> size of an average tablet of aspirin! Taking large doses of the

> vitamin by mouth is pointless because 3ug is the most that can be

> absorbed at any one time.

>

> Vitamin B12 is excreted in the bile and is effectively reabsorbed.

> This is known as enterohepatic circulation. The amount of B12

> excreted in the bile can vary from 1 to 10ug (micrograms) a day.

> People on diets low in B12, including vegans and some vegetarians,

> may be obtaining more B12 from reabsorption than from dietary

> sources. Reabsorption is the reason it can take over 20 years for a

> deficiency disease to develop. In comparison, if B12 deficiency is

> due to a failure in absorption, it can take only three years for a

> deficiency disease to occur. Since vitamin B12 is recycled in a

> healthy body, in principle, internal B12 synthesis could fulfil our

> needs without any B12 provided in the diet, but if cobalt in our

diet

> is lacking, the problem is not so much a lack of B12 synthesising

> intestinal flora, as a lack of cobalt (which again will need other

> factors for efficient absorption).

>

> Among the many controversies surrounding vitamin B12, there is the

> argument that, although intrinsic factor is produced in our stomachs

> and that our intestines are known to produce vitamin B12, the

> bacteria is produced too low down in the intestines and cannot be

> absorbed by our bodies. This argument is sadly still hanging around,

> however, according to Dr Vetrano, it was disproved by research over

> 20 years ago and is nothing more than an obsolete scientific

theory.

> Indeed, in a 1999 version of `Human Anatomy and Physiology' by

> Marieb, it states quite clearly that we do indeed absorb vitamin B12

> through our intestines.

>

> Many people say that the only foods which contain vitamin B12 are

> animal-derived foods. This also is untrue. No foods naturally

> contain vitamin B12 - neither animal or plant foods. Vitamin B12 is

> a microbe - a bacteria - it is produced by microorganisms. Vitamin

> B12 is the only vitamin that contains a trace element - cobalt -

> which gives this vitamin its chemical name - cobalamin - which is at

> the centre of its molecular structure. Humans and all vertebrates

> require cobalt, although it is assimilated only in the form of

> vitamin B12.

>

> B12 synthesis is known to occur naturally in the human small

> intestine (in the ileum), which is the primary site of B12

> absorption. As long as gut bacteria have cobalt and certain other

> nutrients, they produce vitamin B12. According to Dr Michael

Klaper,

> vitamin B12 is present in the mouth and intestines. B12 must be

> combined with a mucoprotein enzyme named Intrinsic Factor, which is

> normally present in gastric secretions, to be properly

assimilated.

> If the intrinsic factor is impaired or absent, B12 synthesis will

not

> take place, no matter how much is present in the diet. B12

> deficiency may be brought upon by antibiotics (also contained in

> milk), alcohol, smoking and stress (alcohol damages the liver, so

> drinkers need more B12, smoking (and all high temp cooked food is

> smoky) also raises B12 needs).

>

> Many nutritional analyses of foodstuffs were carried out such a long

> time ago, and, as such, have not taken account of more up-to-date

> technology in scientific procedures. For instance, Tesco's

> raspberries now state quite clearly that 100g of raspberries contain

> 30% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin B12. This cannot

> be an isolated example of a plant food which contains B12! More

> likely, it is just one plant food of many which contain this

vitamin.

> Indeed, according to Dr Vetrano, current books on nutrition in the

> U.S. have now stated that there is B12 in any food that contains

> quantities of the B vitamin complex, but previously they were just

> not able to assay the amounts. Nowadays, more modern technology has

> allowed them to discover that there is B12 in those foods rich in

the

> B complex.

