B12 question

[LeakyPipes]

Hello all,

My GP has been doing some bloods for me, and one of the things she's checking is my B12 levels. In October Serum was 231 ng/L and Serum folate was 5.0 ng/L. (Back in 2016 when this was last measured my Serum folate was 9.5 and Serum was 375, so they seem to have dropped.) As far as I can tell these are now borderline.

As a result of blood test results from October the GP has started me on Levothyroxine (very low starting dose) and also on HRT gel (very low starting dose).

I've been very woolly-headed for quite some time now, having previously been pretty sharp, and also tired and more grumpy than usual. I've also noticed that my eyesight has deteriorated in the last 12 months or so. Whereas I used to be able to read text on the television (and read it out to my sister, who can't) I now can't read it either, and things are looking blurry. It didn't occur to me to mention that to my GP when I first saw her as I assumed it was just age associated (I'm 61), but since then I've read that low B12 can be associated with blurry vision.

I'm seeing the GP the week after next, following a new set of blood tests next week. I'll speak to her about this, but would it be worth me starting on a B12 supplement now? I read that B12-related vision loss can to some extent be reversed if it's spotted soon enough.

Any advice gratefully received. I'm not a particularly anxious person in health terms, but vision is precious.

Anyone?

You can get b12 tablets otc in the meantime before you see a GP.
Have you been to the opticians about your sight?

Has vitamin D been checked & ferritin? Hypothyroidism seems to go hand in hand with a lot of deficiencies. The optician would be the first person to discuss you vision change with tbh. I’m betting the Dr will tell you your b12 is ‘normal’. The range is set a lot lower in the U.K. than other countries though.
Are you vegetarian?

We all have vitamin D deficiencies in the U.K. especially over winter as the sun is too weak. Defo start vitamin d3 supplements.

I bought b12 tablets before and they were £7. Which I thought was quite dear. But so are prescriptions if you pay for those…

id buy them both and start now. You shouldn’t be able to overdose on them as you can get injections that last 12 weeks so even if your levels are ok the additional supplement shouldn’t push you into danger territory after a couple of weeks even if you don’t need it.

The jags cost £25 where I am. I wouldn’t get that without knowing I needed it though. It’s called something like cyancobalin

It comes from cyanide apparently so id not mess with it in jag form!!

Would agree vitamin d should also be checked.

I started supplementing b12, you need to do a bit of research instead of just picking up any old thing, ideally methylcobalamin.
I was in a pretty bad way around 2012 with hearing sight and balance issues and other things too. I don't know which one sorted it but I could soon hear, see clearly and stay upright after I started taking them.

There's a problem with starting supplements before your blood tests as any taken will skew your results. Wait at least until your bloods have been taken. After bloods are taken I would take supplements even if your results are 'within range'. Ranges are based on averages rather than optimal amounts.

I have hypothyroidism too.

If you are wanting advice from many fellow sufferers and experts, I can strongly recommend the Health Unlocked site for Thyroid UK.

The information and advice on medications, vitamins and blood tests is excellent and they really helped me in the early stages of diagnosis.

@LeakyPipes have you managed to get any further with this? Was you on supplements or multivitamins when you had those bloods taken as that can show false high results.

I suffer with B12 deficiency and have had blurred vision for the past 4/5 years now. I think this is down to the fact that I was being undertreated as I had many other symptoms I would continuously complain about. Now I am self injecting most of my symptoms have started to go away.

Hi there, and thanks for asking.

In fact when I went back in December for my new bloods they didn't run the B12 test again :-( I didn't realise that at the GP appointment. She didn't point it out, although she'd focussed heavily on it at our October appointment. I only realised afterwards when I went through my results carefully on the app. Bleeping heck...

Anyway, I started taking a B12 supplement afterwards which I now take daily. I'm having new bloods at the end of March (thyroid related) and I'm going to see whether the GP (a different one) will ask the lab to run the B12 as well.

It's very concerning that you've got blurred vision due to this. It's hard for me to know what my issue is as I'm now 62 and so naturally my eyesight is suffering some age-related degeneration. For me it could just be that.

@LeakyPipes thanks for coming back to me on this. Sorry to hear this happened to you. Yes certainly ask for it woth this gp and even ask the nurse to check what bloods they are taking when you go.

I would suggest that if you want a true measure of your b12 it would be wise to stop the supplements until after the blood test. If you cant absorb b12 it could show as elevated in your blood because the supplements with show as a false high. Alot of GPs dont know to test this but if you have a good one try ask for "active b12" as this shows only what the body has absorbed. The general test they tend to use is "serum b12" this picks up the active and inactive b12 which isnt helpful.

how have you felt since taking the b12 any better..?

Is your eye sight still blurry..? Any other symptoms.? I don't know if putting it down to age is the answer might just be worth investigating. I would certainly be chasing the doctors on that or the opticians.?

No point in getting tested whilst you're taking supplements. Thyroid can affect eyesight too.