Vitamin B12: 4 Health Benefits, 4 Symptoms Of Deficiency, And 4 Foods To Eat

Health

Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient that’s involved with a lot of important processes in the human body. Vitamin B12 is structurally the largest and most complex of all the vitamins known to man.

1. Prevents Nerve Damage

Your nerves have a protective covering to keep them safe from toxins and free radicals in your blood. Without these coverings, called myelin sheaths, exposed nerves get damaged and may even die. These dead nerves disrupt signals to and from the brain and may play a role in nerve-related conditions. Vitamin B12 supports the way your body replenishes this protective covering.

2. Protects The Heart

Vitamin B12 benefits cardiovascular health in several ways, which is important considering the fact that heart disease is currently the number one cause of death worldwide. Vitamin B12 helps to reduce elevated homocysteine levels, which is now considered a major risk factor for heart disease. Homocysteine is an amino acid and its levels in the blood are influenced by blood levels of B-complex vitamins, including vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 helps to protect against heart disease like a heart attack or stroke by lowering high homocysteine levels in the blood.

3. Supports Energy

Vitamin B12 plays a key role in how your body creates energy. It keeps your cells fed, happy, and healthy. Without it, your cells get hungry and you feel weak, tired, and like you’re dragging all the time. Vitamin B12 benefits your metabolism because it’s needed to convert carbohydrates into useable glucose in the body. Glucose from carbohydrate foods is used as a form of energy, so this is the reason why people with vitamin B12 deficiencies often experience fatigue. Vitamin B12 is also needed for neurotransmitter signaling that helps your muscles contract and gives you energy to go about your day without feeling tired and run down.

4. Your Bones Need It

Osteoporosis is defined as having fragile, weak or brittle bones as a result of tissue loss. It’s roughly four times more common in women than men. Patients with osteoporosis have higher levels of homocysteine and low levels of B12 than people with strong, healthy bones. If you suffer from osteoporosis or similar bone issues, speak to your doctor about getting your vitamin B12 levels tested.

Symptoms

Vitamin B12 deficiency can be slow to develop, causing symptoms to appear gradually and intensify over time. It can also come on relatively quickly.
Symptoms include:

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