Vegan moms need to take Vitamin B12 supplements, study suggests

[Guest guest]

Sunday Oct 11, 2009 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new case report suggests that vegan

mothers who breastfeed their babies should take some vitamin B12 supplements.

 

The report, published in the Sept. 10 issue of Archives of Pediatrics, involved

a 10-month old baby who was found to be vitamin B deficient with pervasive

developmental disorders and hematocytopenia, abnormally low red blood cell

count.

 

A. Mariani and colleagues, from Centre Hospitalo-Universitaire

Arnaud-de-Villeneuve in France, authors of the report, also found that the

infant suffered vitamin K and vitamin D deficiencies.

 

The same vitamin deficiencies were also found in the mother, according to the

authors.

 

By using vitamin supplementation, the deficiencies were corrected and the

biological disorders were normalized. The infant also gained weight and showed

improvement in neurological symptoms.

 

Vegans do not eat any animal-based foods while vitamin B12 can only be found in

such foods. Vegans are at high risk for vitamin B12 deficiency, said the

researchers, which affects a series of biological functions.

 

Mariani and colleagues say in their article that " a vegan diet during pregnancy

followed by exclusive breast-feeding can induce nutritional deficiencies in the

newborn with clinical consequences. "

 

While vegans are at risk of vitamin B12 deficiency, they are not at risk for

deficiency of other nutrients if they use a balanced diet. According to Dr. T.

Collin Campbell, a nutritionist at Cornell University, a vegan diet excluding

animal-based foods can provide a whole spectrum of nutrients for the body's

needs.

 

He says in his book China Study that plant-based foods actually provide more

nutrients than animal-based foods, such as minerals, essential fatty acids and

other nutrients.

 

Vitamin B12 deficiency, which is more commonly found in elderly people, can be

caused by a number of health conditions including an autoimmune condition known

as pernicious anemia, food-bound vitamin 12 malabsorption, and atrophic

gastritis, among others.

 

There are some signs that can indicate a vitamin B12 deficiency. Those symptoms

include megaloblastic anemia, neurological symptoms such as numbness and

tingling of the arms and the legs, difficult walking, memory loss,

disorientation and dementia and gastrointestinal symptoms such as tongue

soreness, appetite loss and constipation.

 

The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin B12 is 0.4 mcg per day for

infants ages 0-6 months, 0.5 for infant ages 7 to 12 months, 0.9 for children

ages 1 to 3 years, 1.2 for chilren ages 4 to 8 years, 1.8 for children ages 9 to

13, 2.4 for adolescents and adults ages 14 or older. The RDA is 2.6 mcg per day

for pregnant women and 2.8 for breast-feeding women at all ages.

 

Foods high in vitamin B12 include clams, mussels, crab, salmon, rock-fish, beef,

chicken, turkey, eggs, milk and brie cheese in descending order. Clams have 84

mcg of vitamin B12 per 3 ounces while milk contains only 0.9 mcg of this

nutrient per 8 ounces.

 

The principal form of vitamin B12 used in nutrition supplements in multivitamin,

prenatal vitamin, vitamin B-complex and vitamin B12 supplements is

cyanocobalamin.

 

Infants who are exclusively breastfed and did not receive vitamin D supplements

are at high risk of vitamin d deficiency particularly if they have dark skin or

receive little exposure to sun. The consequences of this nutrition deficiency is

impaired brain development as recent studies have discovered. The American

Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all infants should be given a vitamin d

supplement of 400 IU per day.

 

Foods high in vitamin D are only a few including fatty fish and eggs. Sun

exposure is the major source of this vitamin for many people while vitamin D

supplements are for everyone's needs.

 

Vitamin K deficiency can occur in infants such as newborn babies who are

exclusively breast-fed because human milk is relatively low in vitamin K.

 

Foods high in vitamin K include kale, collard greens, spinach, turnip greens,

beet greens, mustard greens, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, onions, dandelion

greens and others in descending order.

 

By David Liu davidl at foodconsumer dot org and edited by Sheilah Downey

sheilahd at foodconsumer dot org