Vitamin B12 by Power Health from £2.65

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Vitamin B12 Price Details:

Ref	Status	Details	£ Unit Price	£ Price (GBP)
PB12		Power Health Vitamin B12 500µg -30 Tablets	0.09 per Tablet	2.65
PB12-1000		Power Health Vitamin B12 500µg -1000 Tablets Bulk Bag	0.03 per Tablet	33.37
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These tablets providing 500µg of Vitamin B12 which is 50,000% of the EC Recommended Daily Allowance. A water soluble vitamin that contains Cobalt. Vitamin B12 helps to maintain a healthy nervous system and the formation of new red blood cells.

Ingredients: Yeast Powder, Magnesium Stearate, Vitamin B12 (as Cyanocobalamin) ( Suitable for Vegetarians)

Nutritional: Free from artificial colours and preservatives, gluten and lactose. No added salt or sugar. Contains yeast.

Directions: Take one tablet a day as a food supplement

Health Brand: Power Health, Shelf: Vitamin A B D, Room: Vitamins and Minerals, Health Category: Vitamin Supplements

Additional Health notes Information:

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Health Notes Information:

How It Works:

Most people do not require vitamin B12 supplements. However, vegans should supplement with at least 2 to 3 mcg per day.

People with pernicious anaemia are often treated with injections of vitamin B12. However, oral administration of 1,000 mcg per day can be used reliably as an alternative to vitamin B12 injections.^{221, 222, 223, 224, 225}

Absorption of vitamin B12 is reduced with increasing age. Some research suggests that elderly people may benefit from 10 to 25 mcg per day of vitamin B12.^{226, 227, 228} One study of elderly people with vitamin B12 deficiency suggested that as much as 500 to 1,000 mcg of vitamin B12 per day might be necessary to achieve optimal vitamin B12 status.²²⁹ Vitamin B12 status was measured in this study using a sensitive laboratory test (the plasma methylmalonic acid concentration).

When vitamin B12 is used for therapeutic purposes other than correcting a deficiency, injections are usually necessary to achieve results.

Sublingual forms of vitamin B12 are available,²³⁰ but there is no proof that they offer any advantage to oral supplements.

Vegans (vegetarians who also avoid dairy and eggs) frequently become deficient, though the process often takes many years. People with malabsorption conditions, including those with tapeworm infestation and those with bacterial overgrowth in the intestines, often suffer from vitamin B12 deficiency. Malabsorption of vitamin B12 can also result from pancreatic disease, the effects of gastro-intestinal surgery, or various prescription drugs.²³³

Pernicious anaemia is a special form of vitamin B12 malabsorption due to impaired ability of certain cells in the stomach to make intrinsic factor—a substance needed for normal absorption of vitamin B12. By definition, all people with pernicious anaemia are vitamin B12-deficient. They require either vitamin B12 injections or oral supplementation with very high levels (1000 mcg per day) of vitamin B12.

Older people with urinary incontinence²³⁴ and hearing loss²³⁵ have been reported to be at increased risk of B12 deficiency.

Infection with Helicobacter pylori, a common cause of gastritis and ulcers, has been shown to cause or contribute to adult vitamin B12 deficiency. H. pylori has this effect by damaging cells in the stomach that make intrinsic factor—a substance needed for normal absorption of vitamin B12. In one trial, H. pylori was detected in 56% of people with anaemia due to vitamin B12 deficiency. Successful eradication of H. pylori led to improved blood levels of B12 in 40% of those infected.²³⁶ Other studies have also suggested a link between H. pylori infection and vitamin B12 deficiency.^{237, 238} Elimination of H. pylori infection does not always improve vitamin B12 status. People with H. pylori infections should have vitamin B12 status monitored.

In a preliminary report, 47% of people with tinnitus and related disorders were found to have vitamin B12 deficiencies that may be helped by supplementation.²³⁹

HIV-infected patients often have low blood levels of vitamin B12.²⁴⁰

A disproportionate amount of people with psychiatric disorders are deficient in B12.²⁴¹ Significant vitamin B12 deficiency is associated with a doubled risk of severe depression, according to a study of physically disabled older women.²⁴²

A preliminary study found that postmenopausal women who were in the lowest one-fifth of vitamin B12 consumption had an increased risk of developing breast cancer.²⁴³

Although blood levels of vitamin B12 may be higher in alcoholics, actual body stores of vitamin B12 in the tissues (e.g., the liver) of alcoholics is frequently deficient.^{244, 245}

Low blood levels of vitamin B12 are sometimes seen in pregnant women; however, this does not always indicate a vitamin B12 deficiency.²⁴⁶ The help of a healthcare professional is needed to determine when a true vitamin B12 deficiency exists in pregnant women with low blood levels of the vitamin.

Hydroxocobalamin (a form of vitamin B12) has been recognized for more than 40 years as an effective antidote to cyanide poisoning. It is currently being used in France for that purpose. Because of its safety, hydroxocobalamin is considered by some researchers to be an ideal treatment for cyanide poisoning.²⁴⁷

Side Effects:

Oral vitamin B12 supplements are not generally associated with any side effects.

Although quite rare, serious allergic reactions to injections of vitamin B12 (sometimes even life-threatening) have been reported.^{248, 249} Whether these reactions are to the vitamin itself, or to preservatives or other substances in the injectable vitamin B12 solution, remains somewhat unclear. Most, but not all, injectable vitamin B12 contains preservatives.

Interactions:

If a person is deficient in vitamin B12 and takes 1,000 mcg or more of folic acid per day, the folic acid supplementation can improve the anaemia caused by vitamin B12 deficiency. The effect of folic acid on vitamin B12 deficiency-induced anaemia is not a folic acid toxicity. Rather, the folic acid supplementation is acting to correct one of the problems caused by B12 deficiency. The other problems caused by a lack of vitamin B12 (mostly neurological) do not improve with folic acid supplements, and can become irreversible if vitamin B12 is not provided to someone who is vitamin B12 deficient.

Some doctors are unaware that vitamin B12 deficiencies often occur without anaemia—even in people who do not take folic acid supplements. This lack of knowledge can delay diagnosis and treatment of people with vitamin B12 deficiencies. This can lead to permanent injury. When such a delayed diagnosis occurs in someone who inadvertently erased the anaemia of vitamin B12 deficiency by taking folic acid supplements, the folic acid supplementation is often blamed for the missed diagnosis. This problem is rare and should not occur in people whose doctors understand that a lack of anaemia does not rule out a vitamin B12 deficiency. Anyone supplementing 1,000 mcg or more per day of folic acid should be initially evaluated by a doctor before the folic acid can obscure a proper diagnosis of a possible B12 deficiency.

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