Vitamin B12 plays a key role in the health of your nerves and your blood. Vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to nerve damage or result in a type of anemia known as pernicious anemia. Disease, illness and age can all inhibit your body's ability to absorb B12 from food. When this happens, you'll need B12 supplements to supply the required amounts. One treatment for pernicious anemia involves taking large doses of B12 supplements, under a doctor's supervision.
Pernicious Anemia
The name pernicious anemia refers to the failure of this type of anemia to respond to iron supplementation. Unlike iron-deficient anemia, this blood disorder occurs when your body doesn't absorb enough B12. Ordinarily, your body uses a substance known as the intrinsic factor to process B12. When your body doesn't make enough of this intrinsic factor, you can't process B12 from food, so you'll need to get the vitamin some other way.
B12 Supplements
Though B12 is very important for your health, you don't need large quantities of the vitamin. The Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine has determined that adults need only 2.4 mcg of B12 daily. A multi-vitamin that contains B12 or a B-complex vitamin should provide plenty for most people, including those who have trouble obtaining B12 from food. Some doctors prefer to use a B12 supplement in liquid or gel forms for better absorption. B12 injections are another option, especially for people with pernicious anemia.
Megadoses
The Linus Pauling Institute at the University of Oregon reports that no toxic effects have been noted in patients taking high doses of B12. For pernicious anemia, doctors may prescribe as much as 1000 mcg daily orally, or 1 mg per month by injection. Your body will only process so much B12 at one time from oral supplements. The excess your body can't use will be flushed in urine. B12 is a water-soluble, not a fat-soluble, vitamin, so it doesn't build up in the body.
Need for Supplementation
Though megadoses of B12 are used only for people with pernicious anemia, the Food and Drug Administration suggests other people consider taking a B12 supplement. People over 50 produce less stomach acid, with makes it more difficult for them to absorb B12 from food. Supplements don't require stomach acid to work, so they're a good way to supply B12 to those who can't get it in their diet. If you're taking a class of drug called a proton-pump inhibitor, such as omeprazole, usually prescribed for gastric reflux, you may also need B12, since these drugs reduce the production of stomach acid. Diabetics who take Metformin, a medication for type-2 diabetes, or bile acid reducers for high cholesterol may also benefit from B12 supplements.
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