A deficiency of vitamin B12 could really mess with your heart health


Photo credit: Vladimir Mironov - Getty Images
Photo credit: Vladimir Mironov – Getty Images

Of prevention

  • According to a recent to study in the magazine Nutrients, a deficiency of vitamin B12 can cause your cholesterol and triglyceride levels to go up.

  • Vitamin B12 is important for maintaining energy and endurance levels. To make sure you get enough (2.4 micrograms per day), add animal products such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy to your diet.

Could a vitamin deficiency affect your risk factor for cardiovascular disease? That’s some recent study in the journal Nutrients suggereart. The study found a relationship between your vitamin B12 levels and your lipid profiles, which is a panel of blood tests that include your cholesterol and triglyceride (types of fat in your blood).

Researchers looked at 341 healthy women aged 19 to 30 years and collected data on their diet, physical activity, and vitamin levels. They found that low levels of vitamin B12 were associated with higher levels of total cholesterol, LDL (bad) cholesterol, and triglycerides – even after adjusting for the effects that body mass index, abdominal fat, and total body fat percentage have on the body. .

The reason for this is important, said Liz Weinandy, RD, a staff dietitian at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, who was not involved in the study. She told Cycling that for men and women, lower B12 levels may be related to higher levels of an amino acid called homocysteine ​​in the blood, which is seen as a marker for early development of heart disease because it can damage arteries and veins – including those around the heart. (Research published last year shows that people over 60 years of age who receive 20 minutes of moderate to intense exercise daily have a significantly lower chance of developing cardiovascular disease.)

For specific cyclists, it is important to get enough of the vitamin as it can affect your energy and endurance level. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) for vitamin B12 in most healthy adults is 2.4 micrograms (mcg) per day, but pregnant women need a little more, 2.6 mcg.

“Most people easily meet this amount when they eat animal products such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy foods,” Weinandy said. She added that people who may not be getting enough are vegans, vegetarians, people with GI diseases (because they may have malabsorption problems), and people on certain medications (including metformin for high blood sugar and acid-suppressing medications). for reflux disease).

Even if you have problems with high cholesterol and triglycerides, Weinandy does not recommend running for a B12 supplement until you have your vitamin levels checked by a doctor to determine if you actually have a deficiency. In the meantime, she suggested that a better first step would be the production section. Additionally, adding some nutritional yeast to your diet is an easy way to get more of the vitamin.

“If a person has hair disease or is worried about it occurring, they should look at their total food intake, including not only B12, but also how much healthy and unhealthy fat they consume,” she said. “We know that people who eat more fruits and vegetables also have a lower risk of heart disease, so things like this should be the focus – not one nutrient.”

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