Healthy Food Choices for Vitamin B12

Vitamin B-12 is an important nutrient valuable by promoting proper brain and nervous system functioning and for being used in the formation of blood. Try these tips for buying foods rich in vitamin B-12 in this healthy shopping video.

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Important in metabolizing proteins & fatty acids
Found only in animal products
Vegans need supplements

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Michelle Cooper has been a registered dietician for more than 10 years. She currently works for the state of North Carolina for the New Hanover County School District in the Child Nutrition Department as the supervising registered dietician on staff. She specializes in child nutrition, child fitness and overall child health. She enjoys her job because it allows her to be a pivotal piece of child development.

MICHELLE COOPER: Next, we're going to talk about vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 or cobalamin is important for the production of red blood cells. It also is important in the metabolism of fatty acids and proteins. Vitamin B12 is mostly found in meats or animal products. It's especially high in food like liver. You won't find vitamin B12 in any kind of plant products; therefore, vegans are at particular risk for vitamin B12 deficiency. What you may see if you have a deficiency in vitamin B12, first of all, is a certain type of anemia. Some other symptoms are memory loss or sore and tingling muscles or nerve condition. So remember, vitamin B12 is abundant in animal foods; however, if you're a vegan, you many need to supplement because you're not going to find it in any plant products and it can lead to certain types of anemias and other conditions.

Healthy Food Choices for Vitamin B12 Video

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