Vitamin B-12 is a water-soluble, essential vitamin found in many animal product foods. It helps your body make red-blood cells and DNA, and keeps your nervous system healthy.
Here’s a list of vitamin B-12 foods to help you meet your nutrition goals:
1. Clams
Whether you steam them or eat them raw on the half shell with a spritz of lemon juice, clams are one of the best sources of vitamin B-12. They’re also low in fat, high in protein, and an excellent source of iron and other B vitamins.
2.Beef liver
Beef liver may be an acquired taste, but it’s also high in vitamin B-12, protein, iron, and vitamin A. To add it to your diet, try it braised or dredged in flour and sautéed with onions. Beef-liver is also high in cholesterol, so don’t rely on it alone to meet your vitamin B-12 requirement.
3.Salmon
The nutrition benefits of this fatty fish don’t end with vitamin B-12. Salmon is also loaded with omega-3 fatty acids. These unsaturated fats help prevent heart disease and stroke by lowering your cholesterol, reducing inflammation in your body, and lowering your blood-pressure.
4.Milk
A cup of milk provides a good source of B-12. It’s also a reliable source of calcium and vitamin-D. If you’re trying to limit fat and calories, stick to low-fat or skim dairy products.
5.Yogurt
You’ll get the benefits of vitamin B-12, calcium, Vitamin-D, and beneficial probiotics if you eat a cup of yogurt each-day. Choose varieties with no added-sugar.
6.Eggs
Eggs aren’t as high in vitamin B-12 as meat and fish, but they’re a decent source. They also pack a nice punch of protein. For an extra B-12 boost, whisk your eggs with low-fat milk before scrambling.
7.Chicken breast
Chicken is easy to find, inexpensive, and versatile. What’s more, it provides some vitamin B-12, and it’s high in niacin, a B-vitamin thought to help lower-cholesterol.
Vitamin B-12 is not found in fruits, but that’s no reason to leave fruit off your plate. Most fruit is high in folic-acid, another B vitamin your body may lack. Fruit is also high in fiber. High-fiber diets may reduce your risk of obesity, heart-disease, and diabetes.
Why vitamin B-12 is important
Your body needs vitamin B-12 to function properly, yet it can’t make it on its own. You must get vitamin B-12 from the foods you eat. If you don’t get enough vitamin B-12, you may start to show certain symptoms.
Signs that you’re not getting enough vitamin B-12 include:
• fatigue
• weakness
• loss of appetite
• constipation
• weight-loss
• numbness and tingling
• balance problems
• difficulty thinking
• confusion or memory problems
• dementia
When you’re deficient in vitamin B-12, your body can’t produce healthy red blood-cells. The unhealthy cells die off before they can produce enough new ones. Left unchecked, this cycle leads to a condition called megaloblastic anemia, also called pernicious anemia.
It’s important for pregnant women to eat plenty of vitamin B-12 foods to prevent their baby from being born with vitamin B-12 deficiency.
