Make A Use Of Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 is one of the eight vitamins in the B complex. The human body assimilates it from dairy products, eggs and meat, and there are few vegetable food sources for it. Scientists report that some seaweed and an alga like spirulina contain very high amounts of this nutrition element.
What it serves for!
Vitamin B12 has a major function in the red blood cells production and the maintenance of the nervous system. This vitamine contributes to the rapid cellular division and the synthesis of DNA. Children and adults depend on it for good health. As for the aid it provides to the nervous system, it helps to the metabolism of fatty acids, which play a crucial role to the maintenance of myelin.
Vitamin B12 deficiency
The body can store small amounts of this vitaminic element, most of it in the liver. The bile excretes and reabsorbs it into a circuit that is known as enterohepatic circulation. If you don't get enough of this vitaminic element from your diet, you are likely to develop anemia or neurological problems, although problems can appear within twenty years from the switch to a B12-deficient diet.
Deficiencies are more common with vegans and vegetarians and symptoms may include anemia with excessive tiredness, poor immune function, pallor, menstrual disorders and breathlessness. Prolonged deficiency of vitamin B12 can also lead to permanent neurological damage.
Balance your diet!
Meat, eggs and dairy products are the most important sources of B12 vitamin. Nevertheless, mention must be made that yogurt fermentation or milk boiling could destroy this vitamin. As for vegetable sources, there is not sufficient data to support the use of spirulina as a dietary supplement to compensate for this vitaminic element diet deficiency.
There are studies that suggest that spirulina contains B12 analogues, which are compounds with a similar structure to B12. Scientists do not know whether these analogues are good or bad, but there are chances for these substances to compete with the real vitamin B12 and actually inhibit its metabolism. This means that on the long run, a B12 vegetal supplement could do more harm than good.
Special mentions!
Nutritionists have reached a consensus that no vegetal sources for vitamin B12 are reliable, and therefore vegans and vegetarians are advised to consume foods fortified with it. Fortification applies to yeast extracts, soya milks, breakfast cereals, vegetable and sunflower margarines.
Pregnant women do not have special needs for vitamin B12, while nursing mothers require a higher daily intake because of the lactation. There is no toxicity associated with higher vitaminic element intakes.