Everything you need to know about Vitamin B12 in 10mins

Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient. Let's look at best Vitamin B12 sources, pitfalls, Vitamin B12 requirements and how to secure them.

we need external vitamin b12 sources. we actually make B12 in our gut. B12 is produced by some bacteria in our colon but it’s past absorption

3 reliable sources of vitamin b12: Animal products, fortified foods and B12 supplements

liver: concentrated source of vitamin b12. Fish: salmon exceeds daily needs of b12. limits on B12 absorption: if you get your b12 from foods, it’s recommended you eat something with b12 a couple times a day. absorption: it requires 4 cups of cow milk to cover daily b12 requirements.

eggs have vitamin b12 but not very absorbable, low bioavailability. some animal sources have more b12, some less, with a variety of those foods b12 adds up

some animal products are more effective b12 sources, some less

are b12 supplements a vegan thing? milk and eggs are not the best sources.

in animal products, b12 is bound to protein, stomach acid breaks B12 apart so you can absorb it; b12 in fortified foods and supplements is in free form

With age, stomach acidity goes down, people can't absorb enough vitamin B12 from animal foods and turn to fortified foods or B12 supplements. if you rely on animal products for vitamin b12 keep an eye on those factors

fortified foods have b12 added: breakfast cereals, plant milks, nutritional yeast, imitation meats. can cover b12 needs in 1 serving. e.g. cup of cereal or fortified plant milk

americans get more vitamin b12 from cereal than any other food

those foods contain a ton of B12 but there’s the absorption issue, our gut can’t absorb all the b12 we eat. whether you rely on animal foods or fortified foods, eat a b12 source 2-3x a day. e.g. for B12-fortified foods: bowl of cereal for breakfast, cup of plant milk later

vitamin B12 supplements: B12 seems like a given but some studies indicate over 60% of vegetarians are b12 deficient
omnivores have surprisingly high rates of b12 deficiency too!

b12 stores last years so it can take a while for a B12 deficiency to set in. B12 is critical for red blood cell production, brain function and cardiovascular health.

symptoms of b12 deficiency: fatigue, weakness, pale skin, tongue swelling

b12 test kits for sale online. it’s possible to have b12 deficiency and have normal b12 levels. a more sensitive test of b12 status is methylmalonic acid

whatever you choose to eat, make sure to get b12. there’s a B12 pill and a sublingual tablet. Both work. b12 shots: for most people the oral route is fine

most B12 supplements contain a form of b12 called cyanocobalamin, if you have kidney issues methylcobalamin may be better

recommended dietary allowance or RDA: 2.4ug of b12 daily

some animal foods and B12-fortified foods cover B12 RDA but we don’t absorb all the b12 we take in, so it’s safer to eat b12-containing foods more than once a day

supplements: people used to recommend B12 daily supplements with hundreds of ugs but 50ug daily supplement is enough. 2000ug B12 once a week covered it

already b12 deficient? you may benefit from higher dosages daily

vitamin B12 supplements: are supplements unnatural? factory farmed animals given b12 supplements. so b12 in animal products often come from supplements

all 3 sources are effective for getting enough b12 if you plan accordingly

B12 has been detected in mushrooms, algae, duckweed etc but they have low b12 amounts and human activity is uncertain. inactive b12 forms. b12 must be functional

with current evidence, they’re not your safest B12 source

you can get b12 from animal products, daily supplements, B12-fortified foods or weekly supplements

more on supplements: video on omegas and healthy fats. tired of supplements? here’s 7 nutrition facts I wish someone told me about long ago

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Animations: Even Topland @toplandmedia

References:

Disclaimer: The contents of this video are for informational purposes only and are not intended to be medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, nor to replace medical care. The information presented herein is accurate and conforms to the available scientific evidence to the best of the author's knowledge as of the time of posting. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding any medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of information contained in Nutrition Made Simple!.

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[vigneshgvs]

Man who are you! The only video which address all doubts in 1 video, with enough animations, and straight to point. Clearly said the types which one to prefer (eg: kidney work), and what dose and why it says more dose on label. Even said about the cost. My 1st video of urs. Got a sub!

[trenthumphrey]

B12 deficiency really is no joke. In my sophomore year of college I noticed I was having trouble concentrating and forming complete thoughts without pausing. I could read entire pages of my textbooks and not know how to summarize the lesson. So essentially I could read but I couldn't learn. I also had extreme trouble sleeping. I could sleep for 7 or 8 hours or more every day and still be tired. It was like I was getting tired and tired by the day. Then I experienced numbness in half of each of my hands. It wasn't a pins and needles numbness but just a loss of sensation and movement. The point at which I decided to see a doctor was when I woke up one morning and as I turned to get out of bed I couldn't walk. I fell flat on the floor. My legs wouldn't move for about ten minutes. It was possibly the scariest moment of my life. So I went to the doctor and within three days the results came back as B12 deficient. Not only was I B12 deficient but I was informed that I have a sleep disorder commonly callee "Non repairative sleep disorder". This disorder is basically when your body doesn't got into RIM stage long enough or it goes into RIM stage but comes in and out too often which prevents any meaningful rest. The doctor pointed out that B12 deficiency might have a lot to do with the sleep disorder. It took just a few weeks to get to a point that I saw improvement but in the end I know that if I had let it go and had not visited a doctor then things could have gotten far worse.

