I hope my feedback is of help to all. The knowledge I acquired with just one week of searching this site plus your answers with so much information provided emotional relief
and the ability to continue to the next level. Much appreciated indeed.
The good news: from the CBC done on Nov.22/12 my ferritin rose from a low 7 (minimum here is 11) to 18 on Jan.10/13 for the first time in five years. This good news on Jan.18, same day I asked the MD for B12 shot and also got prescription, but he stated monthly shots. So, at health store got sublingual drops of methylcobalamin and also strips to use meantime. Noticed that the 15 drops (equivalent to 1,000mg) I take first thing in the morning are being absorbed: fatigue and muscular spasms are slowly receeding.
The MD was not aware of the test for "actual" B 12 in the body and asked me to provide the link, which I had just located available in Canada (IBS International), based on answer supplied by Marre. Note that my CBC from Jan.10 shows B12 levels at 630 in the pool.
The increase in ferritin is result of switching on my own on Dec. 20 to Feramax iron pills, poly-sacharide format that bypases the stomach and gets absorbed in the intestines. Pellets in gel cap. On my own I upped their dose to 300 mg half way through, then almost falling down of exhaustion and close to fainting got calf liver and tenderloin, and have since been consuming meat twice a day plus added 2% milk, after 30 years of no milk drinking. Switched from "rabbit food" to meat, fish, and dairy, all are sources of B12. Remain on a high protein diet of meat, salmon, and dairy, with vegetables and fruits. No chicken, grains, or nuts of any type because "lectins" interfere. Legumes: beans (even the green type) and lentils are out for the same reason. To my surprise I digest that high level of protein and vegetables/fruits very well. One: blood type B carry the enzime to digest lipids, and two: lectin elimination.
Also share my current vitamin/supplement protocol: 300 mg of Feramax ($45.pm); 1 potent multivitamin/minerals; 5,000 mg of B3 (helps production of HDL); 1 strong probiotic; 1,000 mg of magnesium sulfate (for muscular spasms/easy elimination); 1,000 mg of flax seed oil for Omega 3; plus 3,000 of evening primrose oil for Omega 6, and powdered flax seed on evening yogurt. Note that all cost approx. $100pm, not covered because over the counter.
B12 shots with prescription cost only dispensing fee. But I refuse prescription drugs altogether, the Omeprazole the MD prescribed for stomach pain prevents B12 absorption.
Stomach trouble is gone with elimination of grains. Bathe with 1 cup of either Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) or baking soda to eliminate toxins; no chemicals either in the body or laundry/house cleaning, just plain white vinegar.
Next step is to determine what type of blood test I will request: for pernicious anemia or inability to absorb B12? Currently searching from the alternatives available and will provide more information on that angle at my next input.
You are obviously one very determined person, thanks for this which I have printed out for future reference. One thing that might be questioned is the plant sourced Omega 3. I understood that animal sourced O3 is far preferable to plant sourced O3 which is relatively unavailable to us.
You are correct that animal source is the best for Omega 3. I get mine from eating Atlantic salmon twice a week. But flax and evening primrose oils are cheaper than fish oils, plus I am concerned about some oil extraction methods. Flax can be extracted through cold pressing. Currently I take 500 mg from ALA from this source plus that from ground flax.
Two months ago a large manufacturing plant in Montreal was destroyed by fire when container with 17,000 litres of acetone exploded. It extracted Omega oil from krill, good source but it appears to me the use of acetone negates the benefits. It sold in vats for processing into gel caps by large manufacturers.
Talking about good oils reminds me to correct my earlier protocol:
I take 1 tablespoon of Norwegian cod liver oil (for vitamins A and D) with another of molasses (for iron) plus three dates to sweeten. I also take 10 drops of vitamin D3 (colocalciferol here is extracted from lanolin from New Zealand/Australian sheep) equivalent to 4,000IUs.
A good book about fats is: "Fats that heal and Fats that Kill" by Udo Erasmus from Vancouver. His chart of good oils vs. bad oils is being disturbed by my large consumption of animal fat from beef and dairy products. Not only it helps me but is offset by my large use of B3s to generate HDLs. I need those before neglected food types for their B12 and heme iron.
Of course, dairy is source of calcium so I stopped taking calcium pills.
In my next broadcast I will provide lab sources of all tests involved with IDA/PA for those interested. Located excelent site by Association of Labs in US with excellent description of side effects, tests results, priceless. This way those interested can learn beforehand what test can be most beneficial.
Congrats on your improvements mashby! I was Rx'd with MS and an sure it's a B12 issue. I just can't completely prove it...yet.
I'm definitely looking forward to your next posting of the lab sources for your tests. I'm in Canada and want to get my active B12 tested as well. It's not an easy test to find.
Hopes
Hi hopes:
This site discusses how to repair the myelin sheating:
Here's a site with nutritional information but I recommend from experience to watch the side effects of "lectins" in certain foods, for in my case it was by eliminating them that I saw the difference and reaped benefits:
Another side with good information about myelin sheating. Notice that PA sufferers also have neuropathy and require similar knowledge and treatment through diet:
They reported that in only 5-6% of cases, holoTC explained more of the observed variance in MMA and homocysteine than did total vitamin B12, but ROC curve analysis indicated that both indices were essentially equivalent in discriminating subjects with and without vitamin B12 deficiency. They recommended that measurement of both holoTC and total vitamin B12 provides better screening for vitamin B12 deficiency than either assay alone. Also, other the evaluation of other studies that involved the measurements of holoTC, total vitamin B12, MMA and homocysteine observed that the majority of subjects with combined low holoTC and elevated MMA had normal concentrations of total vitamin B12.
They suggested that holoTC is a more sensitive marker for vitamin B12 deficiency favoring its use as a first line parameter in detecting cobalamin deficiency.20,21 Analytical studies of the different techniques that include microbiological, enzyme-labelled and radiolabelled immunoassys for measuring holoTC have recently evaluated and reviewed.22-24
Conclusion
Agreement between serum total vitamin B12 and holoTC results were noted in the majority of patients, where a highly significant correlation was reported between the two indices. There was a disagreement in a minority of patients who had low total vitamin B12 but low-normal holoTC levels in the absence of a clear evidence of any deficiency. It can be recommended that holoTC and total vitamin B12, alone and in combination, have almost equal diagnostic efficiency in diagnosing vitamin B12 deficiency for the majority of patients. In a small number of patients, holoTC appeared to be a better reflector of vitamin B12 status. Further large-scale comparison studies based on a gold standard method for classifying vitamin B12 status are worth considering and warranted to clarify the effectiveness of holoTC in the clinical setting.
Acknowledgements
The authors reported no conflict of interest and no funding has been received on this work.
I called their Toronto office and learned the assay involves testing blood serum of 90 patients concurrently which indicates local labs have to forward specimens to specialized labs.
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good news, I hope this helps others
I'm just feeling lost and want to share
I hope this shocking news is just a hoax!
Hello everybody. I would like to share my story.
Anyone recommend a good probiotic? 
