Advertisement
Motivated by the health benefits of a plant-based diet, Carly Minsky, then in her mid-20s, saw giving up meat and fish as a natural and desirable step.
At first, she “felt great,” she says, as she enthusiastically embraced her new therapy. After a year, however, it was a very different story.
“I started to feel very tired,” Carly recalls. “It wasn’t just fatigue, it was extreme fatigue.” She has gained weight too.
“I did it like this for six years without knowing what was going on, and in 2020 I could hardly walk from exhaustion,” says the 33-year-old journalist from London.
Concerned there might be a problem with her thyroid (which produces hormones to regulate metabolism), she visited her GP in 2021, who sent her for blood tests.
Motivated by the health benefits of a plant-based diet, Carly Minsky, then in her mid-20s, saw giving up meat and fish as a natural and desirable step. At first, she “felt great,” she says, as she enthusiastically embraced her new therapy. After a year, however, it was a very different story
Within days, Carly was called back to the office and told that her vitamin B12 levels had dropped so dramatically that she needed emergency vitamin shots every other day for the next six weeks and then high potency vitamin B12 supplements every day for life. tablets would need. The cause? Your nutrition.
Found primarily in animal and dairy products—like meat, fish, eggs, milk, and cheese—vitamin B12 is critical to a number of important bodily functions, including brain health and red blood cell production.
A deficiency can lead to health problems, including anemia (low iron levels in the blood), fatigue, palpitations, shortness of breath, nerve problems, and mental health problems.
At risk are those over 60, who are more likely to be malnourished, and those with pernicious anemia, an autoimmune condition that means the body can’t properly absorb B12. So also vegans.
Earlier this year, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) reported that 6 percent of the population under the age of 60 is B12 deficient, rising to 11 percent for vegans.
Although Carly still ate cheese and eggs and drank milk, during those vegetarian years her intake was not sufficient and her vitamin B12 levels had dropped.
“My GP said I was on the dangerously low end of the scale and needed immediate B12 injections,” she says. “It was a huge shock. I had no idea I would get so sick.
“It took me two months of injections to feel better and of course I still take vitamin B12 tablets daily.”
Most people get enough B12 through their diet – the recommended intake is 1.5 micrograms per day (an average diet of chicken, fish, beef and eggs will do).
“But some people — including those who eat a restrictive diet, don’t consume animal products, or eat a poor diet high in processed foods — don’t get enough vitamin B12,” says Sue Pavord, consultant hematologist at Oxford University Hospitals and Vice President of the British Society of Haematology.
Found primarily in animal and dairy products—like meat, fish, eggs, milk, and cheese—vitamin B12 is critical to a number of important bodily functions, including brain health and red blood cell production
She says B12 deficiency is a grossly neglected area of public health, affecting 10 percent of people over the age of 60.
“The human body is unable to make B12 and therefore needs it from food,” she explains. “Early symptoms of deficiency can be vague, such as B. Tiredness or symptoms of anemia – palpitations, shortness of breath and fatigue.
“But as the deficiency progresses, neurological symptoms can develop — like tingling in the fingers and toes or loss of balance.”
This is because B12 is critical in maintaining and forming protective sheaths that cover nerves, ensuring fast and effective transmission of messages, explains Dr. Moez Dungarwalla, Consultant Haematologist at Milton Keynes University Hospital.
“A fatty substance called myelin is essential for the formation of these sheaths, and vitamin B12 plays an important role in the synthesis and maintenance of myelin,” he explains. “Some of the neurological problems caused by B12 deficiency are due to damage to the myelin sheath.”
In extreme cases, vitamin B12 deficiency has been linked to macular degeneration (which can lead to deterioration in vision), heart disease, cognitive impairment, dementia, stroke and psychosis.
However, the vague — or absent — early symptoms can mean some people are unaware they have a potentially serious deficiency, as former counselor Stephen Wright found.
The 70-year-old from Dorset only found out that he had a B12 deficiency during a check-up at his family doctor two years ago. Routine blood tests revealed that he was severely vitamin deficient and would require injections every six weeks for life to prevent the development of neurological disorders.
Doctors believe his deficiency is due to his age and unhealthy diet.
Some existing medical conditions can also lead to deficiency — the most common being pernicious anemia, says David Smith, professor emeritus of pharmacology at Oxford University.
“Pernicious anemia affects one in 1,000 and up to one in 500 in those over 60,” he says. “It’s an autoimmune disease with familial ties. It’s not known what triggers it, but it prevents vitamin B12 from being absorbed in the gut.”
Other diseases that affect B12 absorption include decreased gastric acid secretion (again, common with age), Crohn’s disease, and celiac disease.
Some medications interfere with the absorption of vitamin B12, including metformin (used to treat diabetes) and proton pump inhibitors such as omeprazole (used to treat acid reflux).
The good news is that symptoms are reversible in most patients.
As Professor Smith explains: “Most people can correct their low vitamin B12 status by taking pills and a good starting dose is 1 microgram per day. Injections are required in many patients with pernicious anemia.’
But people often don’t find out they’re defective until the damage is done.
“If someone doesn’t receive treatment, irreversible changes can occur in the neurological system,” says Dr. pavor. “These include difficulty walking due to weakness; loss of balance and feeling; and visual disturbances.’
As well as taking B12 shots, Stephen went on a low-carb diet, lost seven pounds and feels a lot more energetic. “I had no idea how important vitamin B12 was until I went through it,” he says.
Carly’s symptoms disappeared within two months of starting vitamin B12 treatment. “It was like my energy was turned back on,” she says.