[francesca]

15 - 20 years always tired. With a full time job and two young kids. Hashimoto, but fixed with hormones. Iron deficiency, always supplements, became borderline but acceptable levels. Still, always tired. Athrofic gastritis. B12 shots. Life changing completely. It's clear now B12 was apparently still enough but wasn't really. I wish the doctors understood it years earlier. Different life. Different options in life cause you have the energy. You are so right IT'S NO JOKE

[lseh]

I love the way you communicate. Straight to the point.

[johnfontana]

I tested my b12 blood serum was 60, as a carnivore. Normal range 90-900.Thanks for educating us!

[silviaoino]

My B12 deficiency has really affected my life and not in the positive. This is very useful. Thank you Doc.

[chrispicakes]

I’m so impressed you mentioned MMA testing. I went 1.5 years with low b12 symptoms (got pretty bad) because my b12 serum test was 186 with the cutoff at 180. Finally 7 drs later I found someone to do more in depth testing!

[miken]

You are the opposite of a lazy bum IMHO. The time to read the research and then translate it to something we all can understand is a lot of work. Also you bring a lot of energy to the videos. Thanks for all your hard work. Much appreciated.

[Otto-mqlg]

This is very true as the problem is in digestion and the break down of sources to gain B12 vitamins. I am experiencing dry skin, hair loss, low energy and endurance to balance issues, sleeping schedule is all over the place, among other symptoms.. The problem with seeing a physician who prescribes all kinds of prescriptions and after the damage is done decides to make changes etc..

[NutritionMadeSimple]

was a challenge to crunch all the relevant facts and literature into 10mins but thrilled to finally check off the list one of the most requested topics!!! :)

[tonyt]

Thank you, my Portuguese brother for the detailed explanation of B12 vitamin.

[gladysvogel]

Straight forward info. about very important topic! I know that I get benefits of strenght and clarity of mind through God's Blessings, but still, He also wants us to be good Stewards of our bodies....Been taking B-12 for almost 20 years and I recommend it to anyone! Good job, Doc! Thanks again!❤

[artvsmachine]

Dude?! That video was really solid, informative, entertaining, and just nailed it all down super clearly and with a bow on top. You may be my new favorite source for info I can trust about diet on YouTube.

[roym]

Some really good stuff here and a good takeaway of pretty much everyone needs a supplement now. Very fair points on that nothing there is 'natural' like with surgery or antibiotics, etc.

Would be good to see more on why animals now have to take B12 supplements tho... that B12 used to be more readily available in the soil and water (B12 being water soluble), plants and drinking water (ponds) had more B12 in them. As we shifted to modern farming techniques we 'cleaned' the soil and water, sterilised it, and killed the bacteria. And as you say even farmed animals now get B12 supplements as the food they eat lacks B12. Also, fermentation massively increased B12 production, and so fermented veggies like sauerkraut and so on are high in active B12 (around 3x the RDA in 100g). It's extremely fair to say that people got a big chunk of their B12 from veggie sources before and that the animal sources, supplements. Expanding that category at the end would bee fair to say... and to clarify.

The duckweed, algae (nori and chlorella), and mushrooms is fairly well accepted though. It would be good to include that 4th category. Here's a very good study on the sources that accounts for the B12 analogues (hence why only chlorella and nori are recommended, but other algae like spirulina aren't). It appears that a lot of people used to get their B12 from fermentation. As we've moved away from that, and lowered the quality of the soil, it's lowered the options for B12 to the areas you mentioned.

[nestorrodriguez]

You deserve a million subscribers... Very informative and entertaining. Thank you for the good work.

[lvzane]

My gastroenterologist also prescribed me a 2000 microgram dose of B12 once a week. I have celiac. Interesting to see that your suggestions align with each other!

[ekaterinab]

when i was vegan i had quite a poor diet (as well as very little money). i did take a b12 supplement but not regularly, maybe once a week or so. about 2 years in i got pretty sick with bad chronic fatigue. i started craving salmon and fish for months. eventually i came off the vegan diet and ate salmon. i had thought I might have been protein deficient but after watching your protein series and this video, i now suspect it may have been b12 deficiency. i knew i needed it but not how much, when, or much other detail. your channel is gold

[SavannahVu]

Thank you so much for this video. I thought I knew what I needed to know about vitamin b12 but I was very wrong LoL. I love how informative you are and straight to the point.

[JaredMerlin]

At age 54, I just found out I am B12 deficient. I take a B12 supplement on Sundays and Saturdays, 1, 000mcg each and then M-F, I eat a bowl of Multigrain Cheerios. After 1 month, my B12 is much better than it was. I was told by my NP it takes about 12 weeks before I'll see a rather better significant level. I suffer from a malabsorption issue due to having had gastric bypass surgery back in 2007. So I also take 500mg of Vitamin C with my B12 supplement and bowl of Cheerios to help with the absorption.

[yllorco]

Wow! I love this informative video. I have found B12 4, 900% from XS non-sugar energy drink. Simply the best in the world. I don't need coffee, breakfast nor any other energy drinks anymore. I love it having full of energy daily without having energy crash. Following and supporting here. Thanks for doing likewise.