Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Are you getting enough vitamin B12? Many people don’t, and that deficiency can cause problems.

Vitamin B12 does a lot of things for your body. It helps make your DNA and your red blood cells, for examples.

You can get vitamin B12 from your diet, or from supplements. Exactly how much you need depends on your age.

assorted vitamins

Quiz: What Do You Know About Vitamin B12 Deficiency?
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Causes of Vitamin B12 Deficiency
Vitamin B12 deficiency can happen if you have certain conditions, such as:

Atrophic gastritis, in which your stomach lining has thinned
Pernicious anemia, which makes it hard for your body to absorb vitamin B12
Surgery that removed part of your stomach or small intestine, including weight loss surgery
Conditions affecting the small intestine, such as Crohn's disease, celiac disease, bacterial growth, or a parasite
Heavy drinking
Immune system disorders, such as Graves' disease or lupus
Long-term use of acid-reducing drugs
You can also get vitamin B12 deficiency if you're a vegan (meaning you don't eat any animal products, including meat, milk, cheese, and eggs) or a vegetarian who doesn't eat enough eggs or dairy products to meet your vitamin B12 needs.

Babies born to mothers who are vegetarians may also not get enough vitamin B12.

Symptoms of Vitamin B12 Deficiency
A deficiency of vitamin B12 can lead to vitamin B12 deficiency anemia. A mild deficiency may cause only mild, if any, symptoms. But if untreated, it may cause symptoms such as:

Weakness, tiredness, or light-headedness
Rapid heartbeat and breathing
Pale skin
Sore tongue
Easy bruising or bleeding, including bleeding gums
Stomach upset and weight loss
Diarrhea or constipation
If you think you have symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency, you can ask your doctor for a blood test to check on that.

Treatment for Vitamin B12 Deficiency
Vitamin B12 deficiency treatment depends on the cause.

If pernicious anemia or a problem with absorption is the cause, you'll need to replace vitamin B12, usually by injection, or by prescription.

If the issue is that you don't eat animal products, you can change your diet or take supplements.

For most people, treatment resolves the problem. But any nerve damage that happened due to the deficiency could be permanent.
          

Preventing Deficiency Problems
Most people can prevent vitamin B12 deficiency by eating enough meat, poultry, seafood, dairy products, and eggs.

If you don't eat animal products, or you have a medical condition that limits how well your body absorbs nutrients, experts recommend taking a B12-containing multivitamin and eating breakfast cereal fortified with vitamin B12.

If you're using vitamin B12 supplements, let your doctor know, so he or she can make sure they won't affect any medicines you're taking.

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