Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Getting your B12

Some vegetarians believe that you can get B12 from seaweeds and soy, but it is pretty generally believed now that you can't and some of the algae can actually disrupt B12 metabolism. It's a hotly debated topic in vegan circles. Me, I shy away from the politics and we do what we do-we notice how our body feels.

We get B12 from animal proteins, eggs, and dairy. Hmmmm. And not yogurt apparently because of processing. You can look for B12 fortified foods, and if you notice they always talk about adding brewer's yeast to your smoothies-well that's because brewer's yeast has B12! Slick eh! It doesn't take much of it to make a difference by the way but it is vitally important.

B12 is for our red blood cells and our nervous system and cellular replication. All vital important things and we absolutely need B12. Now you could have been low for years but the raw experiment might be kicking in some symptoms or this totally may not be you. BUT if you aren't eating anything that will bring you in B12 read on.

SO if you have NOT been adding B12 specifically to your vitamins, you may want to do that. B12 helps your blood utilize iron, which then helps your body carry oxygen. So! If you are low in B12 here are the symptoms:

Symptoms of B12 deficiency are:
excessive tiredness
breathlessness
listlessness
pallor
poor resistance to infection
and:
a smooth, sore tongue or sore tender places on the roof of the mouth that come up suddenly without having hurt yourself
menstrual disorders
Anaemia

The body can store small amounts-in the liver, but if you have a stressed liver, it may be out of balance.
B12 is excreted in the bile, and then reabsorbed so you can recirculate the B12 for awhile if you aren't taking any in.
You can have a deficiency too because your gut isn't absorbing it the way it should because B12 and the good gut bacteria are parters in our health. If we aren't absorbing nutrients due to clogged intestines, then we aren't getting the B12 we need.

I like the drops from GNC. You squirt a dropperful in the back of your mouth in the morning and done! I also do drops for B complex. They are more readily absorbed into our system. You might try it and see if you notice a difference.

1 comment:

Joy! said...

I think this is why some of us have been reaching for other foods and getting thrown off.

I know it is me. And after the bleeding-I did have the sores pop up on the roof of my mouth, and last year too. Only then I didn't know what it was.

Anyone else?