Dr Dawn Harper on signs of vitamin B12 and vitamin D deficiency
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Vitamin B12 – medically referred to as “cobalamin” – is present in meat and animal protein foods; the body is able to store the nutrient for up to four years after you have had your last bite of meat (or an animal product). Symptoms of a vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to “yellow-blue colour blindness”, said Dr Tidy. The National Eye Institute explained that people with this type of colour blindness find it difficult to tell the difference between blue and green.
People who have yellow-blue colour blindness will also find it hard to distinguish between yellow and red.
Issues with establishing the difference between blue and green, as well as yellow and red, is known as tritanomaly.
If you’re also unable to tell the difference between purple and red, and yellow and pink, the condition is called tritanopia; this also makes colours look less vibrant.
Aside from visual disturbances, a vitamin B12 deficiency can also lead to a “lemon tinge to the skin”, i.e. jaundice.
This, of course, might be hard to notice if you also suffer from colour blindness.
Another tell-tale sign that you are lacking vitamin B12 is the presence of ulcers inside of the mouth.
The ulcers can be on the lips, on the gums, or on the insides of the cheeks.
Glossitis might also occur, which is when the tongue becomes red, swollen and smooth in appearance.
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Dr Tidy added: “Vitamin B12 deficiency may present with unexplained neurological symptoms.”
Examples include paraesthesia (tingling of the hands and feet), numbness, or cognitive changes.
Dr Tidy elaborated: “Neurological symptoms include impairment of pain, temperature and touch sensations.
“The legs and feet are involved earlier and more consistently than the hands.”
“Psychiatric symptoms (usually more prominent in advanced cases) may include depression, paranoia, delirium, confusion and dementia,” added Dr Tidy.
A vitamin B12 deficiency evidently can lead to troublesome side effects, so the sooner treatment is administered, the better.
As the vitamin is needed to create healthy red blood cells, the malfunction of such important cells is likely to lead to anaemia.
Signs of anaemia include fatigue, lethargy, faintness, heart palpitations and headaches.
The most likely cause of a vitamin B12 deficiency (if you do eat animal products) is a condition called pernicious anaemia.
“Before the advent of treatment with B12, the disease was fatal,” Dr Tiny pointed out.
The acquired autoimmune condition can be determined by medical checks and treatment can involve supplementation with synthetic vitamin B12.
A simple blood test can confirm whether or not you’re currently deficient in the nutrient.
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