I have had a low B12 result, 127 after symptoms of pins and needles in hands and feet, heart palpitations tight chest, periods of vertigo when walking.
Can these symptoms realy be B12 deficiency?
They say i dont have anemia as my red blood count is normal but have not had any other blood test such as folate iron or intrinsic factor test.
My sister does not absorb B12 and has injections I have been told to take suppliments by GP but dont know how much how long etc.
I am now going to see a cardiologist privately as the palpitations are worrying me.
I still run 3k 4 times a week but should i stop?
I need some advice feel GP has left me with no answers or support.
Any one got any advice?
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Suzie0505
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I had heart palpitations when I had b12 of 137 and was also low in folate , about two months after injections and folate tablets started they stopped,so I would say definitely yes !
Thank you so much for this i was starting to get worried i had something terrible !
What should i take to try and get B12 up GP have basically said take some suppliments and come back in 4 months for another test but i feel quite upset at the though of 4 months of this!
Re-testing whilst supplementing can produce a skewed result which may have your GP saying it is not a B12 issue. It is laid down in the Guidelines for Folate and Cobalamin Deficiency that testing whilst supplementing is of little value.
Am only eating high B12 foods and taking suppliments from health food shop as the nurse who called to let me know results told me that what i should do. Still feelung the same symptoms after 7 weeks maybe worse, i dont want to go back to GP as i can never get an appointment and have to go through triage with a receptionist before i am considered for an appointment.
Is there anywhere else that i can go to help with B12 advice.feel very unhappy and low that i may feel like this for christmas!
Sorry to rant, i realy apreciate all your help and support.
I have bought B12 patches from Amazon, which most of my symtons disappeared within 5 hours. It gave me heaps of energy too. £3 for 2 months is great value. If you can’t absorb B12 in your food eating the food doesn’t help. I practically live off meat and eggs, always have and it hasn’t helped me.
if you are on a phone scroll down and down until you come to the heading PINNED POSTS - there you will find lots of very useful information about B12. If you are on a PC then Pinned Posts are to the right of your Post.
Sadly GP's and their nurses are not well informed about B12 Deficiency - so we have to read and learn for ourselves.
Scroll down in the above post to read the list of Signs and Symptoms of B12 Deficiency. Also videos under the heading Films and lots more information for you in simple terms that I was able to understand The Neurological ones come first.
I would aim for B12 injections - as others have said. If you have absorption issues then eating high B12 foods will not help. Can you self inject ? - many here do - having been unable to cope with the 3 monthly allocation from the NHS.
I would stop running with a low level like that. My reading was 106 5 weeks ago discovered as I initially had a virtigo attack. As your sister needs B12 injections surly this is a sign for your g.p to treat you and do a more thorough blood test. I'm not anaemic either. Am very poorly now as I think slow start in treatment and must have been low for some time. Hope you see another doctor. Perhaps book a double appointment.
Hi Suzie0505 "Abnormally rapid heartbeat (tachycardia) and/or chest pains" is included as a symptom of a Vitamin B12 deficiency along with those others you list.
Have you started supplementing?
Do you know whether your Folate level was checked?
I am not a medically trained person but I've had Pernicious Anaemia (one of many causes of B12 deficiency) for more than 46 years.
Thank you for your reply it realy helps to know symptoms could all be B12 deficiency. I have been told nothing by GP just to take b12 suppliments no other blood test have been done and no explination of why B12 is low 127 not even sure what it should be.
I though my diet was good i dont eat red meat much but lots of fush and veg.
assuming that you aren't a vegan/do eat a moderate amount of meat/fish/dairy/eggs and have enough sources of B12 in your diet then you don't have a dietary problem but an absorption problem. If this is the case then supplementing with normal vitamins isn't going to do anything for you. Potentially large doses (1000mcg+ taken several times daily) might slowly raise your levels ... but it would be slow.
B12 is used by cells in a number of processes - one is the process that produces healthy red blood cells, which eventually results in a particular type of anaemia - macrocytic anaemia in which your red blood cells are larger and rounder than normal. This can cause some symptoms but it there are also other processes that won't run properly, such as the ones that allow your cells to release energy, maintain the myelin insulation around nerve cells as well as the processes that allow neurotransmitters to get reset. These can manifest much earlier than normal.
It is also possible that the problem that is stopping you from absorbing B12 may also be stopping you from absorbing iron which could mean you have both macrocytic and microcytic anaemia going on at the same time and one is masking the other.
I'd suggest you go back to your doctor - point out that the deficiency isn't dietary but an absorption problem and as such really needs to be treated with injections. Mention that your sister has B12 injections as PA tends to run in families. Also point out that 25% of people first presenting with B12 deficiency don't have any signs of macrocytic anaemia. As you have neurological symptoms treatment shouldn't be delayed as doing so could result in permanent neurological problems.
The source of this data is the BCSH standards on diagnosis and treatment of cobalamin and folate disorders which they can access through the BNF.
Repair of nerve damage is very slow if at all possible. The B12 deficiency erodes the myelin sheath and this can possibly be repaired. However, if the axon is damaged the nerve is gone. Repair takes years so keeping the logbook also helps monitor this progress especially if short term memory loss is one symptom.
