Vitamin B12 Foods List and Benefits

Thank you for checking out our page on vitamin b12 benefits that also includes a wealth of further information on this essential nutrient, such as a vitamin b12 foods list that highlights the basic everyday foods that can help you keep your vitamin b12 levels safely topped up. There is plenty of free information on this page for you to digest such as answering the question 'what is vitamin b12?' as well as sections covering, vitamin b12 dosage, vitamin b12 sources and vitamin b12 side effects. This really is the all you need to know on one of the most important vitamins that your body needs a regular amount of!

For a comprehensive to vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms please see our separate page that covers this subject.

What is vitamin b12?

Before we proceed to talk about how much vitamin b12 you need and vitamin b12 benefits we are going to answer the question 'what is vitamin b12?'. Vitamin b12, or 'the energy vitamin' as it is often referred to, is a member of the family of vitamins known as the 'B-complex' family. It is a water soluble vitamin and just as all of the other essential vitamins and minerals it has a very important part to play in keeping your body healthy and working in the way that it should be.

Vitamin b12 is often referred to by several other names such as:

• Aquocobalamin
• Cobrynamide
• Cobinamide
• Cobamide
• Cobalamin
• Cyanocobalamin
• Hydrocobalamin
• Nitrotocobalamin

All of the above names for vitamin b12 have a part of the name of another mineral in them, 'cobalt' and this is because cobalt is found at the center of vitamin b12.

There are several wonderful benefits that vitamin b12 brings to the human body and these are explained further down the page, on the flip side to that, because this is a vitamin that your body needs a regular amount of there are negative effects that can happen if you don't get enough of it as you will develop a deficiency, please see our vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms page for more information. These can be very dangerous to your well being so please do not let yourself lack in vitamin b12 and if you do have concerns about whether or not you have a deficiency speak to your doctor as soon as possible.

Foods high in vitamin b12 - Vitamin b12 dosage

One of the best things about vitamin b12 is that you don't need much of it at all each day so it really should not be difficult to ensure that you are getting enough. As far as vitamin b12 dosage goes, the recommended daily allowance is currently just 1 microgram, yes you read that right a single microgram! If you are unsure how exactly you can get this necessary amount of vitamin b12 then please see our section on vitamin b12 sources and also our vitamin b 12 foods list further on down the page. Pregnant women should take 2.5 micrograms of vitamin b12 a day and women that are breast-feeding should not take in excess of 2.8 micrograms each day.

Vitamin b12 benefits

In this next sections we cover the benefits of vitamin b12 as that is going to be one of the key things that you are looking for on this page. Below we have the vital vitamin b12 benefits for you, which should be an encouragement to ensure that you always get a sufficient amount of this vital nutrient inside of you. If you do not regularly consume this nutrient from one of more of the vitamin b12 sources then not only will you miss out on the many vitamin b12 benefits but you will also be in danger of lacking in it and therefore prone to vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms. To find out more about these please see our page all about them and how this deficiency can be bad for you. Now as promised the benefits of vitamin b12:

• Vitamin b12 aids the regulation of the nervous system
• Vitamin b12 helps the regulation of the neurological system
• Vitamin b12 helps to prevent against heart disease
• Vitamin b12 helps to regulate your cholesterol levels
• Vitamin b12 aids cell reproduction and is important for the reproduction of hair, skin an nails
• Vitamin b12 provides you with energy by converting carbohydrates into glucose, this decreases the chance of tiredness
• Vitamin b12 promotes a healthy digestive system
• Vitamin b12 is needed in order to produce healthy red blood cells
• Vitamin b12 keeps you mentally alert and reduces the chance of depression
• Vitamin b12 can promote a healthy appetite
• Vitamin b12 can help to increase your metabolism
• Unlike other vitamins, vitamin b12 is not toxic or dangerous if you have too much of it
• Vitamin b12 can be applied to the skin as a treatment for skin conditions such as eczema

We hope that this list of vitamin b12 benefits has told you all that you need to know about this vital nutrient. To find out more about the sources of vitamin b12 please carry on reading, in our next section we will cover foods with vitamin b12 in.