>

> The author does not believe that a vitamin B12 deficiency is more

> widespread in vegans or vegetarians - this is probably just another

> marketing lie! In fact, many so-called studies `showing vegans

> deficient' have to be carefully studies themselves - many of them do

> not prove vegans to be deficient at all! In fact, contrary to meat

> and dairy industry propaganda, meat-eaters are known to be more

> likely to have a vitamin B12 deficiency - this has been known since

> 1959!!(1)

>

> Having said this, we must bear in mind that many vegetarians and

> vegans still take antibiotics or consume antibiotic-containing foods

> such as onions, garlic, strong radishes and other foods rich in

> mustard oil, which are lethal to intestinal flora. The trouble is

> that once we have damaged our intestinal flora, it is difficult to

> correct without proper and knowledgeable healthcare and dietary

> advice. It is of far greater importance to correct intestinal

flora

> problems than to rely on so-called supplements. People who have a

> physical problem because they think they are not getting enough

> vitamin B12, are in fact often not assimilating their foods properly

> because of poor digestion. When digestion is straightened out, B12

> can be utilized and produced once again

>

> According to Marieb's `Human Anatomy and Physiology', vitamin B12

can

> be destroyed by highly alkaline and highly acid conditions. This

> assumes that the B12 in meat would be easily destroyed because the

> hydrochloric acid in our stomaches during the digestion of meat is

> highly acidic. This may explain why meat-eaters are just as likely

to

> have a B12 deficiency as vegans - even though their diet contains

> vitamin B12. Also, for meat-eaters, there is antiobiotics contained

> in meat! Of course, many meat-eaters destroy their friendly

bacteria

> in their intestines by constant putrefaction and the putrefactive

> bacteria naturally present in meat will give the body a hard time.

>

> Another side to the equation is that low serum B12 levels do not

> equate to a B12 deficiency necessarily. Just because there is a low

> level of B12 in the bloodstream, this does not mean that there is a

> deficiency in the body as a whole, it may well be being utilised by

> the living cells (such as the central nervous system). In any case,

> a person who takes supplements may well have `vitamin B12' floating

> in their bloodstream, but this does not mean it is usable to the

> human body as synthetic, inorganic vitamins are not.

>

> The illusionary benefits of supplement-taking result in the person's

> increased metabolism in order to expel these harmful substances as

> quickly as possible. This results in a stimulation of the body and

> the illusion of an improvement in health. The truth is that there

is

> a very delicate balance among hormone secretions, vitamins, enzymes,

> minerals, etc. This is something that scientists know very little

> about. These substances do not work alone, but in fact require

other

> factors for them to be effective, like fats, etc. We know very

> little about life within a cell. The use of supplements can disturb

> this delicate balance and diminish the efficiency of body

> functions. Health is reduced commensurate to the imbalance that

> occurs.

>

> Commercially, vitamin B12 tablets are made from bacteria and the

> bacteria is deeply fermented. A healthy body will usually expel

> fermented substances. The main problem with pill supplements is

that

> they: 1) Do not contain the hundreds of other nutrients we may need

> to be healthy that raw foods provide, and 2) they contain artificial

> substances/contaminants that are detrimental to health.

>

> Synthetic vitamins and minerals are inorganic and are therefore

> unusable by the human body. In the manufacture of `food

> supplements', chemically pure substances must be used for the most

> part. If the scientists used naturally derived nutrients, their

> pills would be too large for us to swallow. Additionally, a

> chemical `carrier' is added to make the products acceptable to the

> palate of the consumer and to bring their product up to an

acceptable

> standard. These chemical carriers, as with all chemicals, are toxic

> to the human organism. They result in stimulation of the body and

an

> illusionary cure.

>

> According to Dr. John Potter PhD, of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center,

> Seattle, " Food's magic is based on thousands of complex interactions

> of dozens of different phytochemicals which are difficult to

recreate

> in pills. While 190 solid studies prove that fruit and vegetables

> benefit, supplements have only a smattering of evidence " . Vitamins,

> minerals, hormones, etc. do not work in isolation, they work

> symbiotically. They work with other nutrients in order for their

> work to be carried out. When these highly complex substances are

> disturbed, their overall effectiveness can be reduced. However, too

> much of a nutrient is draining on our vital energy as the human (or

> non-human) organism may have to expel a nutrient overload. Also,

it

> is doubtful whether, even if you do have a B12 deficiency, you have

> only a B12 deficiency. A healthier diet and living conditions, as

> well as a fast may be in order.

