Vitamin B12: Symptoms of deficiency

Vitamin B12 is extremely important for our health. It is the vitamin of energy but also the one that helps our body to maintain its emotional stability as it contributes to the successful transmission of signals to the nervous system.

Vitamin B12, also known as cyanocobalamin, is a water-soluble vitamin naturally present in foods of animal origin and is essential for the synthesis of DNA.

It can be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract only when the endogenous factor is present, a glycoprotein secreted by the parietal cell of the stomach.

Although the body maintains 12-month stores of vitamin B12 in the liver, kidneys, and heart, in conditions of rapid growth or in conditions that cause an increase in cell metabolism, the body's need for vitamin B12 is increased.

Age also plays an important role in the absorption of B12 since as we grow older the absorption becomes more difficult.

The symptoms of deficiency

Vitamin B12 deficiency can give a number of symptoms. For example, anemia is a very common side effect of B12 deficiency, but there is also a number of other worrying symptoms that urge you to visit your doctor.

1. Numbness in hands and feet: B12 deficiency can damage the protective sheath of nerves resulting in their dysfunction.
2. You feel more cold than usual: B12 deficiency results in the insufficiency of healthy red blood cells that carry oxygen to the tissues, so the proper blood circulation throughout the body and especially in feet and hands is disturbed.
3. Behavioral changes: B12 deficiency has been linked to depression, memory problems, and dementia, as well as loss of balance, headaches, anxiety, and nausea.
4. Weakness-fatigue: The constant feeling that you have not rested enough. The lack of strength and energy may be due to the lack of B12.
5. Pulse sensation: You may feel in your neck that your pulse is increasing or decreasing sharply.
6. Digestive problems: Constipation, weight loss, and upset stomach can be caused by deficiency of vitamin B12.
7. Glossitis and mouth ulcer: Problems with your oral hygiene (gums and mouth) can be due to a severe deficiency of vitamin B12.

Get your Vitamin levels checked at Diagnostiki Athinon today and find out if there is a vitamin deficiency and how to deal with it!