Woohooooooo!! My vitamin B12 levels are.. 😂😂
..waaaaay up!
Recap: The normal B12 range is 200 - 950 pg/mL. In December 2023, my B12 levels were 202 pg/mL. So I was just inside the reference range, however, some studies and online sources state that anything under 300 pg/mL is deficient.
I then started taking a methylcobalamin B12 supplement every other day (1,000µg). About 30 days later I took a new test to see if my B12 levels had increased. But no, they had gone down to 173 pg/mL!
This means severely deficient!
I learned from this video by Dr. Greger, that the type of supplement I was taking (methylcobalamin) had failed to raise B12 levels in several test subjects. And that the better alternative may be cyanocobalamin in chewable, sublingual, or liquid form.
I then purchased a B12 cyanocobalamin supplement in chewable form, and I started taking 1,000µg of this new supplement + 1,000µg of the old one (since I still had a few tablets remaining), a day.
25 days later I took a new test to see if my levels have improved.
I was hoping for 250 pg/mL or above..
But..
My levels were at 637 pg/mL!!Â
Which is well into the safe zone. You can find my lab results here.Â
Takeaway 1: The cyanocobalamin supplement in chewable form seems to have worked way better than the methylcobalamin one. Â
Takeaway 2: There seems to be nothing wrong with my B12 absorption.
Takeaway 3: I cannot be happier about having found out and having solved this issue. Because I suspect I have been B12 deficient for about 3 years. That is when I changed my diet to go full vegan. Because at about that time, I started having various health issues:Â
My knees started hurting to the point where I had to stop running.
I developed a hernia.
I started having frequent allergic symptoms, yet all my allergy tests came back negative.Â
My hands and feet would get super cold when temperatures dropped.
Thinking back, I never thought that these problems could have one common cause. But now, having researched potential consequences of being B12 deficient, I have learned that it is possible that all of the above could be caused by a severe and lengthy B12 deficiency. That said, I have no proof that this is the case, and I will probably never know for sure.
But now this issue is fixed and I can move on. Yaaay!
This is my plan going forward regarding B12:Â
I plan on drinking water from streams, rivers, wells, etc, whenever safe and possible, as this water will normally contain B12. I will continue to eat eggs. And I will consume shiitake mushrooms and bee pollen, both of which have been identified to contain some B12.Â
And I will continue with the B12 supplements. However, I will make one switch. That is because the cobalamin (B12) in the cyanocobalamin supplement is bound to cyanide. Cyanide is a toxin. The supplement has been approved since the amounts of cyanide are miniscule. However, even in microscopic amounts, I still do not love putting a toxin into my body. I therefore plan on using up the cyanocobalamin supplement I have, and then switch to a new methylcobalamin supplement.
What’s next?
In 7 days, I will send you a summary of key updates in the world of longevity.
In 14 days, I will show you my complete blood test results. Let’s check the status of red and white blood cells, hemoglobin, platelets, etc.
Until next time,
Johan