Known as cobalamin, Vitamin B12 can help the body maintain good health. Vitamin B12 is very important in the bodies food to energy conversion process. It is required to help carbohydrates, fats and proteins convert into energy. Vitamin B12 is also essential in the prevention of heart disease and other illnesses by maintaining healthy red blood cells. Vitamin B12 will also help build up white blood cells which strengthens the immune system. In addition, an added benefit of vitamin B12 is related to the nerve cells, it helps make a protective covering for the nerve cells. The protective barrier of the nerve cells is a fatty layer that is most important in the brain.
Despite the benefits of vitamin B12 your body only needs small amounts of this vitamin. Foods such as liver, eggs and other animal products contain vitamin B12. Even though small amounts are required you should have a regular intake of vitamin B12. However, without the intrinsic factor in the stomach, vitamin B12 can’t be used easily by the human body. The intrinsic factor must be sufficient enough to absorb vitamin B12 otherwise the absorption will be hard. The proper amount of vitamin B12 can be obtained through the food we consume. The body will use the amount of B12 needed and then recycle the rest. However, vegetarians need to take B12 supplements since vegetables don’t contain proper amounts of vitamin B12.
Anemia is a common effect in those who have a deficiency of vitamin B12. This is because there isn’t enough B12 to help produce enough red blood cells. However, anemia can also result in the intestine doesn’t have a sufficient intrinsic factor. The intrinsic factor can drop below sufficient in people over fifty which makes these people more susceptible to anemia as well as other diseases. In addition, children and women who are pregnant have an increased risk of developing anemia. Vitamin B12 is needed to help support a child’s growth and the growth of a baby inside a woman’s womb.
By: Tony Jacowski
Archive for November, 2009
The Importance of the B12 Vitamin
November 29th, 2009Also known as cobalamin, vitamin B12 is a part of the b vitamin family which helps to keep the body in good shape. Foods such as meat, eggs, fish and live have adequate levels of vitamin B12. Even though a small amount of B12 is required by the body it should be taken daily. Without the help of the intrinsic factor in the stomach vitamin B12 can’t be taken in by the body. Even though it is possible to get too much of B12 in your daily consumption it won’t cause any problems in your body since only half of it is absorbed by the body. Vitamin B12 can also be reused by the human body.
How Does Vitamin B12 Help the Body
There are four areas where vitamin B12 benefit’s the human body:
1. Vitamin B12 is essential to helping the body convert carbohydrates, fats and proteins into energy.
2. Vitamin B12 can help prevent heart disease by helping to keep red blood cells healthy.
3. Vitamin B12 helps the white blood cells which as a result helps prevent disease through a healthy immune system.
4. Vitamin B12 is required to form a protective shield around nerve cells which is especially important in the brain. If there is an absence of B12 and this protective shield isn’t maintained then brain malfunction can occur.
Anemia can result if a person doesn’t have sufficient levels of vitamin B12 in their system. A lack of B12 causes a reduction in red blood cells which leads to anemia. Kids who are not fed properly will develop anemia. In addition, if a persons body doesn’t have a sufficient intrinsic factor to help B12 be absorbed by the body then anemia can result.
If a person is a vegetarian then they should take B12 supplements. To help babies grow in the womb, pregnant women should also take extra B12 supplements. The intrinsic factor in the body is decreased in people over fifty years of age so they may have problems absorbing large amounts of B12. For this reason people over fifty should consider B12 supplements so that they can reduce their chances of developing anemia and other health problems.
By: Tony Luck
Natural Sources of Vitamin B12
November 28th, 2009Vitamin B12 is a truly exceptional vitamin, unique even among all the other B vitamins present in nature. The reason for this uniqueness lies in the fact that only smaller amounts of this vitamin is required and the body already makes full use of it. For instance, ten micrograms of B12 spread over a day seems to be able to provide adequate supply for the body to use.
Vitamin B12 is also called cobalamin owing to the fact that it contains the metal, cobalt. The main benefit of vitamin B12 appears to be promoting and maintaining the normal function of healthy nerve cells and red blood cells. Vitamin B12 is also needed to help make DNA, the genetic material in all cells.
Vitamin B12 is bound to the protein in food so the most likely vitamin B12 food sources are foods rich in proteins and amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins. When you consume vitamin B12 food sources, the vitamin is released from the food through a reaction caused by the hydrochloric acid released by the stomach. During digestion and once it is released from the vitamin B12 food sources, the vitamin combines with a substance called gastric intrinsic factor (IF). This complex can then be absorbed by the intestinal tract.
What other foods contain vitamin B12?
Specific examples of vitamin B12 food sources include animal foods such as fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and milk products. Another good vitamin B12 food source is fortified breakfast cereals, which is a particularly valuable source of vitamin B12 for vegetarians. Because plants and vegetables can never be considered as vitamin B12 food sources, vegetarians stand more chance of suffering from deficiency of this vitamin. To compensate for the loss, vitamin B12 food sources fortified with the vitamin are made available for them.
Other vitamin B12 food sources are mollusks and clams (mixed species, cooked). Three ounces of these contain as much as 84.1 micrograms of vitamin B12, equivalent to 1400 Daily Value (DV).
One slice of braised liver or beef is also a good vitamin B12 food source, containing as much as 47.9 micrograms of vitamin B12, equivalent to 780 DV. Trout, rainbow, salmon, sockeye, and fortified breakfast cereals have vitamin B12 ranging from 6.0 to 2.4 micrograms.
Even fast food, such as cheeseburger and taco, contains a good amount of vitamin B12. And yogurt, haddock, tuna, milk, pork, egg, American pasteurized cheese food, and chicken contain vitamin B12 as well.
By: Antwan Richardson
