Vitamin B12 deficiency is commonly seen in clinical practice today. This raises several questions about whether the deficiency is increasing, or is it that we are checking more frequently for B12. There is also a question of whether RO water is related to Vitamin B12 deficiency. Our body cannot manufacture Vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 is not found in any vegetarian food. There was a belief that living vegetable sources like sprouting beans contain B12 but it is not a reliable source. Vegetables grown in fields receiving manure from human fecal material may have some Vitamin B12 but this is rather small in amount People are prone to get vitamin B12 deficiency if they are vegetarians who don’t eat enough eggs or dairy products or especially vegan (meaning they don’t eat any animal products, including meat, milk, cheese, and eggs). RO water has no known correlation with B12 deficiency. Heavy drinking also causes vitamin B12 deficiency.
For conditions affecting the small intestine, such as Crohn’s disease, Tuberculosis, Celiac disease, etc.B12 is especially more common after prolonged use of acid-reducing drugs such as pantoprazole and other PPI for prolonged periods, and after weight loss surgery.
Detection of B12 deficiency is by a simple blood test. Low B12 causes raised Homocysteine. Raised Homocysteine is a potent cause of strokes, myocardial infarction, and venous thrombosis. Severe deficiencies are best corrected by injections, while mild deficiencies, can be taken care of by oral or sublingual medicines.
It is about time the Government used routine B12 supplementation as a major public health program to prevent two of the largest killers in the Adult Indian population. There is a need for fortification of foods with B12 especially for vegetarians, or else they can take supplements of B12. If you are a pure vegetarian or only take a meat/poultry/egg/fish diet rarely, you should take a supplement of 1-2 mg Vitamin B12 daily with folic acid and thereby hope to reduce the chance of getting dementia (or stroke or heart attack) and thus live healthier for longer.
Author :- Dr Sanjiv Haribhakti
M.Ch. GI Surgeon of Western India
Kaizen Hospital
