25
votes
Accepted
What is a good source of Vitamin B12 for a vegan?
Can I live without it safely?
No. B12 is an extremely important vitamin supporting many bodily and psychiatric functions. Fun fact (and I need citation here) is that it is so important you can live ...
- 1,464
24
votes
Accepted
Where does the B12 in vitamin supplements come from?
The B12 in supplements is made from bacteria and sourced from bacteria cultures. It is not from animal products.
However, some supplements can contain gelatin in the capsule, which you should look ...
- 2,400
19
votes
Where does the B12 in vitamin supplements come from?
Artificial vitamin B12, also known as Cyanocobalamin is produced by bacterial fermentation, as indicated here.
Technically, bacteria are far from being considered animals, so this method should be ...
- 3,631
16
votes
Accepted
Is Spirulina a good source of vitamin B12?
The Vegan Society currently advises that consuming spirulina has not been proven to prevent B12 deficiency. See their open letter on B12 which does not discuss scientific studies in detail, but gives ...
- 11.9k
15
votes
Where does the B12 in vitamin supplements come from?
The vegan society states the following:
In choosing to use fortified foods or B12 supplements, vegans are taking their B12 from the same source as every other animal on the planet - micro-organisms ...
13
votes
Accepted
After how long will one see symptoms of lack of B12?
This depends on the B12 status the person had initially, and probably on other unknown individual factors. While there are no proven natural wholefood sources of B12 that are vegan, it's possible that ...
- 11.9k
13
votes
Accepted
Different types of B12?
They are essentially the same molecule, but for one bond: cyanocobalamin has a CN- (cyanide) tied to the cobalt atom, while methylcobalamin has a CH3- (methyl). There are also adenosylcobalamin (also ...
- 1,872
10
votes
What is a good source of Vitamin B12 for a vegan?
djechlin answer is quite complete. However, as an ex vegetarian I can confirm the importance of taking supplements for ensuring proper levels of B12.
1) Can I live without it safely?
It is not safe ...
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10
votes
Accepted
When taking B12 supplements, is it a viable strategy to take higher dose every few days as opposed to lower dose every day?
From the Vegan Society:
To get the full benefit of a vegan diet, vegans should do one of the
following:
Eat fortified foods two or three times a day to get at least three
micrograms (...
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10
votes
What are the best sources of vitamin B12 for vegetarians?
1. General vegetarians (Non-vegans)
For non-vegans, dairy products seems to be the best source, as mentioned in other answers as well. List of top 4 (I'm excluding eggs):
1: Cheese
The amount of ...
- 201
9
votes
Accepted
Should vitamin B12 supplement be taken at a specific time of day?
I'm not a doctor or another health professional, this is what I remember from my research when starting to take B12.
The most important thing is to take them regularly. B12 builds over time and is ...
- 401
9
votes
Vitamin B12 and recommended daily amount
There are a few factors:
Supplements don't get absorbed as well as food sources
Vitamin B12 from supplements is absorbed at a rate ~50% lower than food sources
Formulation must be able to cover more ...
8
votes
Accepted
Any studies linking vitamin B12, melatonin, and sleep
Those who can't get to sleep at night may need vitamin B12. Studies
show that B12 causes an earlier release of melatonin at night which
resets the sleep-wake cycle. (Melatonin has been called "the ...
- 196
7
votes
Accepted
Does rejuvelac contain B12?
Currently, there seem to be no natural plant food that would contain vitamin B12 in the amounts sufficient for humans.
Some plant foods contain vitamin B12, but this is either inactive - ...
- 691
7
votes
Accepted
Is Aloe a source for vitamin B12?
Aloe has not been identified as a source of B12. I have heard that consuming aloe vera alongside sources of B12 improves absorption of B12 and vitamin C. This article summarises the findings of a ...
- 11.9k
6
votes
Accepted
Why do vegan doctors recommend B12 every day/week?
The UK Vegan Society provide an info page on B12 where they state (emphasis added):
To get the full benefit of a vegan diet, vegans should do one of the following:
Eat fortified foods two ...
- 11.9k
6
votes
Accepted
What amount of vitamin B12 is required per day?
For vitamin B12 oral intake, 1,000 mcg daily is both safe and sufficient.
Update: A recent randomized controlled trial of vegetarians and vegans who were marginally B12 deficient showed that 50 mcg ...
- 7,118
6
votes
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Do commercial chicken's eggs contain B12?
In nature, poultry get their B12 by pecking for insects and worms in the dirt. Since this behaviour is not possible on industrial farms, B12 is added to animal feed1.
According to the USDA, one ...
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6
votes
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Can too much B12 be harmful?
As you said, B12 is highly soluble in water and unused quantity is easily excreted from the body as urine. Therefore, it is nearly impossible to get an overdose of B12, even if you exceed the ...
- 2,421
6
votes
Is Spirulina a good source of vitamin B12?
I can't find which study it is referring to in 2010.
Here is the 2010 paper in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, mentioned by the OP @Ryan White.
Quantitation of methylcobalamin in a ...
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5
votes
Accepted
Is there a protocol to help vegetarians/vegan chose the right concentration for B12 supplements?
One basic thing to know is that B12 supplement absorption rate decrease with the total amount of B12 provided by the supplement (check here). In other words if you get your supplement daily then 1-2 ...
- 5,619
5
votes
What is a good source of Vitamin B12 for a vegan?
There are a lot of different "milks" that are fortified with B12. Many brands of almond milk or coconut milk contain it. Ironically if you are over fifty (like me) and get you B12 through fortified ...
- 91
5
votes
What are the best sources of vitamin B12 for vegetarians?
Animal products in general are really good sources of B12. This applies to milk and the products that are made from it and I would argue that eggs are a good source of it too, although your definition ...
- 6,009
5
votes
How common is it for the livestock industry to supplement B12?
There are a lot of interesting questions you pose and some are addressed in the article Do carnivores need Vitamin B12 supplements?.
Let's first look at the claim that vegetarianism must be unhealthy ...
- 959
5
votes
Do fermented foods from India like idli and dosa contain vitamin B12?
According to this article idli and dosa contain little or no B12 (<0.001 micrograms per portion); indeed, they state B12 deficiency is a problem in India due to the prevalence of Vegetarian diet.
...
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4
votes
Why do vegan doctors recommend B12 every day/week?
It is basically because we no longer drink untreated water and we no longer eat fruits and vegetables without washing them. B12 is produced by a bacteria in the soil.
It is hard to absorb 1 month ...
- 41
4
votes
What is a good source of Vitamin B12 for a vegan?
It is widely and highly recommended to take daily B12 supplements to support a healthy and varied vegan diet, because B12 is essential and cannot be produced by the human body.
By the way, a bit off-...
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4
votes
Accepted
Is there a daily limit for absorption of vitamin B12?
I don't know if anyone knows of a concrete upper limit on how much can be absorbed. I think the more important point (as discussed in your other question) is that even at low to moderate doses the ...
- 2,384
3
votes
Is there a protocol to help vegetarians/vegan chose the right concentration for B12 supplements?
While vegetarianism is a consideration in testing for B12 deficiency (as you are at higher risk). B12 supplementation is usually advised based on monitoring levels in the blood rather than your ...
- 1,532
3
votes
Why do vegan doctors recommend B12 every day/week?
B12 is a stored vitamin. You can take high doses on a less regular basis and doctors do prescribe injections of vitamin B12 for patients with severe deficiency. Most vegans aren’t severely deficient, ...
- 1,532
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