RE: A question about health/veganism

[Guest guest]

Mickey,

 

> I've recently become pretty sick with fevers, nightsweats and chills and

lethargy, and quite a few people are choosing to tell me that it may be that

i'm deficient in " something " or that i may just be one of those people who's

bodily constitutions just need flesh (eek!).

 

As Kasie seems to be saying, your problems probably do not have anything to

do with your diet.

 

Lethargy is a complaint some people have on a vegan diet, and that can be

due to B12 or iron deficiency (or many other nutrients), but your other

symptoms do not generally sound like they would be diet-linked. As Kasie

suggests, you should go to a doctor to find out what is wrong.

 

Kasie said:

 

> Some

> vegans do require supplementation with sublingual vitamin B-12, but that

has

> not been the case with me or with that boy (above) - but it is the case

for

> my sister in-law who has been vegan for years.

 

Being vegan would only require someone to take sublingual B12 if they went

long periods of time without a reliable B12 source and then needed to

replenish their stores. Such a person would not need to take sublingual B12

permanently if they then started to get a daily, reliable source of B12.

Anyone who is permanently dependent on sublingual B12 has a B12 absorption

problem. There is a very slim chance that a vegan diet would cause such a

problem on a permanent basis.

 

However, all vegans should get a daily source of vitamin B12 in order to

keep their homocysteine levels in the healthy range. I have just finished

putting my epic article about B12 into html, and some list members might be

interested in the page on homocysteine and vegetarians:

 

http://www.veganhealth.org/b12/hcy

 

Jack Norris, RD, Vegan Outreach

916/375-0014

jacknorris

http://veganoutreach.org