One nutrient that vegans in particular need to supplement is B12, although vegetarians and meat eaters may need to supplement as well.
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VIT B12 SUPPLEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS:
Can you get B12 from dirt:
Your body stores an extra supply of it, so it can take up to 2 years for any vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms to creep up on you.
You risk permanent damage to your nervous system and brain if you let this one get too far though, so be on the lookout for those symptoms.
Early Vitamin B12 Deficiency Symptoms:
Unusual fatigue
Faulty digestion
No appetite
Nausea
Loss of menstruation
Tingling hands and feet (start of serious deficiency)
If you don’t get levels back up from there, it can result in permanent nerve damage and get very serious, causing blindness or deafness. Also, homocysteine levels will be high (risk factor for heart disease, stroke and complications during pregnancy) long before any of the early vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms show up.
If children don’t get enough B12 during childhood, their levels can be corrected but the period where they didn’t have enough can have permanent effects on their brain and nerve functions. Maintaining your own B12 levels while breastfeeding is crucial.
You can be tested for B12 deficiency by your doctor, and the most accurate method of testing is a urine or blood test called a Methylmalonic Acid test (MMA). It can detect deficiency much earlier and much more accurately than the standard blood test most doctors use to test for serum cobalamin levels and pernicious anemia.
If you’re seeing vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms, or show low levels in a blood test, the obvious solution is to raise B12 levels. Depending on how low your levels are, go for any or all of the following:
– supplements (my recommendations here:
– fortified foods (nut/grain milks, cereals, certain nutritional yeasts)
– B12 injections (done by a doctor, for severe deficiency or people who aren’t absorbing B12 through digestion)
Have you ever noticed any of these symptoms in yourself? Have you seen or heard a friend complaining about them?
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