7 Warning Signs of Vitamin B12 Deficiency

Signs that you may be B12 deficient

Memory loss, impaired thinking and general cognitive difficulties.

If you have difficulty walking, tend to stagger, or have balance problems.

Various and “odd” sensations throughout your body, numbness, or tingling that occurs in your hands, legs or feet

Yellowish or jaundiced skin.

Anemia

A swollen tongue or if it’s inflamed.

General weakness and fatigue

If B12 levels drop to into the severely deficient range, it can lead to much worse conditions.

Deep states of depression, hallucinations and paranoia are all associated with extremely low levels. Losing the ability to taste and smell has even been linked to low B12.

And since it’s such an important part of brain health, it can lead to greatly diminished brain functioning, beyond what is mentioned above.

So what leads to low B12?

Here are some things to look out for, that can lead to or cause lower B12 levels.

A vegetarian or vegan diet (since plants don’t make B12, and you would need to supplement with B12 to keep your levels up).

Certain medications like PPI’s

Gut issues such as “leaky gut” or an inflamed gut.

Pernicious anemia

Low stomach acid or taking drugs to suppress acid production in the stomach.

Other things can include Metformin, a drug used for diabetes, people aged 60 and over and women who have had infertility issues in the past.

What to do?

Eat a lot eggs, dairy, poultry and animal sources of protein, which are all good sources of this vitamin.

(Quick note: you may hear things like fermented soy or spirulina and other sources have B12, but many of these plant-based foods have B12 analogs. These are called cobamides and they can block your intake of “real” B12 that your body needs).

If eating any of the above isn’t an option for you for any reason, you’ll want to supplement with B12.

And a form of B12 called methylcobalamin is your best bet, since it is better absorbed within your body.

source: naturalnews.com