Vitamin b12 foods list

Now that we have explained what vitamin b12 benefits are we come to our vitamin b12 foods list that will show you the best things to eat in order to make sure that you are getting enough of this essential nutrient. As you will see from the below list of b12 foods it is really easy to get hold of the foods in question and thus implement them into your everyday eating habits. As we have said in our vitamin b12 dosage section, the recommended daily amount of vitamin b12 is just 1 microgram so it is going to be pretty hard not to consume this considering the wide range of foods with vitamin b12 in below.

Meat

• Beef
• Beef liver
• Calves liver
• Chicken
• Lamb
• Pork
• Venison

Considering you get 0.9 micrograms of vitamin b12 in a cup of milk and 8 micrograms of vitamin b12 in a cup of fortified breakfast cereal you really could get more than enough just by making sure that you eat breakfast every day!

We hope that our vitamin b12 foods list has been able to point you in the right direction when it comes to what you should be eating in order to get a sufficient amount of vitamin b 12 each day. For information on other sources of vitamin b12 please see our next section.

Vitamin b12 sources

In our previous section we highlighted a list of vitamin b12 rich foods and in reading this you will have noticed that the main foods sources of vitamin b12 are eggs, dairy products, meat and fish, as well as fortified cereals. However, besides foods high in vitamin b12 there are other vitamin b12 sources and we are going to touch on these in this next section.

One of the best ways to get any nutrient is to not only eat the right foods but also to take a regular multivitamin supplement. You can buy these at a very good price online and also in your local supermarket and pharmacy. These multivitamins will usually have a wide range of vitamins and minerals in and should be used alongside a healthy diet to ensure that you are getting all of the nutrients that your body needs.

In the case of vitamin b12 there is another way to get a regular amount of this vitamin inside your body and this is through vitamin b12 shots. Some people are unable to absorb vitamin b12 into their blood stream when they eat foods with vitamin b12 in because they are unable to produce a substance that is mandatory for the body to use it. With this being the case it can be easier to just take a shot of vitamin b12 straight into the blood stream. This may sound unusual but many people will use this as a regular energy boost! For more information on vitamin b12 shots and other sources of vitamin b12 please speak to your doctor or another medical professional.

Vitamin b12 side effects

So we have covered the benefits of vitamin b12 and the sources of vitamin b12 such as our vitamin b12 foods list, but how about vitamin b12 side effects? With many other vitamins and minerals there can be the danger or toxicity or poisoning if you consume way too much of them, however fortunately with b12 there is no chance of this as anything that the body does not need or use will just be passed out as urine.

However, for the vast minority there are possible side effects from taking vitamin b12 and these can include:

• Allergic reactions
• Skin irritation and itching
• Clotting of the blood
• Diarrhea

Taking vitamin b12 should be avoided if:

• You suffer from Leber's disease
• You have any kind of allergy or sensitivity to cobalt or forms of cobalt

We hope that this section has been useful in helping you to recognise the possible side effects of vitamin b12 and also when it should not be used. If you are unsure about anything when it comes to how much vitamin b12 you should be consuming per day or whether it is safe or not for you to consume it you should consult your doctor or a medical professional immediately. This should also to be done in order to discuss what vitamin b12 is and how it can be beneficial to the body and to go through the right foods rich in vitamin b12 for you.

Vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms

If you do not get your regular vitamin b12 dosage then there is a strong chance that before long you will begin to experience vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms and this is not good for you at all. These symptoms of b12 deficiency include depression, tiredness, heart palpitations, anemia and confusion. For a much more detailed explanation that also covers both the causes of vitamin b12 deficiency and the treatment of a b12 deficiency please see our page dedicated to vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms. The sooner that this problem is addressed the less chance there is of any long term damage being done.

More than vitamin b12 foods and benefits

We hope that you have been able to find all that you need about vitamin b12 benefits and what you need to eat to get this essential nutrient from our vitamin b12 foods list. As we have mentioned there are other vitamin b12 sources to ensure that you get sufficient vitamin b12 into your body besides foods with vitamin b12 in. If you want further information on this important vitamin, such as what vitamin b12 deficiency symptoms are, please see our dedicated page. While you are online please take the time to check out all of the other free information that we have on the essential vitamins and minerals that your body needs to consume on a regular basis.