B12 is an essential vitamin your body needs to function correctly. If you have a vitamin B12 deficiency, your body will struggle to produce enough healthy red blood cells, which are responsible for transporting oxygen through your body. Due to the importance of B12, you should know the potential symptoms of a B12 deficiency and what foods you can eat to increase the amount of B12 in your body.
What Is a Vitamin B12 Deficiency?
If you have a vitamin B12 deficiency, your body doesn’t have enough B12 to function correctly. The deficiency can be caused by eating a diet low in B12, but it can also occur when your body doesn’t absorb enough B12. A doctor can determine if you have a vitamin B12 deficiency by taking a blood test. If your B12 levels are lower than 200 pg/mL, you’ll be considered deficient in B12. Additionally, levels between 200 pg/mL and 300 pg/mL are considered borderline.
Why Is a Vitamin B12 Deficiency a Problem?
Since B12 helps your body create healthy red blood cells, a B12 deficiency can lead to your tissues and organs not receiving enough oxygen. B12 deficiencies also lead to physical and neurological symptoms that can be painful and affect your quality of life.
What Are the Primary Symptoms of a Vitamin B12 Deficiency?
While you may not always experience symptoms if you have a mild B12 deficiency, it can cause many symptoms over time if left untreated. The primary symptoms of a vitamin B12 deficiency include the following:
- Loss of appetite
- Diarrhea, constipation, and gas
- Gray-brown or bluish nails
- Pale skin
- Lightheadedness, tiredness, and weakness
- An inflamed, painful tongue
- Shortness of breath
- Heart palpitations
- Muscle weakness
- Difficulties speaking or walking
- Vision loss
- Numbness or tingling
- Memory issues
- Mood swings
- Irritability
- Depression
What Causes B12 Deficiencies?
A B12 deficiency can be due to not eating enough foods with B12. Vegetarians and vegans tend to be the most at risk of a B12 deficiency due to diet, as meat and other animal products tend to be the highest in B12. While a diet low in B12 can lead to a B12 deficiency, several other factors can cause a B12 deficiency. These factors include:
- Medical conditions: Many medical conditions can affect a person’s ability to absorb B12. For example, intestinal and digestive conditions, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, affect a person’s ability to absorb B12. Genetic conditions, autoimmune diseases, chronic pancreatic diseases, and vitiligo can also cause a B12 deficiency.
- Intrinsic factor: Intrinsic factor refers to a glycoprotein created in the stomach that assists with the absorption of B12. If you have pernicious anemia, your stomach won’t make intrinsic factor, leading to greater difficulties absorbing B12.
- Stomach surgery: Surgery on your intestines or stomach can make it more difficult for your body to properly absorb B12. For example, gastric bypass surgery and vitamin B12 deficiency are often linked due to the surgery’s effect on a patient’s ability to absorb B12.
- Medicines: Some medicines make it more difficult to absorb B12. Common medications that reduce your body’s ability to absorb B12 include metformin, colchicine, proton pump inhibitors, and aminosalicylic acid.
What Foods Can Help Address B12 Deficiencies?
If you have a B12 deficiency, changing your diet to include foods with lots of B12 can often help. While those who have trouble absorbing B12 will need to seek additional treatment from a doctor, those who can absorb B12 can benefit from eating foods high in B12. Consider adding the following foods to your diet to prevent a B12 deficiency:
- Chicken and lean red meat
- Fish, such as salmon and catfish
- Seafood, such as oysters and clams
- Eggs
- Milk, cheese, and yogurt
- Nutritional yeasts
- Fortified breads
- Fortified plant milks
- Fortified cereals
As you can likely tell, meat and other animal products tend to have the most B12 in them. However, vegetarians and vegans can eat fortified foods that have B12 added to them or take a B12 supplement to ensure they’re consuming enough B12 to stay healthy.
Other Frequently Asked Questions About Vitamin B12 Deficiencies
Have more questions? Review our answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about vitamin B12 deficiencies below:
1. What Is Vitamin B12 Deficiency Anemia?
If your body doesn’t have enough B12, it can lead to vitamin B12 deficiency anemia, which means your body doesn’t have enough healthy red blood cells. Since vitamin B12 helps create red blood cells, correcting the B12 deficiency can treat the anemia. Treatment for B12 deficiency anemia is often treated with B12 supplements, B12 injections, or blood transfusions.
2. Can a Vitamin B12 Deficiency Cause Dizziness?
A B12 deficiency can lead to neurological symptoms that include feelings of dizziness. You might also experience difficulty with walking, impaired balance, and issues with coordination.
3. Can Vitamin B12 Deficiency Cause Vertigo?
Since a B12 deficiency can cause you to feel dizzy and impair your balance, it can cause vertigo. Typically, vertigo symptoms will occur if a B12 deficiency has developed into B12-deficiency anemia.
4. Can Vitamin B12 Deficiency Cause Weight Gain?
Weight gain hasn’t been strongly linked to B12 deficiencies, but studies have found that lower B12 levels may increase the risk of obesity in children and adults.
5. Is Vitamin B12 Deficiency Inherited?
A small portion of people with a vitamin B12 deficiency may have the deficiency due to inherited genetic factors. For example, some rare gene mutations can be inherited and prevent people from properly absorbing B12.
Turn to Chain Effect for Vitamin B12 Deficiency Nutritional Counseling
If you’re interested in correcting a B12 deficiency or want to ensure you’re getting all the vitamins you need in your diet, a nutritional counselor can help. At Chain Effect, our registered dietitians can provide vitamin B12 deficiency nutrition counseling to ensure your diet includes foods with B12. Alongside assisting with B12 deficiencies and creating meal plans, our dietitians combine habit science and psychology to help their clients develop a healthier relationship with food.
Learn more about our nutritional counseling services today. If you’re interested in meeting one of our dietitians, please make a telehealth appointment.
