B12

Liz J.
on 12/27/11 2:22 am - Woonsocket, RI

I bought 5000 mcg. sublingual B12. My labs from pre-op say my level is 442. Is one 5000 mcg. sublingual good? Too much? Im clueless,

Is too much B12 toxic?

Heather0115
on 12/27/11 4:48 am - CA

RNY on 04/20/11

I do not know the normal range for B12 levels, but I would imagine that whichever MD ordered the test would alert you to any abnormal results and then would indicate whether you should take additional B12. At 1 month post op your levels should not be low on anything, if you are taking your supplements as directed. It usually takes awhile of neglect before the labs show deficiencies.

Others here have more solid background regarding the supplements and I am sure they will post more accurate responses to your questions.

My B12 are the 5000 mcg size and my levels are fine.

Happy healing.

Heather

Heather in San Diego
HW-255, GW-140 CW-141

poet_kelly
on 12/27/11 5:32 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

Unfortunately doctors often don't alert us to low B12 levels because labs use a low reference range for B12. Labs may list 211-911 as the reference range, meaning that's the average level of people, but not that that's the healthy level. Below 400 you can get permanent nerve damage but docs often don't alert patients until it's below the lab's reference range. Scary, huh?

If her B12 was 442 pre op, she's already deficient. But that's why she's getting the lab results herself, so she can catch these things that docs typically miss.

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

poet_kelly
on 12/27/11 5:29 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

442 is really low for B12. You lab report probably says it's OK but it's not. Below 400, you can end up with nerve damage. As it is, are you tired? Depressed? Forgetful? We want our B12 around 1000 and it can safely be higher than that.

The 5000 mcg sublingual is good. I would take that daily for a month or two, then get your B12 level checked again. You most likely won't need that big a dose forever, just until you get your level up and then you can do that 5000 mcg just a couple times a week.

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

Liz J.
on 12/27/11 6:52 am - Woonsocket, RI

RNY on 12/16/11

Thank you!

Christopher S.
on 12/27/11 7:10 am - Medina, NY

RNY on 01/24/12

I don't know my levels. Did first pre-op blood work 2 months ago and just got scrips for iron and B12 in the mail. Guess I now want to know what those levels were and are now. Thanks for this post.

Christopher

poet_kelly
on 12/27/11 8:15 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

I suggest always asking for a copy of your lab report.

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

lanagirl
on 12/27/11 8:44 am

RNY on 09/12/11

Kelly, I just got a copy of my pre op and 3 month post op labs last week and I was very irritated that I was not told that my iron was already low pre-op so that I could have started taking more iron right after surgery instead of having it drop even more post op. And to top that off, my surgeon only ordered a total iron test instead of a full iron panel which my PCP had to order to see what was truely going on. I don't have a copy of that yet as it just got to the doc's office, but they did call and say my available iron was good, but total iron low. What does that mean? My PCP suggested staying on 60 mg for now because it will slowly go up and if I were to increase it my potassuim would be less absorbed and that was low too. My Vit D was 91 and she wanted me to take a little less of that too so that the potassuim would absorb better. She said my body has to work really hard to absorb iron and D and it was contributing to the low potassuim level. I was taking dry D 5000 iu every other day and she said to go to every 3rd day. My B 12 was 1691 but she said that was OK because B is easily absorbed. What do you think of this plan? Does it make sense to you?

poet_kelly
on 12/27/11 8:49 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

Cutting your D3 back doesn't make sense to me because 91 is a good level but you need to keep it above 80. 5000 IU every other day is a really low dose for a post op but if that's keeping you at 91, then great, but I'd stick with it. I would not cut down.

I'm not aware of having a healthy vitamin D level making it hard to absorb potassium, but I'll look into that more and let you know what I find out. I would maybe ask her what she thinks your D level should be in order to absorb potassium well.

Your B12 is great.

I'm not sure what they mean by "available iron."

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

poet_kelly
on 12/27/11 10:54 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

OK, I checked with Andrea of wlsvitagarten.com. I believe she now has a degree in nutrition and she's also written a book on WLS and labs. Andrea and Michelle from vitalady.com are the two smartest people I know when it comes to vitamins and labs. I have not heard from Michelle yet (sent her an email), but Andrea says it makes no sense to cut back on your D3 because your potassium is low. Having a good D level will NOT prevent you from absorbing potassium. However, cutting back on you D will likely cause you to develop vitamin D deficiency.

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

B12

Our Mission

Follow us

Links

Select Photos

B12