Perniciously Deficient: Don't Neglect Your Bs

Meat. Pasta. Seafood. Cereals. Dairy. Breads. Rice. I think I would be hard pressed to find someone that hasn’t eaten one of these.  TODAY.  And if you haven’t consumed any yet, it’s what’s for dinner. Hold that thought.

ADEK. BC. This is the acronym I memorized in nursing school to help me recall the fat or water-soluble vitamins. I put the FAT in the ADEK (see what I did there? Yep. I am a goober.) Once the fat was there, I knew what was up with the others. In simpler terms, fat soluble vitamins can be stored in the body, so it is possible for one of the ADEK vitamins to build up to toxic levels. With vitamins B&C-the body has limited storage, so excess gets excreted in urine, earning its water-soluble title.

If, on your favorite dating app, the question appeared: “What is your favorite vitamin?” What would you say? (Ok. Maybe not. Lol. For heaven’s sake, swipe left. Or right. Or whatever way you swipe to reject this individual immediately. HAHA.) Weirdos like me actually have one. And it’s vitamin B, in all its forms. Forms, plural. Kinda like Thing 1 and Thing 2 from Dr. Seuss, except there’s a Thing 3, 5, 6, and so on. And just to show you how easy it is to get your vitamin B in every day, the reliable food sources are listed in the first paragraph. Oh, yay!

B vitamins are extremely important in metabolism (converting food into energy), creating new blood cells, and maintaining the health of brain, skin, and other tissue cells. They basically make sure cells are functioning properly! Some of these will probably sound familiar:

Thiamine (B1)

Riboflavin (B2)

Niacin (B3)

Pantothenic Acid (B5)

Pyridoxine (B6)

Biotin (B7)

Folic Acid (B9)

Cobalamin (B12)

No, mom. I didn’t miss any numbers. I can assure you that I skipped numbers on purpose. But I DO love it when you proofread my blogs!! Hehe. Initially, only one single B vitamin was recognized. Later, as understanding evolved, more components were discovered. Easier to move forward than it is to backtrack, I would say!

I mentioned that B vitamins are water soluble and excreted in urine. This leads one to believe that B vitamins cannot rise to toxic levels. The body doesn’t say, “Hey, you took too much vitamin B,” and then trigger urination. You may have to urinate multiple times to rid your body of excess vitamins. So, while there is too much vitamin B in your body, you may experience skin flushing, headaches, and long-term toxicity can lead to nerve damage. Keep an eye on the daily recommended allowance.

The remainder of this blog will focus on our friend Cobalamin, or Vitamin B12. Whereas most B vitamins focus on metabolism, B12 is a heavy player in the formation of red blood cells and is required for healthy nervous system function. In one of my pick-on-my-sister blogs, I mentioned my open mouth, insert foot moment when what I thought was her wimpy fitness level turned out to be anemia, or a deficiency of oxygen carrying red blood cells in her body. I think you know where I am going with this. Vitamin B12 has a connection with anemia, but it is not the same type of anemia that my sister had. My sister suffered from iron-deficient anemia; she needed iron to make a protein that would allow oxygen to stick to the red blood cells that were traveling throughout her body to deliver oxygen to her organs. Now, a deficiency in Vitamin B12 causes a different type of anemia, one that is called pernicious anemia. The word pernicious actually means “highly injurious or destructive”. THAT. SOUNDS. SCARY. Let’s take this step by step, and you can be the judge.

  • Just like other vitamins, Vitamin B12 is broken down in the stomach and absorbed in the small intestine.
  • UNLIKE other vitamins, B12 CANNOT be absorbed by itself. It must bind to a protein that is produced in the stomach. This protein is called intrinsic factor.
  • Sometimes, immune conditions will destroy the cells in the stomach that produce intrinsic factor. That means B12 passes into the small intestine on its own and is not recognized and absorbed.
  • Reminder: Vitamin B12 is vital in red blood cell production and nervous system function. 

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency include pale skin, fatigue, shortness of breath. Because nerve cells are destroyed, people lose ability to perform coordinate movements, maintain positioning, and become irritable and depressed. Central nervous system involvement can lead to confusion and dementia that even with treatment can only be partially reversed.

Those that lack intrinsic factor and are unable to absorb Vitamin B12 can bypass the absorption process and receive B12 injections, putting the necessary vitamin right into the bloodstream.

Thank goodness there is an easy fix for something so…pernicious.

So, whatcha havin’ for dinner? You can choose B1-12 on the menu, with a little intrinsic factor on the side. Please…

Be well!

 

 

 

 

  

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