Vitamin B-12, which is one of several B-complex vitamins, is essential for optimal health. This vitamin regulates the growth of red blood cells and helps maintain healthy nerve cells. A deficiency in vitamin B-12 can be mild, moderate or severe, and the type of treatment is based on the severity of the deficiency. Only doctors can confirm a vitamin B-12 deficiency via a blood test and can prescribe the appropriate treatment.
Causes
In conjunction with the treatment of a vitamin B-12 deficiency, you will likely want to know the cause of the deficiency. Only foods derived from animals, such as fish, shrimp, chicken, beef, eggs and pork, supply vitamin B-12. Therefore, vegans, who eat no animal food products, are susceptible to a vitamin B-12 deficiency if they do not take supplemental vitamin B-12. If you do eat animal-derived foods, the most common cause of a vitamin B-12 deficiency is defective absorption in the intestines.
Form
Cobalamin is an alternate name for vitamin B-12, and the form administered to treat a deficiency is often in slightly altered chemical form. Vitamin B-12 is often available in the form of cyanocobalamin, which the body absorbs more easily than cobalamin. The body then processes this compound into 5-deoxyadenosylcobalamin and methylcobalamin. Supplements sometimes come in the form of methylcobalamin, and thus this processing step is not needed.
Oral Route
Vitamin B-12 is available in virtually any pharmacy as an oral supplement, and such supplements are effective in treating mild vitamin B-12 deficiencies. If you think you may not be getting enough dietary B-12, taking a vitamin supplement can supply you with the daily recommended value, 2.5 micrograms per day. However, larger doses need to be ingested because only about 2 percent of vitamin B-12 is effectively absorbed. If you have a mild to moderate vitamin B-12 deficiency, your doctor may prescribe a dose of between 1,000 and 2,000 micrograms per day. This dose is given to people who are not demonstrating any neurological symptoms, which may indicate a more severe vitamin B-12 deficiency.
Nasal Route
Vitamin B-12 can also be given in a gel administered intranasally, which is given to treat a mild to moderate deficiency. However, this gel has been more recently developed than the oral form and thus is less well tested and costs more.
Intramuscular Route
If you have a severe deficiency, the route of administration is usually an intramuscular injection of vitamin B-12. The treatment generally consists of 1 mg of vitamin B-12 given intramuscularly between 1 and 4 times per week until the levels of vitamin B-12 in the blood become normal, after which a 1 mg injection is given once per month.
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