Published at http://campisechiropractorfresno.blogspot.com/ Monday, August 2, 2010
B12 is an essential vitamin we must get from our diet in order to live, let alone be healthy. B12 is necessary for oxygenation of the body. How long can you hold your breath? How long does it take to drown? It only takes a few minutes without oxygen and we pass out, and then we die.
If you are reading this, you are alive, so you must have some B12 in your body. However, the amount of B12 in your body can directly affect your health and well-being, let alone any illness you may be experiencing. Somewhat like the oil in your car’s engine, there is a wide range of function. If your car’s engine holds 4 quarts of oil and it is a quart low, you won’t notice anything unless you check the dip stick. Actually, if your engine is 3 and a half quarts low, you won’t notice much except maybe a clacking noise when you first start it up. You might notice the engine is running a little hotter, but nothing huge. But then if you drive it thousands of miles this way, it will wear out very prematurely. Your power will diminish over time, your gas mileage will go down, and eventually the engine will seize up and die.
Similarly, B12 levels in the body can be very low for many years without any major problems stopping you from daily activities. But you might feel less energetic, your stamina might slow, you might not recover or heal from mild injuries very well. Then one day you might wake up and realize how bad you actually feel, go to the doctor, get some tests, and find out that you might have Multiple Sclerosis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, or any of hundreds of other serious chronic illnesses. You might even get medications to treat your newly diagnosed disease. You might get some relief, but hard to say. Then it continues to slowly get worse and worse.
B12 deficiency leads to a long laundry list of symptoms that is almost all inclusive of any disease. In other words, if you have any chronic symptoms whether or not you have been diagnosed with a disease, you could be B12 deficient. B12 deficiency syndrome may be the most misdiagnosed illness in the United States because it’s symptoms mimic so many different illnesses and diseases.
The treatment for B12 deficiency is taking a series of B12 shots and/or now there are B12 patches available.
The risk factors for B12 deficiency are any of the following (the more risk factors you have the higher the likelihood you are B12 deficient, but having just one of these can cause full blown B12 deficiency):
1) Currently having or ever having had a chronic illness of any kind
2) Vegetarian/Vegan diet
3) Over the age of 50
4) Stomach issues of any kind (GERD, heart burn, acid reflux, h.pylori, hiatal hernia, and so on.)
5) Stomach surgery of any kind including gastric bypass
6) Taking antacids or other stomach medications (like proton pump inhibitors)
7) Daily aspirin use
8) Colon or intestinal issues of any kind
9) Colon or intestinal surgery
10) Any autoimmune disease, especially those affecting the intestines, colon, or stomach
11) Any malabsorption issues
12) Constipation/diarrhea issues
13) Anemia
14) Pregnancy
15) Nerve damage of any kind
16) Exposure to toxins of any kind (heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, medications, petrochemicals, smog, vog, and so on)
The list of symptoms caused by B12 deficiency is so incredibly long that before you take ANY medication for anything other than a medically induced reason (like due to a surgery or due to an organ transplant, and so on) you should check you B12 status first. If you are low, then take a series of shots or patches for two to six months to see if your symptoms clear up.
When you test your B12 status, you need to check more than just your blood levels of B12. You need to check for MMA blood and urine levels, blood homocystein levels, antibody titers for stomach parietal cells, and antibody titers for intrinsic factor. If any of these are abnormal, you need B12 therapy. And, once you are through the intensive phase of B12 therapy, you need lifetime maintenance of one shot per month or two patches per month. The reason for this is that if you have ever been B12 deficient, you have a high likelihood of getting it again. B12 deficiency can quickly return in some people and cause permanent and irreversible nerve or brain damage. It is such an inexpensive prevention tool to take a shot or patch of B12 regularly, that it is considered medical malpractice not to do so.
If you cannot afford the tests needed to diagnose B12 deficiency, it is harmless to take B12 if you don’t need it, and so far there has been no reports of B12 overdose causing any damage to your body or even symptoms. So, it would be perfectly safe to take B12 as if you were deficient. But, you can’t get a shot without an MD prescription (and blood tests are usually needed for this), and oral or sublingual B12 is not well absorbed for the purposes of those severely deficient. This leaves the B12 patch. This is available online and we carry it at my office.
To learn more about B12, it’s role in your body, signs and symptoms of deficiency, and testing and treatment options, read the book Could It Be B12?
Looking Forward!
Yours in health,
Dr. Campise
Fresno Chiropractor
559 930 1034
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