B12 Deficiency?

[VaishaliG]

Hi, I am 32 yrs old female. I was diagnosed with B12 deficiency 3 weeks back. I had fever, and post that had lot of weakness and fatigue. My body would shiver from inside. I have had 3 b12 injections till now, per week. Felt little better. But I still have weakness in my legs, especially my thighs. Have shortness of breath as well at times. And 4 days back, started with tingling of hands and feet Should I ask my doc to increase my.b12 dose. I feel once a week b12 injection is not working that well. What do you guys suggest? Does anybody else have similar symptoms. I can do squats but it is creating lot of pressure and pain in my legs.plz reply

[clivealive Forum Support]

Hi VaishaliG

It is not uncommon for some symptoms to appear to get worse before they get better as the B12 you are having 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.

If you can get to see a doctor please also ask him/her to check your Folate level as this and B12 help your iron to make red blood cells and to function properly .

Do you have any idea why you have become B12 deficient in the first place?

I am not a medically trained person but I've had Pernicious Anaemia (a form of B12 deficiency) for more than 46 years.

I wish you well.

[VaishaliG in reply to clivealive]

Hi Clive, thank you so much for your reply and such good explanation. I am not a vegetarian and I would always consume non veg food like chicken , fish , mutton. So even I don't know why m I not getting enough B12. It is possible that my body is unable to absorb B12 from these food items. I had had fever a month back, post fever started having weakness. Don't know if I should correlate it with fever.

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to VaishaliG]

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, or infections such as h-pylori 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" among any of the above people?

Treatment for PA and non-dietary vitamin B12 deficiency is virtually the same.

The symptoms of PA are the symptoms of the B12 deficiency that it causes. If the cause isn't dietary then it is an absorption problem so you need to find another way of replenishing B12 initially. 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 shots for life.

Do you know what caused your fever and were you treated with antibiotics or other medications which may have caused a problem with your B12?

Please remember I am not medically trained.

[VaishaliG in reply to clivealive]

It was viral fever. I did not take any anti-biotics,just treated with crocin or Dolo for fever. However, in the past, I had taken anti-biotics for fungal infection ( twice in a period of 6 months )

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to VaishaliG]

That may be the answer then. Unfortunately some antibiotics not only kill off the bad things but also the good things.

Take care now and look after yourself - you are precious.

[VaishaliG in reply to clivealive]

Are you able to keep a job with such a long standing Pernicious Anemia?

[clivealive Forum Support in reply to VaishaliG]

I was diagnosed with Pernicious Anaemia when I was 30 and this was 13 years after having had two thirds of my stomach removed at the age of 17 in 1959. I was told by my surgeon that I would have to "give up" my electrical apprenticeship and "get a sedentary job" - whatever that was to a teenager. No mention was made of the danger of developing a B12 deficiency....

I of course ignored the surgeon's advice, finished my apprenticeship and only in my early twenties, having noticed a diminution in my "energy levels" did I seek a "sedentary job" Long story short having been retrained (by the Government) in accountancy and registered as Disabled (due to the surgery) by 1972 I was like a walking Zombie until I finally got the P.A. diagnosis and put on B12 injections for life.

That was over 46 years ago. I worked in "sedentary jobs" until I retired at 65 in 2006 and I'm still "clivealive" at the age of 77