Vit B12 and Mortality

Written By maria gibson

Excess of Vit B12 increases mortality

 More than half of Americans take dietary supplements hoping to improve their health and wellbeing,  manage illness, increase energy, improve mental wellness lose weight and the most concerning to substitute for costly or unavailable medical care.  Vitamin B12 is a nutrient that helps keep the body’s nerve and blood cells healthy and is one of the commonly used dietary supplements, especially by older people.  Vitamin B12 also helps prevent megaloblastic anemia that makes people tired and weak. Vit B 12 is one of those supplements that people take frequently without physicians’ recommendations and safety concerns. 

Recently published Netherland study of  5571 participants with mean age, 53.5 years old came up with a serious concern about the negative impact of excessive Vit B12 intake. Researches found a significant association between higher vitamin B 12 plasma concentration level and increased risk of all-cause mortality after adjusting for age, sex, renal function, and other clinical and laboratory variables. The mechanisms underlying this association remain to be established.

 Taking too high doses of dietary supplements, especially in conjunction with its content in food might be risky. For several vitamins and minerals, a U-shaped relationship between supplement dosing and mortality has been observed, indicative of substantial toxicity with high-dose supplementation. This is a reliable source for  all my patients to look up the doses and effects, including potential adverse effects of vitamins and other dietary supplements https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/list-all/

These results send a powerful message of caution to all of us about discussing all supplements with your physician. 

 Key resources: 

  • Kantor ED, Rehm CD, Du M, White E, Giovannucci EL. Trends in Dietary Supplement Use Among US Adults From 1999-2012. JAMA 316(14):1464-1474. 11 Oct, 2016.

  • Bailey RL, Gahche JJ, Miller PE, Thomas PR, Dwyer JT. Why US adults use dietary supplements. JAMA Intern Med. 2013;173(5):355–361.

  • Evidence for a U-Shaped Relationship Between Prehospital Vitamin D Status and Mortality: A Cohort Study. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3973775/

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