Reasons Vitamin B12 Is Good For You

Vitamin B-12 is one of the eight water-soluble B vitamins essential to good health, and foods such as fish, meats and dairy products serve as dietary sources for it. Without an adequate amount of vitamin B-12 your body can't make healthy red blood cells or efficiently synthesize DNA, and problems with the central nervous system could arise.

Red Blood Cell Formation

The red blood cells in your body pick up oxygen from the lungs and transport it to all parts of your body. Red blood cells have a lifespan of approximately four months and therefore your body must constantly make new ones. The new red blood cells originate in your bone marrow, and vitamin B-12 is an integral part of the process by which they are formed. Anemia is a condition that stems from a lack of sufficient vitamin B-12. If you have anemia, you feel weak and tired because your red blood cell count is low.

DNA Synthesis

The two forms of vitamin B-12 that your body uses are called methylcobalamin and 5-deoxyadenosyl cobalamin, according to the Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University. The methylcobalamin form of vitamin B-12 is important for your health because it mediates the functioning of an enzyme needed for the synthesis of DNA.

Optic Nerve Health

In the October 2005 issue of the "European Journal of Internal Medicine," Dr. Michael S. Lee and his colleagues at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation presented evidence that vitamin B-12 is necessary for the proper functioning of the optic nerve. Lee was able to trace the cause of a patient's impaired vision to optic nerve damage caused by a deficiency of vitamin B-12. After several months of treatment with vitamin B-12 injections, the patient's vision problem was corrected.

Effect on Depression

The Dec. 2, 2003, issue of "BMC Psychiatry" presents a research article in which Dr. Jukka Hintikka and his team at Kuopio University Hospital in Finland discuss a 6-month clinical study of patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder. During the study, the patients were being treated with antidepressant medication or psychotherapy sessions. Hintikka concludes that, irrespective of the method of treatment, patients with higher blood levels of vitamin B-12 have more favorable treatment outcomes relative to those with lower levels of vitamin B-12. The research team speculates that patients with lower levels of vitamin B-12 may have higher blood levels of homocysteine, an amino acid that might enhance symptoms of depression.