9 Key Reasons Why You Need Vitamin B12 Today
If you’re feeling sluggish, depressed, or just aren’t feeling as sharp as you once did, then you may be suffering from a common nutrient deficiency.
Did you know, Vitamin B12 is a powerhouse nutrient for boosting energy, improving mood, and protecting your brain health? And the benefits don’t stop there.
Here are 9 key reasons why Vitamin B12 needs to be part of your diet starting today:
Boosts Energy
Vitamin B12 boosts energy by helping your body absorb folic acid, which helps convert food into fuel. Vitamin B12 also helps metabolize fatty acids and amino acids that your body needs for optimal health.
Makes New Red Blood Cells
Vitamin B12 promotes healthy production of red blood cells. When Vitamin B12 levels are low, red blood cells can’t multiply. Signs of a low red blood cell count include fatigue, headache, pale skin, and dizziness.
Protects Brain Health
Vitamin B12 protects brain health by protecting and repairing myelin. As a fatty white substance that surrounds nerve cells in your brain, myelin (a.k.a. the myelin sheath) transmits impulses along nerve cells that control bodily functions, including movement and vision.
Protects Against Birth Defects
Vitamin B12 protects unborn children from the risk of neural tube defects. So pregnant women should seriously consider supplementing their diet with Vitamin B12. As a key nutrient for growth and development, Vitamin B12 is also important for growing kids. According to research, Vitamin B12 has been shown to significantly improve the height and weight of malnourished children.
Defends Against Dementia
Vitamin B12 protects against dementia and other cognitive deficits. In studies published by the Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neurology, 19 elderly people with mild to severe cognitive impairment were diagnosed with low Vitamin B12 levels. After supplementing with B12, over 50% of subjects with dementia showed signs of improvement.
Keeps Your Heart Healthy
Vitamin B12 helps protect you from heart attack and stroke by helping remove homocysteine from your blood. As an amino acid that comes from eating red meat, homocysteine can lead to inflammation of your arteries, which can lead to atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), coronary heart disease and other cardiovascular dangers.
Fights Osteoporosis
While women are roughly 4 times more likely than men to suffer osteoporosis (or, weak, porous bones), Vitamin B12 protects both sexes against the risk. In studies published by the Journal of Bone and Mineral Health, scientists measured the bone health of 2,576 men and women ages 30-87. They found that people with low Vitamin B12 levels were at a greater risk of osteoporosis than those with higher B12 levels.
Improves Mood
Vitamin B12 boosts your mood—and outlook on life—by boosting production of the brain chemical serotonin (the “feel-good” chemical). According to findings published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, low levels of Vitamin B12 are linked to depression.
Keeps You Looking Young
Vitamin B12 helps fight aging by supporting the production of healthy new DNA. As your body ages, your ability to repair DNA damage naturally declines, which causes cells to die and a general physical decline. Vitamin B12 helps fight aging by helping your body produce new DNA.
Vitamin B12 is only found in animal-based foods like fish, meat, and dairy products.
Great natural sources of Vitamin B12 include beef, chicken, lamb, haddock, tuna, halibut, milk, cheese, yogurt and some nutritional yeasts.
If eating meat is not part of your diet, a daily Vitamin B12 supplement is a simple way to get the nutrients your body needs. A daily supplement is especially important for vegans and vegetarians who want to avoid weakness, nerve problems, pernicious anemia, and other symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency.
Wishing you good health through wise nutrition,