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Health Tip: Understanding Vitamin B12


(HealthDay News) -- Vitamin B12 helps keep the body's nerve and blood cells healthy, and assists in making DNA, the U.S. National Institutes of Health says.

The agency provides this additional information:

  • Vitamin B12 is naturally found in a wide range of animal foods and is added to some fortified foods.
  • B12 is a component of almost all multivitamins. A prescription form of B12 is available for those with a deficiency.
  • Most people get enough B12 in the foods that they eat. About 1.5 percent to 15 percent of people are deficient, typically because they have trouble absorbing it.
  • If you do not get enough B12, it can cause fatigue, weakness, weight loss, numbness of the hands and feet, problems with balance, confusion, poor memory and soreness.
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