What Does Vitamin B12 Do in Your Body?

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What Does Vitamin B12 Do in Your Body?

* Helps to form myelin, which is a fatty cover that insulates your nerves.

* Helps to produce energy from metabolism of fat and protein.

* Helps to produce hemoglobin, which is the component of your red blood cells that carrys oxygen to your cells. This is why a vitamin B12 deficiency can cause fatigue.

* Reduces your homocysteine level, which lowers your risk of stroke, heart disease, cancer, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's disease, and many degenerative diseases.

* Regulates growth, maintenance, and reproduction of all of your cells

Vitamin B-12 gives you:
* Increased energy
* Restored mental clarity, and help with memory loss
* Reduced daily stress and irritability
* And many other great health benefits

Signs of Deficiency

* Chronic fatigue - macrocytic / megaloblastic anemia

* Unexplained numbness or tingling of arms or legs

* Anxiety and irritability

* Depression

* Digestive problems like a sore tongue, loss of appetite, and constipation

* Poor hair

Doctors know the health benefits of the B vitamin family and have administered vitamin B-12 shots to patients for years—patients who were feeling sluggish, tired, down, or forgetful—and they've seen remarkable results.

What is vitamin B12?
Vitamin B12 is also called cobalamin because it contains the metal cobalt. This vitamin helps maintain healthy nerve cells and red blood cells [1-4]. It is also needed to help make DNA, the genetic material in all cells [1-4].
Vitamin B12 is bound to the protein in food. Hydrochloric acid in the stomach releases B12 from proteins in foods during digestion. Once released, vitamin B12 combines with a substance called gastric intrinsic factor (IF). This complex can then be absorbed by the intestinal tract.

What foods provide vitamin B12?
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitaminb12.asp#h2
Vitamin B12 is naturally found in animal foods including fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and milk products. Fortified breakfast cereals are a particularly valuable source of vitamin B12 for vegetarians [5-7]. Table 1 lists a variety of food sources of vitamin B12.

Table 1: Selected food sources of vitamin B12
Mollusks, clam, mixed species, cooked
Liver, beef, braised
Fortified breakfast cereals
Trout, rainbow, wild, cooked
Salmon, sockeye, cooked
Trout, rainbow, farmed, cooked
Beef, top sirloin, lean, choice, broiled
Fast Food, Cheeseburger, regular, double patty & bun
Fast Food, Taco, 1 large
Fortified breakfast cereals
Yogurt, plain, skim
Haddock, cooked
Clams, breaded & fried
Tuna, white, canned in water, drained solids
Milk
Pork, cured, ham, lean only, canned, roasted
Egg, whole, hard boiled
American pasteurized cheese food
Chicken, breast, meat only, roasted


*DV = Daily Value. DVs are reference numbers developed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help consumers determine if a food contains a lot or a little of a specific nutrient. The DV for vitamin B12 is 6.0 micrograms (μg). Most food labels do not list a food's vitamin B12 content. The percent DV (%DV) listed on the table indicates the percentage of the DV provided in one serving. A food providing 5% of the DV or less is a low source while a food that provides 10-19% of the DV is a good source. A food that provides 20% or more of the DV is high in that nutrient. It is important to remember that foods that provide lower percentages of the DV also contribute to a healthful diet.

What is the recommended dietary intake for vitamin B12?
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitaminb12.asp#h3

What is the health risk of too much vitamin B12?
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitaminb12.asp#h11

Sources For Information:
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitaminb12.asp
http://www.sublingualb12.com/?SOURCE...vitamin%20b-12
http://drbenkim.com/nutrient-b12.html