how do vegans get vitamin b12?

Felicitas Phildor: I would suggest doing a search of this question because it has been answered well by many, many others in the past.A lot of vegans go for B-12 in nutritional yeast, fortified foods (like soy milk), or supplements.

Sabra Roers: Are you taking a "high dosage"? Two VEGAN registered dietitians recommed supplementing with B12.From thevaganRD: "All vegans:Vitamin B12. You can’t get enough by eating unwashed organic produce or mushrooms grown in B12-rich soil. The recommended dose is 25 to 100 micrograms per day or 1,000 micrograms 2-3 times per week. If you have not been taking B12 for a while, start out with 2,000 micrograms daily for several weeks. Or get a blood test to see where you are and whether you might need a more therapeutic dose."From VeganHealth: "RecommendationsStep 1If you have a regular source of B12, skip to Step 2. If you have not had a regular source of B12 for some time, buy a bottle of 1,000 µg (or greater) B12 tablets.Place 2,00! 0 µg under your tongue until the tablet(s) has dissolved, once a day, for 2 weeks. You can break the remaining tablets in half or quarters for Step #2. It's okay to take more than recommended. Then follow the advice under Step #2:More at the link: http://www.veganhealth.org/b12/rec If you continue to eat eggs and dairy products on a regular basis and consume foods fortified with B12, you may not need a supplement. Are you willing to chance it?BTW, not all nutritional yeast contains B12. The last I read, only two brands were fortified with B12. So if you're going to depend on it for your B12, read the label....Show more

Queenie Ruthers: It means:a. You're ignorant of nutrition, given that a single glass of fortified soy milk a week provides VEGANS with all the B12 they need, let alone vegetarians, who still consume eggs and dairyb. "Prolonged use of high dosages" doesn't exactly-apply to taking one supplemental pill...Show more

Gregory Dilg: Blackmores Vitamin ! B

Eldridge Rieves: no calcuim?

Doreatha Kjellsen: ! Supplements or RedStar nutritional yeast. You can usually find fortified oatmeal, drinks, etcetera. I take B12 in multivitamin form.

Arlene Maycumber: Vitamin B12 is naturally found only in animal foods.....Indian, Italian, French...makes no difference. So any food that contains eggs, dairy or meat contains B12. Otherwise, it either lacks B12 or has had manufactured B12 added.

German Thal: Blackmores B12

Bo Perham: First off, depending on how long you have been a vegan, your body probably has a lot of B12 stored up. Your body does a good job of recycling B12 and if you've been eating meat, eggs, and/or cow milk before you became a vegan, your body has a lot stored up. You're not about to become deficient in the next month, or even the next year. It would take years of not having any exposure to B12. In addition, very few people get B12 deficiencies and when they do, it's typically due to parasites or other health issues (anemia), not due to a vegan ! diet.That being said, B12 is typically consumed by vegans in fortified foods. Nutritional yeast, plant milks, cereals, drinks, etc. may be fortified with B12, just check the label.In a pinch you could take a vitamin/supplement, though I prefer to get my nutrients from foods rather than pills. In addition to that, you only need micrograms a day, which is a very small amount, much smaller than what a typically B12 supplement will contain.Hope that helps!...Show more

Shaun Rapkowicz: Yahoo is for questions unanswerable by Google. I looked this up and found out that B12 is formed from bacteria. The reason that meat has so much B12 is because it is so filthy (it comes from inside an animal) You can get B12 easiest from supplements but it is also found in a lot of fake meats.

Sheree Hipwell: I recently have became vegan i eat vegetables,fruits ,bean and take vitamin b12 and b6 and vitamin d but my face looks pale and I feel weaker and I have ulsers in my mouth ple! ase help

Rona Espalin: I get mine from my soy milk, and a supplem! ent.I also take a multi-vitamin, which I believe any individual (meat-eater or vegan) should take to keep themselves healthy.

Daren Ventrice: Vitamin B12 should not be taken in isolation and should be accompanied by Vitamin B6 and Folic acid as they enhance each other and provide a more balanced solution.Taking oral vitamin B12 does not allow for adequate absorption as the vitamin B12 is broken down by the gastric juices.Taking a sublingual B12 solves this problem as the vitamins are absorbed through the oral cavity and enter the blood stream directly.Trivita have the only formulation that adheres to the patented technology of Dr Libby.Please check http://www.sublingual-b12.com.au for more information....Show more

Bell Pasco: You need to give an example of your daily diet. I have no idea if you are eating enough at all. Mouth ulcers can be caused by many things. It could be a lack of folic acid. It could be your toothpaste. What do you eat each day(and how ! much), and how long have you been a vegan?...Show more

Long Woltjer: I am a vegetarian, and I've been looking up good vitamin b12 supplements to buy. I found a good one by Blackmores, but it mentioned "Prolonged use of high dosages of individual B group vitamins should be accompanied by a Balanced B Complex supplement.".What exactly does this mean? I avoid fake meats, and just eat a load of fruit, veggies, grains and pulses daily. So I am reluctant to take any other supplement as I feel I will be getting enough from my food....Show more

Lillie Yarde: Mouth ulcers (canker sores) are a sign of nutrient deficiency. It's not because you're vegan, but because you're not getting enough nutrition. You need to share your exact daily diet (try emailing me, my email's on my profile) if you want some real help.

