Vitamin B-12: Where To Get It Cheap And Vegan

[lobsteriffic]

Thanks for the info.

My doctor is (was? I changed doctors now that I've moved to the U.S.) really adamant that women of reproductive age should take folic acid. Since I sort of plan on perhaps having a child in 2-3 years I figured it couldn't hurt to err on the side of caution.

Beforewisdom, if multivitamins are worrisome because some vitamins/minerals interfere with others, wouldn't taking individual vitamin pills at the same time have the same problem? For instance, if I took an individual b-12 lozenge, folic acid, vitamin d in the morning, wouldn't I encounter the same problem, or are you supposed to take different vitamins at different times of the day?

[beforewisdom]

Since I sort of plan on perhaps having a child in 2-3 years I figured it couldn't hurt to err on the side of caution.

Gestation is only 9 months, do you have some sort of problem that you are going to be pregnant for 3 years?

On a serious note, vegans can and do get folic deficiencies. The bulk of folic acid comes from green vegetables, the serious kind ( not lettuce ). As we all know just because someone is vegan, doesn't mean that s/he regularly eats and digests, serious green vegetables.

Beforewisdom, if multivitamins are worrisome because some vitamins/minerals interfere with others, wouldn't taking individual vitamin pills at the same time have the same problem?

Yes.

I think your main concern with b-12 and your multivitamin is that you might not get that pill braking down soon enough to get all of the b-12 absorbed. You can't overdose on b-12 and it is cheap, so you might just want to add a separate b-12 lozenge.

[lobsteriffic]

Thanks. I'll pick up some lozenges.

My doctor was saying that it can take 2-3 years to build up sufficient amounts of folic acid, so that I should start taking it now. Maybe that's bunk, I don't know, I was irresponsible and didn't take the time to research it myself.

[kckas]

Gestation is only 9 months, do you have some sort of problem that you are going to be pregnant for 3 years?

It's better to err on the side of caution!

[Fallen_Horse]

Well the pharmaceutical businesses illusion of such ledge inhabits for their goods . This vitamin is made by pathogens and I'm certain that environment has supplied modes of such pathogens going into the human body-fluid flow

LOLWUT

[sosso]

Where the hell are all these people coming from? FFS.

[MillionDollarVeggie]

That whole post gave me Charlie Brown nostalgia of the adults going ''wah wah wah wahhhh wah wah"

[duriandork]

I get my B12 tablets from Whole Foods. The brand I use is called "Veg Life." They run about $6 per bottle and they are the sublingual tablets that supposedly absorb better.

[duriandork]

They make a methyl b12 and this one as well which is the one that I use.

http://www.nutraceutical.com/search/vie ... ex=5099443

[TheFutureOfHealth]

I've been vegan for almost 3 years, vegetarian for 10 and alive for 29, I can do 50 dips and I have never cared where I get vitamin B12 from:)

Three whole years? The body can hold a pretty good stash of B12 but it's not a myth that we should be mindful of intake.

Well, almost 3 years I doubt the body can hold a stash of something for 3 years. The pharmaceutical companies dream of such shelf lives for their products . This vitamin is produced by bacteria and I'm sure that nature has provided ways of such bacteria entering the human blood flow (or wherever they are needed).

^^^ This kind of mindless new-age pseudo-science is what gives alot of vegans a bad name.

[fitrx]

Hello all ...

This one caught my eye as a vegan pharmacist ... so I had to chime in.

Depending on what works for your day to day routines ... I have found a weekly B12 sub-lingual lozenge (2,000 mcg - 2,500 mcg) to be the most practical to keep my B12 levels within range - If I forget one week - so what ... I take it the next time around and get in 4 tabs/month.

I always have my B12 level (blood work) checked during my annual physical and have been @ the top of the limits. Therefore, this is keeping my B12 stores satisfactory and I have noticed improvements in my other related labs as well - and I have decreased the amount I supplement as well ...

I always suggest that all vegetarians, esp. vegans get annual blood work and then tailor their supplements accordingly ... otherwise you are wasting your money and/or driving blind. I recently found that my Vitamin D stores were critically low and have added a Vitamin D2 supplement 2,400 IU/day to resolve that issue ... esp with the risk of bone fractures as a body builder, IMPORTANT!

Watch out for D3 ... this one is derived from animal sources! Most multivitamins utilize D3 - heads up!

So overall ... ask your physician to run a folate, B12, Vitamin D, Tranferrin saturation, Iron and whatever else they deem appropriate ... and then tailor your supplements accordingly ... You may not need anything if your diet is consistent and your are within normal limits.

[Fallen_Horse]

So overall ... ask your physician to run a folate, B12, Vitamin D, Tranferrin saturation, Iron and whatever else they deem appropriate ... and then tailor your supplements accordingly ... You may not need anything if your diet is consistent and your are within normal limits.

Yeah, but the problem is that you have to make up some BS reason for them doing the tests, otherwise a blood panel will run $300-$400! Vitamin D by itself is $40 for me...

[fitrx]

Your insurance will cover it if you inform them you are vegetarian/vegan - and then it becomes medically necessary ... but you would need to check since insurance is funny these days ... I have BCBS and it was covered

[burnzem]

you can also try this product:

http://www.energiseforlife.com/item--Sy ... e-capsules)--SPIRULINA100.html

[tuc]

you can also try this product:

http://www.energiseforlife.com/item--Sy ... e-capsules)--SPIRULINA100.html

OMG this is nasty. SPIRULINA DOES NOT HAVE B12 IN IT. Instead it has B12 analogues.

Otherwise spirulina is a great food, but it can be very dangerous to market spirulina as a B12 source. It can permanently damage people who use it as their only source of B12.

Chlorella on the other hand does have biologically usable B12 but it is totally a different plant and with the limited research information, I would not count on that one either as the only B12 source.

I use Veg1 Multivitamin and chlorella.