What relationship does Vitamin D have to B12 levels if any?

[Alesia]

Hi all ... I'm a bit confused as despite the extraordinary amount of sun I am getting due to our very long & hot summer my Vitamin D levels have dropped since last November from 93 to 58 ... I have had 2 B12 injections since November and have been out in the sun everyday and am as brown as a berry! In fact it's the best tan I've had for many years! The beginning of last year my Vitamin D was 44 but after sitting out in the sun all summer it rose to 93, but this year it doesn't seem to be going up.

My Ferritin & Folate have also dropped quite dramatically but am assuming this is because the B12 uses both of those?

Ferritin was 147.4 (not sure why it was so high I never supplemented?) dropped to 60 now.

Folate was 19.2 now dropped to 9.6 even though I take 200ug folic acid everyday

So I 'm wondering what the relationship is between B12 & Vitamin D if any?

If anyone can shed any light on this I'd be most grateful?

Alesia x

[Gambit62 Administrator]

no direct relationship between vitamin d and B12 that I am aware of.

If you have an absorption problem that affects B12 it can also affect other vitamins and minerals and this is more likely to be why folate and iron have dropped unless you have had a change in diet. This may also affect your vitamin d levels as not all vit D necessarily comes from sunshine ... and chnages in skin as you get older can affect your ability to generate B12 in sunlight.

If you have been on injections since November I would have expected temporary drops in levels from using more folate etc to heal to have stopped.

[Alesia in reply to Gambit62]

Thanks Gambit62 it's always helpful to gain knowledge from others who are experienced. I believe I do have an absorption problem as when I was very ill I had every test known to man pretty much! I tested positive for Hpylori antibodies which means I've had it at some point but negative for the stool antigen which means I no longer have it, but as I understand it the Hpylori can damage the stomach lining causing absorption issues, also positive for small intestine bacterial overgrowth & gastritis. I had a few very long telephone conversations with Dr Chandy in which he told me based on my symptoms that I was B12 deficient, I was sceptical as my blood tests were normal and he said to me " Alesia please trust this old man, if you get the B12 injections the gastritis and all your digestive problems will go away" after 18 months of hell I finally got the injections and he was right the Gastritis just went as did all the other symptoms and B12 was the only treatment I received. When my B12 dropped again to around 600 I started to get the stomach problems and others back so I got another injection and hey presto it went away! Blooming marvellous stuff .... Re the Iron & Folate I haven't changed my diet at all & just assumed the drop was due to the B12 injections but as you say maybe not? ... Re the Vitamin D I just don't know what's going on with that, last year it was lower at the beginning of the year at 44 then I sat out in the sun all through summer just as I have this year and it rose to 93 by November, naturally I assumed being out in the sun it would go up again this year but it appears to have done the opposite and is now 58 so I think maybe I need to take some Vitamin D in supplement form because if I can't get it up in the summer it's going to be even lower through the winter

[TrishEtc]

Actually, your deep tan not B-12 may be inhibiting Vitamin D production. It's well known that darker skinned people are more prone to Vitamin D deficiencies, but a study a few years ago showed that those who spend a lot of time in the sun can also impair Vitamin D synthesis.

endocrine.org/news-room/pre...

[Alesia in reply to TrishEtc]

Thanks TrishEtc I have heard of this but thought it was very dark skinned people who had this problem. It seemed to work for me last year sitting out in the sun but not much this year

[fbirder]

Have you been using more sunscreen than normal? I know I have, and that will inhibit Vit D production.

As for the folate - it can vary from day to day depending on your diet.

[Alesia]

Interesting about the folate! Can it vary by quite a lot then? I do take a daily B complex supplement with folate in it, I don't use sunscreen at all, have tried it in the past but it always made me come up in an itchy rash so I never use it now, I only spend about 20 mins per day actually out in the sun to avoid getting burnt but it has gradually built up a nice tan but no Vitamin D