Letitia Bigelow: I bought hemp milk last night and was excited to see that it's organic and has B12. It was Tempt Brand.

Basil Blasingame: yogurt and da! iry

Jeannine Vassie: When I was reading up on B12 a while ago, I ! read that high amounts of Folate (B9) have been shown to mask the symptoms of B12 deficiency while still allowing one to suffer the damage of a serious deficiency [ie. the scary stuff] *Perhaps (and I'm speculating here) a similar masking effect could occur if one had high B12 intake but was deficient in other B vitamins?Of course, it could just be that the B vitamins kind of work together.. (and also possibly that Blackmores being a vitamin company wouldn't mind selling you more products, especially as excess B vitamins tend to be passed in urine meaning the advice isn't likely to hurt you)Though, I imagine you'd not have to worry about any other vitamins other then B12 if you're eating well, as you're likely getting all you need from you're diet ;)...Show more

Jene Licausi: Vegetable Uppuma + curd= all vitamins.

Rosalva Steinmann: Vitamins and minerals can compliment or contradict one another. That is is why they say if you choose to take a continual dosage o! f one vitamin, that you should compliment it with the same group.For example, a person might be deficient in calcium so they start taking that. BUT calcium itself could actually clash with other vitamins and minerals you are eating through food causing malabsorption of the other ones. Different types "activate" the usage of others - For example, Vitamin D helps calcium be absorbed into the body. On the other hand too much magnesium can deplete calcium stores. With B12 on the other hand, different vitamins and minerals can "compete" with it. You have to make sure you are getting the right amounts, and if your levels become too high it can cause a deficiency with other groups. This is why they say it is better to take a complex B supplement if you want to prolong use with 12 itself.I would highly recommend seeing your Doctor if you have any questions. They can measure your B12 levels and tell you if you need it or not. You could try in the meantime for a B12 supplement throug! h the food that you eat. Nutritional yeast is a perfect food based supp! for B12 for vegans and vegetarians, but is light sensitive - So it is best bought in a container or package that hasn't been exposed to light. It contains 100% of your daily needs and also has other B group vitamins with it. You can use it to make fake cheese sauces or sprinkle it over pizza....Show more

Asa Soho: Hi Joe. Are you a female Joe, or male Joe? If you're a female, I suspect you haven't added lots of greens and other high iron foods to your diet and that you're not eating much food, thus have developed an iron deficiency. When girls of age bleed monthly with their period, they lose iron. Low iron is common with girls for that reason, even meat eaters, and if you're not eating enough iron-rich food, that can happen. It can happen for males too, but not as frequently because they don't bleed regularly. My nephew was iron deficient, and eats loads of meat. How long ago is "recently?" All three of those symptoms can occur with iron deficiency. Iron! in plants is nonheme, and that means you need to eat more of it because it digests differently. There's no way for me to assess how much iron is in your diet, because I have no clue what you eat. You should see a doctor to make sure there's nothing going on that's unrelated to diet, or to see if it is the iron. They'll just tell you to take some iron for several weeks. If you have very recently gone vegan and switched toothpaste, that could have caused problems in your mouth. But that wouldn't account for the way you feel. You are right to take B12, and vitamin D (if you're not getting out in the sun). Because of modern agriculture, hygiene, and water treatment, we're not out picking up the few micrograms we need daily. B12 is a product of only microorganisms, and so it ends up in animals because it's digested. Even the diet of cows is supplemented with cobalt to help the bacteria in their guts make B12. Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin. It's not available ma! ny places as a dietary source in the quantity you really would need. ! For people who eat certain types of fish every day, maybe... but then you deal with the other disadvantages of eating that much fish, which you don't eat anyway. The vitamin D in milk is even added artificially too, and there's not a whole lot in there. So your own body when exposed to the sun during times of the year when you get plenty of direct UVB radiation at your latitude is the main source of vitamin D in our bodies. They do something very similar to that process to produce a supplement. B6 you can just get from food. Here's information on iron from the registered dietitian at Vegan Outreach, Jack Norris. http://veganhealth.org/articles/iron...Show more

Alvaro Oare: I take Berocca vitamin every morning, it's got tonnes of vitamins and it gives you lots of energy too

Pearlie Medora: There is B12 in all sprouts.