Nerve repair is a combination of the right chemicals/vitamins and stimulation through exercise. The vitamins are B12 first and folic acid to supplement along with B1 and B6 and a daily multivitamin.
So how does one stimulate the vagus nerve without special medical treatments? Haven’t figured that one out yet.
Gentle range of motion exercises help stimulate skeletal muscles and the associated nerves. Swimming is good.
Hunger after a B12 injection is a good indication that the vagus nerve is being repaired. Realize that this hunger is an illusion from the stronger signal strength on the nerve.
Muscle pain after a B12 injection is another “good” indication that nerve repair is occurring. Getting going is the hardest part but movement stimulates the muscles and nerves and allows the brain to recalibrate faster, especially if you can convince yourself that the pain/hunger are good. Stress and worrying just make the pain seem worse and prevents the brain from recalibrating to the stronger signals.
Once you get moving that pain magically disappears. Hunger on the other hand is something one just needs to endure. That’s my experience anyway.
For the logbook, try to assess your own severity score each day. This gives you a point of reference to compare to on your next jab cycle and even a year from now. Each cycle there will be highs snd lows but the highs should get higher and lows get less over the months and years as nerves are repaired.
Thank you for such detailed and help full response.
I am giing to go and try to get B12 injected as my GP refused this treatment as she said i was not anemic as my red blood count was fine and suppliments from holland and barett woupd do.
But i eat a good B12 rich diet so why is it 127 now?
Vagus nerve damage symptoms are a match for some of mine so i will persure this.
Thank you again for taking so much of your time to reply i realy appreciate it.
my b12 showed 404 in april this year and i've had strong palpitations for over 10 years, the only thing that has stopped them has been the b12 injections and i eat meat and have tried nearly every vitamin going over the years,i think as others have said, its your symptoms that matter
Thank you for your reply, i just get weak palpitations and what feels like an itchy chest if that makes sense. I have been told my heart is fine had ultrasound, ECG and 24 hr monitoring of blood pressure and heart rate. AF was picked up once or twice but Cardiologist said probably anxiety. I realy do think so.
Helps to know you have had palpitations for 10 year and are ok.
yes yours is very low,mine was 'normal' and i still have symptoms if you know what i mean,i kept excercising through it and am still here as you say,it does sound as if you are similar to your sister,ask your gp or practise nurse if you can try the loading doses of injections and see if they make a difference,good luck
Hello Susie0505, yes B12 deficiency will cause palpitations and vertigo and fatigue. I had been back and forth to my GP with these symptoms for several years and no connection to B12 was made. It was not until much later and neurological symptoms, pins and needles etc that I started researching and asked to have B 12 tested. My B12 was 164. I have been injecting B12 ever since. Still 1 injection weekly after over 3 years. I have axonal loss in both legs and small fibre neuropathy which is permanent. I think you should insist that B12 injection treatment begins immediately. Take as much research evidence for having the treatment with you to your appointment. The sooner you start treatment the better chance you have of full recovery. Also it it important to keep folate and potassium levels up, Potassium best with food, e.g. bananas, kiwi, avocado etc. and take a vitamin B complex supplement. I wish you well. Kind regards Potter 5
My nerve damage repair took approximately 3 years, at the beginning I truely didn't think it was possible to gain back so much of my health. Totally support the advice to ensure you're getting appropriate treatment ASAP.
In Japan, they treat patients with B12 under 500 pg/ml with injections. Here in the USA, the labs add a caveat to results under 400 pg/ml that 10% of the population exhibits neurological symptoms in what is called an “occult B12 deficiency “. It means hidden and has nothing to do with the devil.
The reason the deficiency got the name “pernicious” or “deadly” in the 1800s is that the patient never recovered from the nerve damage by the time the anaemia was recognized and treated.
Anaemia is one if the last symptoms to show up. Please tell your GP to get out of the 19th century. A reason they had all the mental hospitals back then was that people got schizophrenia from the nerve damage.
Please start getting B12 injections. And you will need folic acid (up to 5 mg) and a daily multivitamin to support the B12 once injection start. It will feel like a roller coaster ride of highs and lows once you start so keep a logbook of all your symptoms so you can find the patterns. Once you get sufficient and frequent enough injections, the roller coaster levels out.
B12 injections are a cheap remedy. So you can also use the argument with your GP of trying it and see how it goes.
Offer to provide a list of all your symptoms and your own associated severity score each time you visit for your medical record. The GP will treat you like a hypochondriac so you need to get them past that stage so you don’t end up begging for more frequent B12 when that time comes.
Once you are on injections your blood results should be >1500 pg/ml to effect nerve repair and it needs to stay there. The GP will be tempted to withdraw the injection therapy saying that your B12 is “too high”. Remember that you can’t overdose on B12 as it is water soluble and you pee away the excess. But keep the folic acid dose at a level under 5 mg and where you can tolerate it. I get palpitations and thumping in my ears when I get too much folic acid versus too little B12. Use your logbook to keep track of your dosages. I spread my 4.8 mg of folic acid out through the day by taking 2x 800 mcg tablets three times a day.
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The Neurological ones come first.
Palpitations
Persistant B12 Symptoms ?
B12 injections been stopped
No longer B12 deficient? No cause found. Advice needed.
Which blood tests are required for a condition that causes hyperventilation and palpitations? 