>

> According to Dr Douglas Graham, in his book `Nutrition and Athletic

> Performance', supplementation has proven to be an inadequate and

> incomplete method of supplying nutrients as scientists cannot match

> nature's refined balances. He says that since an estimated ninety

> per cent of all nutrients are as yet undiscovered, why would we want

> to start adding nutrients into our diet one at a time rather than

> eating whole foods? Most nutrients are known to interact

> symbiotically with at least eight other nutrients and considering

> this, the odds of healthfully supplying any nutrients in its

> necessary component package becomes `infinitesimally minute'. More

> to the point he adds, `there has never been a successful attempt to

> keep an animal or human healthy, or even alive, on a diet composed

> strictly of nutritional supplements'.

>

> Dan Reeter, at Bio-Systems Laboratories in Colorado is creating one

> of the world's most comprehensive computer facilities for soil

> biology testing. He says that, from his extensive tests, plants

> grown in organically-managed soil make significantly higher levels

of

> usable vitamin B12. It has also been reported that vitamin B12 is

> present in wild fruits and wild and home-grown plant foods.

>

> The author contends that animal and dairy produce is a poor source

of

> Vitamin B12 since the vitamin is contained in nutrient-deranged

> foodstuffs which will inevitably destroy the usability of the

> vitamin. Studies show that those following a typical animal-based

> diet require more vitamin B12 than those who do not. This is

because

> the typical diet leads to digestive atrophy. Because B12 is

peptide-

> bound in animal products and must be enzymatically cleaved from the

> peptide bonds to be absorbed, a weakened gastric acid and gastric

> enzyme secretions (due to a cooked food diet) causes an inability to

> efficiently extract vitamin B12 from external food. Nevertheless,

> raw food vegans who have a more powerful digestion actually get more

> B12 by reabsorption from the bile than they do from external food.

> Wolfe argues that the natural soil microbes and bacteria found on

> wild plant foods and unwashed garden plants are typically adequate

to

> supply our B12 requirements. The natural microbes in the soil need

to

> be duplicated and to colonise in our digestive tract, without

> fermentation or putrefaction.

>

> Another point worth considering is that vitamin B12 Recommended

Daily

> Allowances (RDA's) are based upon the average cooked food (meat and

> two veg), smoking, drinking person. Commercial interests have

indeed

> grossly exaggerated our needs for many nutrients. These studies tell

> us nothing of the requirements for a healthy vegetarian. It is

very

> difficult to determine precise individual needs of any vitamin or

> nutrient, and an overload of any vitamin or other nutrient creates

an

> unnecessary burden on our vital domain. Factors such as rate of

> metabolism, stress, etc. can determine our differing and often

> changing needs. Dr Victor Herbert reported in the American Journal

> of Clinical Nutrition (1998, Volume 48) that only 0.00000035 ounces

> (1 microgram) of vitamin B12 is required per day. These minimum

> vitamin requirements may be inadequate to explain the needs of a

> healthy raw food vegan, for example, who may require less B12 due to

> an improved gastric ability and a high ability to recycle vitamin

> B12. (Cooking destroys microbes and a highly sterilised, cooked

> vegan diet may not provide the intestines with enough good quality

> flora). Absorption rates of B12 are higher in healthy individuals

> than in unhealthy individuals. Studies, based on healthy Indian

> vegetarian villagers, showed that none of them exhibited symptoms of

> B12 deficiency, despite levels of .3-.5 micrograms of B12.

