B12 and spots!

[jarlethblue]

can anyone tell me if getting spots, as I have been doing with Self Injecting, is a sign that your body need and is uptaking the B12. If your body wasn't using it or didn't need it, would you still get spots. I have never suffered from spots but have them on my hairline and nose since beginning my loading doses. Thanks so much. J in Ireland.

[BlackInk]

Hi jarlethblue - I've read in a few places that spots after B12 replacement is your body getting rid of toxins (esp. homocysteine) that have built up when your B12 was low.

I finished my 5 loading injections a month or so ago, and have had horrible spots on my face ever since. I never usually get spots. These are horrible, painful bumps mostly under the skin that eventually go away if left completely alone. Any that I've tampered with have taken ages to heal and looked nasty.

I'm trying to take it as a good sign that the B12 is doing something!

[jarlethblue in reply to BlackInk]

thanks so so much....my spots are painful too and i find that if i leave them alone, other than putting teatree oil on them to let them dry out. J

[fbirder]

It has nothing to do with getting rid of 'toxins' - definitely not homocysteine. That piece of nonsense is a fabrication.

When you are B12 deficient the amount of homocysteine in your blood increases. If homocysteine cause acne then it would happen when the hCys was high. It doesn't. It happens when the body is getting rid of homocysteine - not by squirting it out onto your face, but by converting it the amino acid methionine. Besides? How is a 'toxin' supposed to make bacteria grow more? Surely it would be toxic.

Acne happens when some people recover from a B12 deficiency. As the levels in the blood increase the bacteria that cause acne increase their growth (nobody quite knows why). The good thing is that it is normally temporary. Go see a pharmacist for advice on skin creams.

[BlackInk in reply to fbirder]

That was a slightly waspy reply fbirder!

I only said it was something I had read. A quick google and some of it was on this site. How am I to know who is giving correct info and who is not?

healthunlocked.com/pasoc/po...

I have also been directed here from this site:

b12d.org/faqs

The most common side effect is blotchiness of the skin or pimples. We think this is caused by homocysteine - once there is enough B12 in the body to start to get rid of the homocysteine, the body gets rid of it as quickly as possible and some will come out in the skin.

Most people want to put a cream on like E45, however that just traps the homocysteine near the skin. During this period (no more than 10 days) it's probably better to wash it off with water, ie a shower or a flannel bath.

[fbirder in reply to BlackInk]

Sorry, yes. I get annoyed at some of the rubbish posted on certain sites. I do sympathise. It really is difficult to tell what information is good and what isn't.

But that particular site is responsible for some biggies -

the heart is a big bundle of a special sort of muscle which is also nerve

is one of my favourites.

But the homocysteine/acne thing really is taking the biscuit.

They really need a real scientist to go through the whole site.

[Nackapan]

Yes I have them too. On my neck hairline forehead and chin mainly. They are big and sore. I don't usually suffer with spots. I also use aromatherapy oils to dry them out. Also use a spot wash. They started on 6th injection. 5 weeks ago and the odd one happening. Definitely from B12 injection overload. It's on the hydroxocobalamin side effect list.

[Nackapan]

Have just read excess B12 in your system that is needed for treatment can alter the metabolic activity of the skin. It boosts levels of porphyrin driving an inflammatory response linked to propionibacterium acne. Not everyone will respond in this way. Wellet good time have a reason

[TroyNZ]

I suffered from bad acne in my hair line, on my back, face and arms. I read, on here, that it would only be temporary but it went on for months. Like much of my recovery, it was not until I looked back that I realised that it was in fact improving. The painful acne seemed to gradually disappear (although I still have the odd one now and then) but I did develop "white spots" on my back, arms, hair line & face. Once again these eventually went away. I did not do anything different (except grow a beard) like creams or oils.

All I can say is that, in my experience it will go away eventually. the time frame seems to be different for everyone but mine took six months.

[Beegirl]

Hi, I had a severe reaction to my B12 injection, I was covered in tiny bumps and spots all over my face , neck and chest, they appeared 7 days after my first double dose. They were both painful and unsightly, I took an antihistamine daily and used an in scented face wash. The good news is it went away after three weeks and my skin is completely back to normal. I was so low in B12 before my injections that I think my body was just reacting to having it again! X

[Av42]

I also got spots all over chest, back , face and even in my ears after loading and they went within a month on their own . I haven’t had any more since loading.

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

Always found the ones in your ears to be most painful. Second least favourite place ? End of my nose !

Because I relate the spots to days of improvement, I welcome them as evidence of going through a good patch . I never get many: two or three at a time and usually on my face. This still happens after 3 years and still seems to be when B12 working at optimum level. I've been injecting every other day for well over a year.

[jarlethblue in reply to Cherylclaire]

thanks so so much....that gives me hope....mine are on my hairline and chin....i have been injecting every day for six weeks and seeing improvement in a lot of symptoms, but still a long way to go,. x. J

[Cherylclaire Forum Support]

Keep at it. It takes time to get this ill, takes time to recover. Keep in touch.