Could you suffer from Vitamin B12 deficiency without knowing it? Vitamin B12 is a powerhouse vitamin that not only enables the production of DNA, but also helps generate nerve and blood cells, making vitamin B12 vital for a healthy brain and immune system. In fact, your body’s metabolism will not function properly without this essential vitamin.
Unlike many other vitamins, B12 can only be found in animal products such as shellfish, meat, eggs, and dairy. About 15% of people do not get adequate vitamin B12 and most of them are likely to be vegetarians or vegans. A deficiency in B12 could lead to a host of problems, some of which we are going to look at in this article.1
The deficiency of vitamin B12 in the body is caused by pernicious anemia which is caused by a lack of a glycoprotein called intrinsic factor. This glycoprotein is needed for the absorption of vitamin B12 and when it is not present, a vitamin B12 deficiency occurs.2
