- There is no direct evidence that vitamin B12 reduces zinc levels.
- Both vitamin B12 and zinc are essential nutrients that are crucial for maintaining healthy bodies and promoting optimal performance.
- The main causes of vitamin B12 deficiency include poor absorption from food, pernicious anemia, and poor diets.
- Zinc deficiency is mainly caused by a poor diet.
There is no direct evidence that vitamin B12 reduces zinc levels.
In fact, they may be prescribed together and are often found in the same dietary supplements.
Vitamin and mineral supplements, often called multivitamins, are taken to maintain good health and foster normal growth.
Scientific evidence has strongly established the benefits of dietary supplements containing vitamins and minerals, and the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements has the recommended daily values on its website.
Both vitamin B12 and zinc are essential nutrients that are crucial for maintaining healthy bodies and promoting optimal performance.
Supplements aside, no healthy lifestyle is complete without a regular exercise routine. Go PRO today for access to certified personal trainers, workout plans, and more.
What Is Vitamin B12?
Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin which is vital for the regular functioning of your brain and nervous system as well as the formation of red blood cells. It is also a critical part of the metabolic process of every cell within the body.
Vitamin B12 is vital for DNA synthesis, fatty acid synthesis, and energy production. Structurally, vitamin B12 is the most complex of all vitamins.
Vitamin B12 cannot be independently generated by plants or animals. Only bacteria contain selected enzymes that are required for its natural synthesis.
One of eight B vitamins, vitamin B12, is also called Cobalamin. You can find vitamin B12 in a variety of foods: meats, shellfish, eggs, poultry, dairy products, and seaweed.
What Is Zinc?
Zinc, or spelter, is a trace element that should be an integral part of a balanced diet. It protects nerve and brain tissue and is centrally involved in the normal functioning of your immune system.
Zinc is a fundamental nutrient that supports good prostate and reproductive health. It helps maintain your sense of smell, builds proteins, triggers enzymes, produces antibodies and acts as neurotransmitters for the cells of your body.
Zinc can be found in most over-the-counter vitamin and mineral supplements. Its various versions such as zinc oxide and zinc acetate have antioxidant properties.
Zinc is also used topically to prevent sunburn, windburn, diaper rash, and halitosis.
You will find zinc in oysters, meats, eggs, whole grains, nuts, sesame seeds, dark chocolate, and cocoa powder. Much like vitamin B12, zinc sources are harder to find if you are a vegetarian or a vegan.
Get More Out of Your Health and Fitness Routine. Go PRO!
Sign UpWhat Are the Causes and Symptoms of Vitamin B12 Deficiency?
The main causes of vitamin B12 deficiency include poor absorption from food, pernicious anemia, and poor diets. The effects of vitamin B12 deficiency can be severe and irreversible, especially on the brain and nervous system.
Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause many symptoms. These include the following:
- Tinnitus or ringing in the ears
- Depression
- Continuous fatigue
- Poor memory
- Mania and psychosis
What Are the Causes and Symptoms of Zinc Deficiency?
Zinc deficiency is mainly caused by a poor diet. Since it is largely absorbed from food, vegetarians, the malnourished, and the elderly are at risk of low zinc levels.
Also known as hypozincemia, zinc deficiency may be caused by diarrhea, diabetes, sickle cell disease, and alcoholism, as well as chronic liver and kidney disease.
Given the central role of zinc in your body’s function, its deficiency may strongly impact your immune system, cell reproduction, and reproductive processes like conception and fertility.
Zinc deficiency is manifested through a variety of symptoms. Some of those symptoms are:
- Hair loss
- Delayed sexual maturation
- Underdevelopment of sex organs
- Poor immune system
- Loss of taste
- Night blindness
- Poor wound healing
How Can You Prevent Vitamin B12 and Zinc Deficiencies?
The best way to counter nutritional deficiencies is to eat a healthy, nutrient-rich, balanced diet. But the average diet does not always provide the U.S. Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA).
If you are facing dietary challenges, you can easily remedy such nutrition gaps by using well-chosen supplements or multivitamins. In all likelihood, you will not need vitamin B12 supplements unless you are a vegetarian, are elderly, or suffer from malabsorption.
As for zinc, moderate intake of the nutrient, approximately 15 mg a day, is adequate to prevent deficiencies. Higher levels, up to 50 mg taken three times a day, are prescribed for people with certain health conditions. Such dosages should only be taken under medical supervision.
If you are unsure about potential side effects, interactions, or allergic reactions, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before starting a supplement regimen. Multivitamins are regularly taken to maintain a healthy lifestyle and for mental well being.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
– Do I have to take supplements?
Unless your doctor has instructed you to take certain supplements, you do not have to take them.
– Are supplements safe?
Whether or not dietary supplements are safe to take depends on a number of factors. Learn more about the safety of supplements here.
– What supplements do I need to take?
No one can answer that aside from your doctor. To learn more about the various supplements that doctors commonly recommend, check out this article.
It is important to pair your supplement regimen with a regular exercise routine. Sign up for an Exercise.com PRO plan today for access to training logs, workout plans, and more.