Supplement help

[LizHealth1]

So I've been dealing with Adrenal Fatigue symptoms and decided to get my vitamin levels checked through a cellular test and standard blood serum tests. I found that I had low b12 and lower than optimal Vitamin D (35) and Ferritin (26). I've been taking supplements now for the past 3 months as well as eating nutrient rich foods however I'm starting to think that the supplements (primarily Garden of life) I'm taking may be both helping and hurting. ...Is anyone familiar with All natural yeast based vitamins contributing to issues ( adrenal issues, candida, etc..._

Anyone experienced issues when taking these types of supplements? If so, which yeast free, all natural vitamin brands would you suggest?

Thanks,

[Jennylind]

Was your low B12 addressed?

[LizHealth1 in reply to Jennylind]

Hi, Thanks for responding. I actually have to have my levels checked again which I will be doing through a Spectracell test since this was how I originally discovered (in late June) I had a functional B12 deficiency. Since I've been supplementing (all methylcobalamin) with tablets, an oral spray and have also done 4 injections. Initial regular Blood serum test actually show me at 1100 in a 200-900 range. In doing some research it looks like this high serum /low functional ratio could point to several things. One which stood out involved bacterial overgrowth and poor b12 and overall digestion/absorption due to low vitamin D. All in all though I wasn't sure if anyone else had experienced issues with taking yeast based vitamins while trying to address these types of deficiencies..

[5torm in reply to LizHealth1]

Hi!

Sounds a bit like my situation - high serum b12 with symptoms of it being low - pointing to functional deficiencies (Interesting to hear about Spectracell) Your post got me thinking - I might have a similar experience with Zell oxygen immunokomplex (also yeast based), I don't take it everyday and am not sure whether it is not causing some undesirable effects - which adrenal issues do you get? I am wondering if it affects my sleep

[LizHealth1 in reply to 5torm]

Hi, Adrenal symptoms initially were the dizziness and low blood pressure much of which has subsided since taking b12 for the last 3 months. Also, sleep has improved a bit too. It was at a point where I had trouble even falling asleep and staying asleep for more than 3 hours. Even had occasional tremors and muscle twitches which I believe also had to do with low ferritin and magnesium. I've since been improving these levels and have been feeling better. Just not sure though if the supplements I'm taking may be preventing be from having a full and speedy recovery. I have a little bit of a white coating only tongue and just wanted to ensure I was getting bacteria overgrowth. Probably will have this tested in the near future as I know this can prevent absorption of vitamins/minerals (iron, B12, magnesium etc.)

[taka Administrator in reply to LizHealth1]

Ok I'm a bit confused... Your initial blood testing showed B12 at 1100 (range 200-900). That is high not low! What did your doctor say about this? Were you definitely not supplementing B12 at the time? (No multivits or B complexes including B12?) Did you have FBC / CBC done at the same time as this would flag up if microcytic anaemia or microcytic anaemia was occuring.

How did you decide this could be due to a functional deficiency? Did you test methymalonic acid and or homocysteine to check if the B12 in your body is able to do its job at a biochemical level?

There are several reasons why B12 (without any supplementing) can be high and may need investigaing by a doctor as some of them can be pretty serious. Folate needs to be checked too if not already done.

Having supplemented (with what is presumably high dose methylcobalamin )may mean it is hard to work out what is going on as the supplements will stay in your body for a looooong time.

Low ferritin / Iron can make you feel pretty bad even when not low enough to cause anaemia and has some similar symptoms to low B12. Low Vit D can also cause some similar symptoms too. Vit D and especially iron supplementation is best done under medical supervision as high levels of these can be dangerous.

Hard to tell where your results lie without ranges and units as these may differ between different countries.

[LizHealth1 in reply to taka]

Hi thanks for responding. Yes, in regards to B12 serum blood test can often be pretty misleading given that they only test levels at the particular time and not on a cellular level. Supplements (b complex vitamins, even Spirulina(contains b12 analogs) which I was taking during the time of my test can often skew these results and not truly reflect an actual deficiency. This is why everyone should take cellular tests. High serum b12 and low functional can correlate to many more serious and less serious causes.

Yes, Folate was checked during cellular test (spectra cell) and even had this checked on serum level again with my last Ferritin and Vitamin D a week ago to make sure b12 supplementing wasn't depleting these stores. All good.

In regards to the Vitamin D and Ferritin I know that these are both critical components when it comes to thyroid production and overall wellness and heavily influences energy and fatigue levels. In regards to ferritin I decided to request my doctor have this tested because they were only testing my Iron serum. Ferritin showed 55 in July (this was with me taking food based iron supplement for a month ) then I re tested ferritin a week ago and without having taken iron supplements since the last test it dropped to 26. So I'm now taking the supplements and increasing iron rich foods and will retest again. Also supplementing with Vitamin D (K2 and Magnesium).

**Another thing to note is that with MCV in a Complete blood test (had this tested in July) this could came normal in my case because of low iron Microanemia and low B12 (macro anemia).

*FYI- I'm actually switching doctors because like many other Doctors here in the US they pretty much only go by the book and don't connect vitamin deficiencies with actual symptoms. It's quite alarming the unfortunate ignorance that is often displayed even with blood results showing lower levels as in my case (vitamin D-36 in 30-100 range and Ferritin-26 in 12-120 range. They didn't even suggest supplementation.

My initial inquiry though was whether or not anyone has experienced adverse affects to yeast based vitamins ( as I normally stick with Megafood and Garden of life) but not opposed to switching it up! Thanks.