No expert on blood tests, joey82 but am just wondering whether you are still taking vitamin B12 supplement ? I ask because 40% of those with thyroid disease are.eventually found to have B12def/PA, especially when gut problems are involved.
I only realised I wasn’t absorbing B12 when blood tests came back showing microcytic anaemia, (more usually macrocytic anaemia), even though I’d been taking high dose B12 tablets for quite a while (B12 blood test over 2000!)
The neuro symptoms (terrible fatigue, irritability, dizziness, tingling toes, , tinnitus, brain fog etc. ) are more important than blood test results and, after much research and five years of B12 injections, I only now feel normal…….
Four in our family have both thyroid disease and PA/B12 def.
That sounds familiar Polaris. I had dreadful b12 deficiency symptoms, many neurological. Been injecting must be four years & still need the same high rate of injections. It really is an area that very little research has been done on it. And there are a lot of myths surrounding when you need to start injecting which just are not true which can make it far more tricky to obtain b12, injections on the NHS.
I agree wavylines - all the gaslighting by medics was v. frustrating - no wonder irritability becomes worse and you feel so alone with it, having read the research but having to treat yourself.
I read somewhere recently that B12 def, is being taken off the curriculum for teaching the new generation of doctors……..😱
What???? Oh noooo. It's bad enough as it is. I did get my b12 jabs on the NHS in the end but had to see a neurologist and then he wanted me to save the NHS money & buy my own as he alleged I bought them cheaper. He made me beg. . I was already doing this as the wait to see him was 7 months!! And I feared permenant damage if I waited as local CCG wouldn't let GP prescribe as per NICE guiddlines- though she wanted to. NHS fund daily but I need twice daily so self fund the rest. Someone told me that at five years of injecting I might find I can reduce. I live in hope....
Takes a while but you probably know that it does work eventually - it has worked for me even though I’m now an old lady.
I mourn the loss of those years.
It’s been so hard to convince other family members without medical support, They are all younger, including my vegetarian sister. My brother and I sent her doctors and psychiatrists the relevant printed research, but to no avail, so still in care home.
Apparently, there are more than 20? important amino acids in meat and many medications deplete B12.
Sorry to hear that but can believe it. My family are the same. I was told by my consultant specialist that my family should get checked for coeliacs as I carry the gene. My sister took it serious as she is already dairy intolerant and told me she was going to get tested but also see if she has the gene. My older brother dismissed it.
My sons is vegetarian and frankly he looks like he's nearly vegan as he won't eat fish or much dairy now either. I worry about him. Getting him to take b12 supplements has been hard work. Last lot I bought them. He's in his 30s! Horrible standing by.
I know!! But he doesn't seem to think the same. He says it in vegetables eggs etc. I say it hard to extract from vegetable so most isn't absorbed. B12 supplement is essential if you are vegetarian or vegan. I can only offer advice. He's a grown man after all! Lol....
The latest BMJ research document summary (full document behind a paywall) above states that there is no reliable test and, (bottom of page 4 ' under, 'How is Response to treatment assessed', once treatment is given blood levels will inevitably increase but it is the clinical condition of the patient that is paramount:
"Cobalamin and holotranscobalamin levels are not helpful because they increase with vitamin B12 influx regardless of the effectiveness of treatment, and retesting is not usually required.".............
If the cause of B12 def. is dietary and not an autoimmune condition, oral supplementation and a nutritious diet will usually suffice but, if you have an autoimmune condition, H/Pylori, or problems with digestion (coeliac, Crohns, gastritis, gastric surgery etc.), the condition is more complex as B12 from food is not likely to be absorbed, depletes over time and oral supplements are not usually absorbed either.
There is further risk for those over the age of 60, as hydrochloric acid (which begins the process of extracting B12 from food) is more likely to reduce leading to severe deficiency, especially as this age group is even more likely to be on various medications which deplete vitamin B12 further.
Researchers now believe leaky gut/intestinal disease/gastric atrophy is the source of autoimmune disease, and this is likely to eventually lead to low hydrochloric acid needed to begin the process of absorbing B12 as well as other essential vitamins and minerals. I believe this is at the bottom of all our own family autoimmune/Hashimoto's thyroid/PA/B12 problems.
Dr Marc Ryan's excellent article on his Hashimoto's Facebook page was a lightbulb moment for me in the search for answers to the cause of, not just Hashi's autoimmune disease but B12 def. in particular.
Small amounts of most vitamins. It's only a top up, an insurance policy so to speak o. Top of all the other vitamins I take. Going to see about increasing my Vit d intake and b12
I'm not sure, maybe its the multi vit and B complex, but not been taking them long. But there was a note on the results form saying it wasn't a concern. (GP's blood test).
I asked for my iron & ferritin levels to be checked, I believe the full blood count will tell you the result but I don't know how to interpret them into layman's terms so this is one of the reason I posted them on here.
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