Hey
I am being treated with B12 tablets and folic acid tablets for 3 months with a repeat blood test. How will the doc determine whether im deficient from diet or an aborbtion issue. I feel so poorly at the moment i dont want them to be all ur levels are back to normal so they take me off medication and all my symptoms come back
Thank you
Hi Louise9999
Who’s at greatest risk for B12 Deficiency?
Anyone at any age, can become B12 deficient. However, certain people are at an elevated risk. They include the following:
Vegetarians, vegans and people eating macrobiotic diets.
People aged sixty and over
People who’ve undergone any gastric and/or intestinal surgery, including bariatric surgery for weight loss purposes (Gastric bypass).
People who regularly use proton-pump- inhibitors. H2 blockers, antacids, Metformin, and related diabetes drugs, or other medications that can interfere with B12 absorption.
People who undergo surgeries or dental procedures involving nitrous oxide, or who use the drug recreationally.
People with a history of eating disorders (anorexia or bulimia).
People with a history of alcoholism.
People with a family history of pernicious anaemia.
People diagnosed with anaemia (including iron deficiency anaemia, sickle cell anaemia and thalassaemia).
People with Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, gluten enteropathy (celiac disease), or any other disease that cause malabsorption of nutrients.
People with autoimmune disorders (especially thyroid disorders such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and Grave’s disease) Type 1 diabetes, vitiligo, lupus, Addison’s disease, ulcerative colitis, infertility, acquired agammaglobulinemia, or a family history of these disorders.
Women with a history of infertility or multiple miscarriages
Can you see yourself in any of the above people?
If you do have an absorption problem then it is likely that the tablets will not be very effective. Most absorption problems aren't treatable but a few are - notably h pylori infection - which would mean that once that has been dealt with you would be able to absorb B12 from your diet so wouldn't need maintenance for life.
Have you noticed any improvement in any of your symptoms since taking the B12 tablets?
It is not uncommon for some symptoms to appear to get worse before they get better as the B12 starts repairing the damage done to your nervous system and your brain starts getting multiple messages from part of the body it had "forgotten about" or lost contact with.
I sometimes liken it to a badly tuned radio on which you have turned the volume up high trying to catch the programme you want when all of a sudden the signal comes in loud and clear and the blast nearly deafens you.
A lot will depend on the severity and longevity of your B12 deficiency as to how long before there is no further improvement or recovery.
Some symptoms will "disappear" quite quickly whereas others may take months or even years. There is no set timescale as we are all different.
I am not a medically trained person but I've had P.A. (a form of B12 deficiency) for more than 45 years.
I wish you well
.
You will not feel good with pills and sprays. I did that for many days and felt nothing. I was taking 10.000mcg and nothing. After the second injection in a row i felt good. Now after my 4th injection almost all my bad symptoms are gone.
I took 220 mg of b12 and multivitamin with everything else for 30 months as i got worse before getting injections.
If you have an absorbtion issue your b12 numbers wont improve much. My b12 went from 169 to 242 in 16 months so doctor said i was fine. BUT.... i had laughing gas at dentist in between so my b12 was likely inactive, hence why i felt worse. I did not know laughing gas would in active b12 or else i wouldnt have gotten it.
My point is... if you have absorbtion issues your b12 level wont raise much with tablets. If gp refuses injections you need to take seriously high dose b12 throughout the day for possible passive absorbtion. At one point i took 1000 mg pills 4X daily for 3 weeks which helped enough for slight comprehension improvement, meaning enough to realise i needed injections.
Best of luck and health.
Bittersweet Bonds - Pernicious Anemia and the Doctor-Patient Dance
How does it feel to have too much B12?
