Are You At Risk For Vitamin B12 Deficiency?

Many vegans have been told that the one vitamin they cannot get from plant foods is vitamin B12. They are often then told to be careful not to develop a vitamin B12 deficiency.

If they choose not to eat meat and dairy, do vegans really run a serious risk of deficiency?

The answer is: maybe. A vegan in a developed country who eats a varied diet most likely will not become deficient in vitamin B12. But, a person who lives in an undeveloped nation with no access to reliable sources of food is more likely to develop a deficiency.

Animal products provide the best sources of vitamin B12, which comes from a bacteria in dirt. Animals eat unwashed foods, so none of the bacteria is washed away. The bacteria grows and flourishes in their stomachs, spreading through their blood around their bodies.

When humans eat those animal bodies, they get adequate amounts of vitamin B12. This is why people who don't eat animals have run a greater risk of having a deficiency.

What's ironic is that our ancestors never washed the foods they ate like we do nowadays. Instead, they pulled veggies out of the ground and ate them dirty. With those dirty vegetables, they ate a good amount of vitamin B12 and never took vitamin supplements.

I doubt many vegans are going to start eating dirty vegetables, so they should think about adding a vitamin B12 supplement to their diets. There are also some non-animal sources in nature.

So how likely is it that a vegan will actually acquire a deficiency?

That's hard to say. Vitamin B12 deficiency is difficult to diagnose because its symptoms can often be confused with other problems; like anemia. The most common symptoms are weakness, fatigue, lightheadedness, pale skin, sleep disturbances, and overall sickness.

Because the deficiency is difficult to recognize, it's hard to know the exact number of vitamin B12 deficiencies. Some reports say that as many as 39% of the population has low levels of vitamin B12, and some say it's much less common.

We do know that vitamin B12 is stored in the body, so the human body does have a stockpile of it that lasts for a few years.

The good news for vegans is that there are several ways to get vitamin B12 without having to eat animal products, such as with pills. Make sure your vitamin doesn't contain any animal products because it's common to use animal products as binders in vitamins.

There are also many vegan foods that are fortified with vitamin B12, including nutritional yeast, soy milks, and breakfast cereals. Don't let fear of vitamin deficiency stop you from becoming a healthy vegan!