Sublingual b12 v tablets

[jointpain]

After many years of many symptoms I stumbled upon PA my doctors never tested my b12 levels! In September I bought b12 tablets in the form of B complex, they do contain wheat. I am gluten intolerant to say the least. I tried the tablets which made my urine fluorescent yellow, and very slightly made me feel a little better, though the wheat brought on other problems, so I stopped. After seeing a locum last week, I gave up a load of blood for testing yesterday, the tests were for, B12 and folate, diabetes, fbc, liver function, kidney function, and thyroid test. As the blood has now gone for testing, I thought I would try a sublingual b12 this morning, and my urine has been normal in colour! Is this normal or does it suggest I am low in b12 and all the b12 has been taken up? As I am practically vegan due to my being unable to consume anything animal related other than eggs without breaking out in horrid lesions, which can last up to a year. For this reason I presume I am low in b12.

[Gambit62 Administrator]

what exactly was in the sublingual. Unlikely that B12 would have caused the reaction that you describe but there are other vitamins that can.

lack of B12 in your diet can lead to a deficiency but can be corrected with much lower doses than the amounts you are (probably) taking int he B complex - 50mcg orally once or twice a day is the dose that is generally used to correct dietary deficiencies.

[jointpain]

Just to clarify. The b complex that contained wheat was bought from Holland and Barrett, the sublingual was bought from Lindens and is free from gluten. The wheat in the H&B tablets is what I reacted to ( headaches, gastric problems) The strength of both tablets was/is 1000ug, which I understand is a lot but I thought you couldn't overdose on b12. I will post again when I get the blood test results.

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to jointpain]

B12 isn't toxic but some people do respond to raised levels of B12 in serum by trying to shut down the mechanism that allows B12 to move from your blood to your cells leaving you deficient at the cell level, which is what counts. Its not clear how many people are affected by this reaction but it is enough for functional B12 deficiency to be recognised as a symptom of some conditions that will result in abnormally high serum B12 levels.

[jointpain in reply to Gambit62]

Hi there Gambit62

Had my blood results and saw a doctor all on the same day.

Doctor says all is normal! I asked for a copy of the results! My B12 was 178 ng/L

With a note saying Range 150-900 and saying my level was intermediate, consider treatment if other evidence of deficiency, eg neuropathy or macrocytosis

My fbc was Total white cell count 3.2 10*9/L range 4.00-11.0010*9/L and a ñote saying make routine appt to discus.

The neutrophil count was 2.1 range 1.7-7.50 10*9/L and the Lymphocyte count 0.9 range 1.00- 4.50 10*9/L

Which in my book is low

Most everything else is bang on central

I said I had taken some b12 tablets and had bought some sublingual tablets. He said to take them til March and be tested again. I started taking the sublingual the day after my blood was taken, trouble is they contain an artificial sweetener Mannitol which is giving me terrible wind, so I may buy a spray B12. Is that a good idea?

[Gambit62 Administrator in reply to jointpain]

certainly a good idea to change if the tablets are causing you problems.

your levels were low.

From what you say above you don't have macrocytosis - this is where red blood cells are larger and rounder than normal - I'm not really that familiar with white blood cell counts - generally they are high if you have an infection - so doesn't look as if you do ... my guess would be that low levels might indicate a suppressed immune system but that is just a guess on my part - I have no idea how significant variations from the normal range are likely to be. In general its a question of looking for what is going on across a number of markers trying to find out what to look at/try next. It isn't about being bang on centre.

given the vegan diet it might be better to go for a lower level supplement - being careful about the fillers of course but guessing that you should be able to find some 50mcg that are gluten free.

[jointpain in reply to Gambit62]

Thanks for your time replying, I have found a spray that I will order. Since taking the sublinguals I am feeling a touch better but that could just be in my head rather than real. Just hope I have come across the answer to most of my symptoms.