Low Folate Serum (3.71 ug/L) and Low b12 (281 pmol/L).

Hi guys,

I was sent over from the thyroid forum! Recently did a thyroid test and it showed that my vitamin b12 and folate serum were low. There seems to be a million supplements out there, could anyone recommend one or offer any advice on my test results please? Have tons of symptoms like thinning hair, digestive problems, sweating easily etc but my doc said the results were "normal" soooo urgh.

Thank you so much!

[Gambit62 Administrator]

Your B12 may or may not be a problem - going to be difficult to evaluate because of overlap with symptoms of thyroid but it would be best to try and get a diagnosis of a B12 absorption problem before supplementing

you can find a list of symptoms of B12 deficiency here

pernicious-anaemia-society....

are you supplementing iron and vitamin D at all? if you started supplementing because these appeared low (ferritin/vitamin D levels) then that would be evidence that you have an absorption problem.

Please look through the materials in the pinned posts for information you can use to educate your GP that normal range doesn't necessarily mean everything is okay (serum B12 normal range is such that using the levels themselves is likely to mean missing 25% of people who have a B12 deficiency), that macrocytosis isn't a defining characteristic of B12 deficiency - it's a symptom that isn't one of the first to appear for about 30% of those who have B12 deficiency) and also on the protocols for treatment (eg BCSH guidelines if you are based in the UK).

[Hidden in reply to Gambit62]

Hi Gambit, thanks a lot for the reply and apologies for taking a while to get back to you. I do supp vit d as it was a terrible level when I got it first tested. I dont supp iron as strangely my tests often come back with high iron levels.