Jose Calaycay: First of all there are some cereals that don't contain vitamin B12, but many cereal brands that are trademarked bran! ds of large companies like Kellogs and General Mills make cereals that are fortified with vitamin B12. There are not naturally found in the cereal, just like other non-dairy foods like rice milk and soy milk. The commercial brands like Silk sell rice milk and Soy milk that are often fortified with the vitamin B12, too. Vitamin B12 is not found naturally in any plant foods!!! Fortified foods are made with the B12-producing bacteria It's not in seaweed, in barley grass, or human gut bacteria. Get it right!!!...Show more

Ricky Frazer: I was vegan for many years and vegetarian for 16 years. When I started taking my classes to be a Naturopath I realized I was protein deficient. I did not want to eat animals believe me, but I did start eating chicken, fish and more eggs. My energy soared, I gained tons of strength, my eczema cleared up and I felt balanced and better than I had in years. It's very hard to get enough protein, B12 and iron from a vegan diet. Also you should ! not take a B6 vitamin alone, you will unbalance your B vitamins, if you! take B6 you need to take a complex B as well. Everyone is different, some may do well on a vegan diet, although I would say it should only be for short term. I believe a balanced diet is best. See source below.I do not eat red meat, so once a year I take a good amount of iron for 4 months to boost up my reserves for the year, and a liquid B12 for 3 months. Ensure all your vitamins are of the highest quality....Show more

Dallas Bartolini: They make sublingual B12 that is well absorbed, they have it at Trader Joes, probably stores like Whole Foods have it too, they have tons of supplements there! But yeah, try the sublingual (you let it dissolve under your tongue) for a while and see if you can eliminate the shots. If you have gotten really deficient, the shots would probably be a good option for a while, but when the levels are up to normal, you can probably switch back to pills or the sublingual. I personally take the injectable B12 for other deficiency reasons, and ! I prefer it because it's only once a month and I don't have to worry about forgetting. And, this is not a silly or senseless question, and this is a good place to ask, there are alot of vegans in this section that are very smart about what kinds of supplements they need....Show more

Rhett Kaines: I don't know how you ate before and what you ate now, you could've made the transition too quickly (I made the transition SUPER slowly). You would need to see a doctor or nutritionist.

Particia Thorton: By eating artificial sh!t made in a lab.

Stevie Kizziar: B12 is added to a lot of processed foods, regardless of whether or not the food is specifically vegan.This includes energy bars, milk alternatives, cereals, meat alternatives, and sometimes naturally occurring in ocean plants.If you buy any of these products, read the label and I bet you'll find some b12. If not, there are many pure b12 vegan supplements on the market....Show more

Delphine Cajka: Vitami! n b12 is essential for normal functioning of brain and nervous system. ! Of all Vitamin B is vitally required for us to improvise cognitive functions. Vitamins when taken in its purest form has its true impact on our body. For filler free vitamins containing no artificial supplements i would suggest you with Vita4life. For more information, i am sharing a link for you http://vita4life.net/about-us.html

Debora Soliani: IMO, you need to see a doctor or a nutritionist. Cutting animal products out of your diet is a huge shock for your body. Are you eating a LOT of a VARIETY of fruits and veggies? One example: Yes, plants have iron, but it is non-heme iron and your body doesn't use it as well as the heme iron found in meat so you need to eat more iron rich veggies. Are you eating enough calories? You need more information than you can get from an internet chat board to become a healthy vegan....Show more

Malcom Fenoff:

Frederick Mccoach: From fortified foods such as non-dairy milks, breakfast cereals and energy bars (if you eat the! m).I sometimes take a supplement from the vegan society that has (among other things) b12 in it. http://shop.vegansociety.com/product_info.php?cPat...

Mitzie Clough: You can get b12 from revitapops - named best new vegetarian product at expo west recently - http://revitapop.com

Charline Granes: Also green veggies like Saag, Mehti, Palak, and cooked with paneer they double in vitamins and minerals

Craig Virani: This one is great worry-free. The vegan microwave cake x] factors: a million a million/2 cups all-objective flour a million cup sugar a million teaspoon baking soda a million/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder a million/2 teaspoon salt a million cup water a million/2 cup vegetable oil 2 tablespoons white vinegar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract guidelines: combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt in a bowl. combine the relax factors in a separate bowl, then stir into the flour mixture. Microwave on severe for 6 to 7 minutes, rotating a mi! llion/4 turn two times, till a fork comes out clean whilst inserted in ! the corner. enable cool for 10 minutes. Makes 4 servings....Show more