>

> Dr Gabriel Cousens argues that vitamin B12 deficiency is typically

> caused by lack of absorption in the intestinal tract rather than a

> lack of this vitamin in the diet. Annie and Dr David Jubb argue

that

> people have lived in such a sterile, antiseptic environment for so

> long that these necessary symbiotic organisms have been less than

> present in our diet. They argue that by ingesting soil-born

> organisms you can maintain an enormous reservoir of uncoded

> antibodies ready to transform specific pathogens, the way nature

> intended - by eating a little dirt!

>

> If a person is healthy and on a healthy vegan, high-percentage raw

> food diet and does not habitually over-eat, wrongly combine their

> foods and abuse their bodies generally, and utilises fasting on

> occasion, it is unlikely that they will develop B12 deficiency

> symptoms providing their intestinal flora was not previously

> deranged. Vitamin B12 deficiency is usually symptomatic of a larger

> problem i.e. poor intestinal flora, poor absorption and also lack of

> sunlight.

>

> Harvey Diamond argues that the entire nutrient issue has been made

so

> confusing with contradictory information that it is no wonder that

> people are bewildered about where to obtain sufficient nutrients.

> Unfortunately, some people have been so totally misguided and scared

> that no amount of common-sense reasoning of even factual data can

> rescue them from the meat, dairy and petrochemical (synthetic

> food `supplement' suppliers) multi-million pound industries. The

> truth is that whatever nutrients the body needs will be contained in

> its natural foods (for human beings, raw plant foods). Mother

Nature

> knows how to provide for her own. Why would it be that we are

> created in such a way as to make us a natural plant-eater and hey

> presto, there is no vitamin B12 provided for us by plants? If you

> can't get it from raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds or sprouts

then

> WE DON'T NEED IT! Just because a wild fruit or organic foodstuff

> contains only a small amount, this does not mean it is deficient.

> It means that we only need a small amount!

>

> The pill pushers are quick to say that our soil is deficient, but

> according to Diamond and others, if a seed does not receive the

> elements it needs IT WILL NOT GROW (OR WILL GROW POORLY - author).

> Also, plants obtain nutrients from other sources in greater amounts:

> the sun, water and the air. Plants actually obtain only about 1% of

> nutrients from the soil.

>

> If you do develop a B12 deficiency, certain urgent dietary

> adjustments may need to be made, and there is a possibility that

> fasting is in order. In any case, on switching to a healthier diet,

> be it vegetarian, vegan or raw food (for optimum health), we should

> go back to nature as much as possible and pay little attention to

> germ phobics who advise us to scrub our vegetables and fruits. Buy

> organic and eat home-grown or wild foods and do not clean them too

> scrupulously! Just as nature intended!.

>

> Please note that it is not recommended for anyone to go on a fast of

> longer duration than 1½ days wihtout competent supervision, as

> prolonged fasts must be monitored by a qualified fasting supervisor.

>

> Dr Shaw is available for health and nutritional consultations,

> fasting supervision, courses in natural health, emotional healing

and

> iris analysis (iridology). Her address is: True Health, c/o 8

> Marston Rd, Clayhall, Essex IG5 OLZ, telephone 020 8351 0086/8550

> 0374. Email GinaShw@a... Visit her web site at

> http://vibrancy.homestead.com/pageone.html

>

> 1. `Fit for Life', Diamond, H. and M., 1987

>

> 2. `The Life Science Institute Course in Natural Health' - 1986

>

> 3. `Nutrition and Athletic Performance', Dr D. Graham, 1999

>

> 4. `Female Balance' article 2001 -K Perrero www.living-foods.com

>

> 5. Human Anatomy and Phyisology - Marieb - 1999

>

> 6. Correspondence with Dr Vetrano and family 2001

>

> 7. `The Sunfood Diet Success Story' by David Wolfe

>

> 8. B12 article by the Vegan Society

>

> 9 . B12 article by the Vegetarian Society

>

> 10. 1990 `Solstice Magazine' article