What are the symptoms & treatment for deficiency of Vitamin B12?
Symptoms of Vitamin B12 Deficiency
If you have vitamin B12 deficiency, you could become anaemic. A mild deficiency may cause no symptoms. But if untreated, it may lead to symptoms such as:
- Weakness, tiredness, or lightheadedness
- Heart palpitations and shortness of breath
- Pale skin
- A smooth tongue
- Constipation, diarrhoea, loss of appetite, or gas
- Nerve problems like numbness or tingling, muscle weakness, and problems walking
- Vision loss
- Mental problems like depression, memory loss, or behavioural changes
Treatment
If you have pernicious anemia or have trouble absorbing vitamin B12, you’ll need shots of this vitamin at first. You may need to keep getting these shots, take high doses of a supplement by mouth, or get it nasally after that.
If you don’t eat animal products, you have options. You can change your diet to include vitamin B12-fortified grains, a supplement or B12 injections, or a high-dose oral vitamin B12 if you are deficient.
Older adults who have a vitamin B12 deficiency will likely have to take a daily B12 supplement or a multivitamin that contains B12.
For most people, treatment resolves the problem. But, any nerve damage that happened due to the deficiency could be permanent.
