B12

What's a normal level?

[Hidden]

It's similar to Magnesium tests, it's active and inactive levels in the blood. It's something that the old or vegetarian folk suffer with lack of. If you eat plenty of meat, eggs and milk-cheese protein, i reckon your level will be ok.

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youtube.com/watch?v=BvEizyp...(Not working as expected?)

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Ah my level was 384? Not sure how that compares, doc said was ok tho, told me to double my dose of amitriptyline as he can see the anxiety coming through again and said to ignore the twitches and they will disappear!

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Oh dear !

Well the level between 280 and 650 is normal so you're in the normal range.

He has increased your dose to 20mg and told you to put up and shut up more or less!!

Guess you'll just have to do as the guy says my friend, maybe it will all work out in the end ok for ya

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Hope so, on a positive note I'm back on a mag a day I took half after dinner

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Good Idea

Take half before bed it might help you sleep!.

Fuckes doctors, have this pill and shut the fuck up !! I work for a bunch of GPs I know what they are like when no one is around.

Ah well bud, give it time if it doesn't improve or you become worse just go back and tell him you're not happy with his " Therapy "

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Will do mate night

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Night night

[Gambit62]

There are two possible units used for B12 measurements ng/L and Pmol/L - so important to know those as well as the number.

Tests come with a normal range. However, serum B12 is not a good test in as much as it is only looking at one bit of the metabolism of B12 and people vary a lot. This means that just using the test result as a single indicator is going to result in picking up 5% of people who aren't deficient yet do have enough B12 for them, but also in missing 25% of people who are deficient but need levels above the bottom of the range for the rest of the metabolisation process to work properly.

Macrocytosis (large round red blood cells) is commonly looked for as a characteristic of B12 deficiency but isn't present in 25% to 30% of people who are B12 deficient.

Symptoms are important in evaluating a potential B12 deficiency.

Source : BCSH guidelines

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi...

Dietary deficiencies can be corrected by tablets, but most B12 deficiency is caused by absorption problems and those need to be identified if it is going to be treated properly.

Please, if you think you have an absorption problem do NOT supplement with high dose B12 until you have explored every avenue for getting a proper diagnosis. Supplementing with very high doses will make getting a proper diagnosis nigh on impossible and can actually lead to other problems, though B12 itself isn't toxic.

This is a link from pinned posts on the PAS forum on health unlocked warning against use of high dose supplements.

b12researchgroup.wordpress....

And this is link to the PAS forum (Pernicious Anaemia Society)

healthunlocked.com/pasoc

Pernicious Anaemia is one cause of B12 absorption problems and its symptoms are the symptoms of the B12 deficiency it causes.

[Gambit62 in reply to Gambit62]

The answer to your questions is that there isn't a real answer - there are some statistical outlines but what is right for you is the level at which you are healthy. Normal is a statistical average which can't be arbitrarily applied back to individuals.