Benefits of vitamin B12
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Introduction
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For your body to get the benefits of B12, two things are required. Number one, hydrocholric acid which is contained in the stomach must separate it from the protein from the food which you consume. When this is done B12 will combine with protein which the stomach produces, this is called the intrinsic factor and your body absorbs it.
Benefits of vitamin B12
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Vitamin B12 helps keep to keep your bodies blood cells and nerves healthy it also helps make DNA. B12 is used to treat cynanide poisoning, it is usually given intravenously in large amounts or used in combination with sodium thiosulfate. There is a strong possibility that high levels of B12 in elderly people protects brain shrinkage which is connected with Alzheimer's disease. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18779510
Food sources
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B12 is found in animal foods and in fortified food, plant based food unless fortified contain no B12. Shown below are the food sources for vitamin b12
| Food | serving | %RDA |
|---|---|---|
| Cooked clams | 3 onces | 84.1 |
| Braised beef liver | 1 slice | 47.9 |
| Fortified breakfast cereals | ¾ cup | 6 |
| Wild cooked rainbow trout | 3 ounces | 5.4 |
| Sockeye salmon | 3 ounces | 4.9 |
| Farmed rainbow trout | 3 ounces | 4.2 |
| Top sirloin, broiled | 3 ounces | 2.4 |
| plain low-fat yoghurt | 1 cup | 1.4 |
Recommended amounts
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Shown below is the recommended daily amounts recommended in the U.S.A, mcg=micrograms.
| Birth to 6 months | 0.4 mcg |
| Infants 7–12 months | 0.5 mg |
| Children 1–3 years | 0.9 mg |
| Children 4–8 years | 1.2 mcg |
| Teenagers 14–18 years | 1.8 mcg |
| Teenage girls 14-18 | 2.4mcg |
| Adults | 2.4mg |
| pregnant teens and women | 2.6 mg |
| pregnant teens and women | 2.8mg |
Deficiency
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Deficiency can cause a number of problems such as weight loss, constipation, loss of appetite, depression, megaloblastic anemia, dementia, sore mouth or a tongue and nerve problems. There are several groups at risk of not getting enough B12.
- Older adults who have an inadequate amount of hydrochloric acid which is needed to absorb B12
- People who have pernicious anaemia, their bodies cannot produce the intrinsic factor which is needed to absorb B12.
- Vegans and vegetarians and others who do not eat much animal food, if they are breastfeeding their babies are also at risk.
- Anybody who has any type of gastrointestinal surgery, like weight loss surgery.
- People who have Crohn's disease and celiac disease.
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