Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) is a micronutrient essential for red blood cell formation, cell metabolism and nerve function. It is a B vitamin found naturally in meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk and other dairy products. Vitamin B12 is generally not found in plant foods, but is found in fortified grains and some yeast products.
According to the European Food Safety Authority, the recommended adequate intake of vitamin B12 for adults is 4.0 µg per day, with an increased requirement during pregnancy and lactation.
If left untreated, vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to anemia, fatigue, muscle weakness, intestinal problems, nerve damage and mood disorders.
Vitamin B12 deficiency
Currently, the diagnosis of vitamin B12 deficiency is limited by the low precision of the available indicators and the scarce consensus on its definition. For this reason, this European research team wanted to summarize the evidence on the connection between vitamin B12 intake from various foods of animal origin and markers of vitamin B12 status.
The current recommendation aims to reduce the consumption of foods of animal origin and increase the consumption of foods of plant origin, but there is concern about the risk of vitamin B12 deficiency with deficient diets or diets without animal products.
After analyzing selected studies that reported the association between vitamin B12 and health outcomes, this review showed that total vitamin B12 intake between 4 and 7 μg / d was associated with normal vitamin B12 in plasma and, therefore, for the maintenance of a good value of vitamin B12 appears sufficient state of B12 in adults. Now they know that when people have difficulty chewing food, breaking the vitamin from its bond with food and ingesting it, that amount may not be sufficient. Vitamin B12 deficiency is common in the elderly.
When looking at certain foods of animal origin, consumption of dairy products appears to make the greatest contribution to vitamin B12 concentration, more so than meat, fish and eggs. However, the nutritional composition of various dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese), meat (chicken, pork, beef) and fish (lean vs. fat) changes the bioavailability of vitamin B12 in these foods.
On the other hand, the possible interactions between vitamin B12 and other nutrients in these animal products are unclear. Therefore, nutrient density or known interactions such as folic acid and vitamin B12 should also be taken into account when examining the relationships between intake and health.
