vit b12 level

[naveed123]

I am a hypothyriod patient.Now I have the report of pernicious anemia.I am very thankful to God my report is normal.I have no intrinsic antibodies. Now I have the recent blood report of vit b12 which is 463pg/ml and reference range is 189- 883 pg /ml.I have no injection of vit b12 from last four month but I take two tablet of vit B complex in a week.Is my vit b12 level is sufficient ?

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[hez22]

Taking b12 supplements will give a falsely high blood result. If you have been supplementing prior to the blood test I would say you are low. Did you have a folate, ferritin and potassium blood tests. Always have your doctor check your folate (folic acid) and ferritin (iron) levels as often as the B12 level. It is quite common for PA patients to develop another co-existing anaemia, either folate or iron. If you are low in either folate or iron, it affects the uptake of B12, meaning the B12 is not properly utilised. Further, research states that a low serum folate causes more B12 to be excreted. B12 needs folate as much as folate needs B12, they really do work hand in hand.

[silverfox7]

I started supplementing a while back but before that my B12 result was in the 300's so low. I asked for iron panel and folate was under range so was given 4 months of 5mg/day and that put me up to 6 (4-18). I felt a lot better but not good enough so with an expensive last minute cruise coming up and unable to get a appointment I bought my own-Amazon and was energetic enough to enjoy the shore excursions. Came back but still tingling and breathlessness on walking up hills so doubled my B12, 2,000 mcg daily, and got rid of the tingling, less problem with restless legs and all roubd feeling a little better. Will have another folate test soon and take it from there. Intrinsic test was negative.

I would increase your B12, you can't overdose as it is passed out of your body and concentrate on how you are feeling.

[shaws Administrator]

Naveed, I don't understand. You say you have had the diagnosis of Pernicious Anaemia. You have obviously been given some injections of B12 but you say you haven't had one for 4 months.

Who prescribed the B12 supplements for you? Have you bought them yourself. If so, a vitamin be complex tablet will not provide sufficient B12 which is actually a hormone and I would stop these supplements for a number of weeks and ask your GP to do another B12 blood test. If you have been diagnosed with PA you MUST have an injection - every three months is deemed enough by the medical profession but some people need them more frequently.

B12 is most important as it protects our nerves from damage. Some people who have Multiple Sclerosis may actually have a B12 deficiency as the symptoms of advanced PA are so similar. Our spinal cord can be damaged so it is most important that we have an optimum level of B12 and not a 'normal' level. Some people can also develop alzeimers.