Hi, I posted on the thyroid site as my TSH was slightly high but they said to post here too as a few mentioned 'perniciuos anaemia' after seeing the b12 and folate results. I have all the usual symptoms that are dismissed as part of everyday life, tiredness, brain fog, pins and needles, bloating etc. I have an appointment with my doctor to discuss these results (done through medicheck) as the doctor tested for ferritin (was 30 a couple of months back) and tsh (which was 2.8 from a 3pm test) but said it was all normal and wouldn't do anything else.
Thank you for reading my long rambling post...just hoping I can change something to start feeling a bit better!
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People with autoimmune disorders especially thyroid disorders such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and Grave’s disease are at an elevated risk of developing a vitamin B12 deficiency and your level is very low and you are Folate deficient.
Symptoms of B12 deficiency tend to develop slowly and may not be recognised immediately. As the condition worsens, common symptoms include:
Weakness and fatigue
Light-headedness and dizziness
Palpitations and rapid heartbeat
Shortness of breath
A sore tongue that has a red, beefy appearance
Nausea or poor appetite
Weight loss
Diarrhoea
Yellowish tinge to the skin and eyes
If low levels of B12 remain for a long time, the condition also can lead to irreversible damage to nerve cells, which can cause the following symptoms:
Numbness and tingling in the hands and feet
Difficulty walking
Muscle weakness
Irritability
Memory loss
Dementia
Depression
Psychosis
There is a complex interaction between folic acid, vitamin B12 and iron. A deficiency of one may be "masked" by excess of another so the three must always be in balance.
Symptoms of a folate deficiency can include:
symptoms related to anaemia
reduced sense of taste
diarrhoea
numbness and tingling in the feet and hands
muscle weakness
depression
Folic acid works closely with vitamin B12 in making red blood cells and helps iron function properly in the body and your B12 levels are "bumping along the bottom" of the range.
Make a list of your symptoms and present this to your doctor and ask him to treat you according to your symptoms and (perhaps) even start you on loading doses "until there is no further improvement" according to the N.I.C.E guidelines below. Click on the link, then on "Scenario: Management" and scroll down to "Treatment for B12 deficiency"
Thank you for taking the time to respond. I definitely tick a lot of those symptoms, and have done for quite a while now. You've provided some really good information for me to take to the docs tomorrow, I really appreciate it. Just hope they will listen now!
you are definitely folate deficient - symptoms similar to B12 deficiency but develops quite quickly. Your active B12 is also very low so likelihood is that you are also B12 deficient.
Assuming that you have a varied diet with plenty of greens but also plenty of animal products then you would appear to have absorption problems which makes PA a real possibility.
I eat a varied diet, plenty of meat and greens, so was surprised it was so low. I'm glad I got the tests done privately as I doubt my doctor would have tested them any time soon. She only did the celiac test when I questioned why my iron levels always drop as soon as I stop taking supplements (not that they've ever got above 60 even on the supplements!) So absorption issues is definitely one I'll be asking her to explore at my appointment tomorrow, thank you.
I've written some very detailed replies about b12 deficiency recently on forum. Suggest you search for them, just put Sleepybunny in search. Sorry but have run out of steam to add more.
Well I just got back from the doctors and as I guessed as my B12 is in range she didn't even want to consider it and wouldn't listen to the symptoms at all. Then after I got upset and told her that something has to be going on to feel like I do she said that she'd do the IFA test (although then didn't put it on the blood form!!!) . I asked about not starting folate till B 12 is confirmed and she said fine, she will refer me to the specialist but it will be quite a few weeks before an appointment...so in the mean time I've just got to put up with it!
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