Usually, excess vitamin B12 is removed in the urine. Conditions that can increase B12 level include: Liver disease (such as cirrhosis or hepatitis) Myeloproliferative disorders (for example, polycythemia vera and chronic myelogenous leukemia)
Excess B12 is either stored in the liver, present in the blood without any adverse effects, or excreted. There are no studies investigating the potential clinical effects of high B12 because, in general, there are no known adverse effects caused by elevated B12.
There is no upper limit for vitamin B-12 intake because consuming high levels does not cause problems. However, having naturally high levels of vitamin B-12 in the body may be a cause for concern, as it suggests a severe underlying condition.
What is the relationship between vitamin B12 and stress? The fact is, high levels of stress can deplete your body of B vitamins, which are essential for the nervous and circulatory systems. It can also reduce the absorption of nutrients in your system from the foods you eat and the supplements you take.
Alcohol. Research has suggested that the consumption of alcohol may reduce vitamin B12 levels. An older study indicated that moderate alcohol intake diminished vitamin B12 by 5% among “healthy, well-nourished, postmenopausal women.”
What Abnormal Results Mean. Values of less than 160 pg/mL (118 pmol/L) are a possible sign of a vitamin B12 deficiency. People with this deficiency are likely to have or develop symptoms. Older adults with a vitamin B12 level less than 100 pg/mL (74 pmol/L) may also have symptoms.
Elevated Vitamin B12 Levels in Autoimmune Lymphoproliferative Syndrome Attributable to Elevated Haptocorrin in Lymphocytes.
However, a falsely normal or high value of vitamin B12 in the blood may occur if antibodies interfere with the test. Your homocysteine and methylmalonic acid (MMA) levels. High levels of these substances in your body are a sign of pernicious anemia. For intrinsic factor antibodies and parietal cell antibodies.
In contrast to iron deficiency, the prognostic value of B12 and folic acid was not significant. Increased levels of serum cobalamin are associated with malignancies, autoimmune diseases, and renal and liver failure. It is a marker for liver-cell damage, due to release of the vitamin from damaged liver cells.
Elevated serum B12 levels may also be associated with a functional deficiency of the vitamin. Functional deficiency has been described despite high B12 concentrations and is due to a failure of cellular uptake or intracellular processing, trafficking or utilization.
feeling weak or tired. diarrhoea. a sore or red tongue, sometimes with mouth ulcers. problems with memory, understanding and judgment (cognitive changes)
After exclusion of metformin users, diabetic subjects still had significantly higher serum vitamin B12 levels than NGT and AGT individuals (498±15, 456±6, and 445±8 pmol/L, respectively, P=0.006).
Purpose of the test
Your doctor might order a vitamin B12 test if you show symptoms of anemia or issues with the nervous system like mental changes, weakness, loss of balance or numbness, pain, and tingling in the arms and legs.
A serum vitamin B12 level between 200 pg/mL and 900 pg/mL is considered normal, but a threshold of 300 to 350 pg/mL is recognized as a marker for a desirable status in the elderly. The laboratory diagnosis is usually based on low serum vitamin B12 levels or elevated serum methylmalonic acid and homocysteine levels.
In severe liver disease, liver tissue B12 binding and storage by TC is disrupted and causes B12 to leak out of the liver into the circulation. Eventually liver disease could produce enough severe tissue B12 deficits to cause metabolic dysfunction despite elevated plasma total B12.
In the absence of vitamin B12 supplementation, high levels of vitamin B12 in your bloodstream may be indicative of more serious underlying health issues. These include [10]: Several types of liver diseases (e.g., acute hepatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, and liver cancer)
Elevated levels of serum cobalamin may be a sign of a serious, even life-threatening, disease. Hematologic disorders like chronic myelogeneous leukemia, promyelocytic leukemia, polycythemia vera and also the hypereosinophilic syndrome can result in elevated levels of cobalamin.
High or supraphysiological serum B12 levels without supplementation have been associated with many pathological conditions including renal failure, haematological disorders, cancer, and hepatic or autoimmune diseases. All conditions may show elevated concentrations of B12 transport proteins.
In our own daily practice, we observed spontaneous normalizations of elevated B12 level after the resolution of acute disorders (severe infections, acute inflammatory state due to immune or inflammatory diseases).
Key points about vitamin B12 deficiency anemia
Without enough red blood cells, your tissues and organs don't get enough oxygen. Without enough oxygen, your body can't work as well. Symptoms include weak muscles, numbness, trouble walking, nausea, weight loss, irritability, fatigue, and increased heart rate.
Pernicious anemia is a relatively rare autoimmune disorder that causes diminishment in dietary vitamin B12 (cobalamin) absorption, resulting in B12 deficiency and subsequent megaloblastic anemia. It affects people of all ages worldwide, particularly those over 60.
If a person stops consuming the vitamin, the body's stores of this vitamin usually take about 3 to 5 years to exhaust. People should not take high doses of vitamin B12 as a cure-all, but otherwise the vitamin does not appear to be toxic; consuming excess amounts of B12 is not recommended.
But a normal level of vitamin B12 in your bloodstream is generally between 190 and 950 picograms per milliliter (pg/mL). Between 200 to 300 pg/mL is considered borderline and your doctor may do more testing. Below 200 pg/mL is low and more testing is needed.
B12 supplements are usually safe. For adults, doctors recommend 2.4 micrograms a day. If you take more than what you need, your body passes the rest out through your pee. Still, high doses could have some side effects, like dizziness, headache, anxiety, nausea, and vomiting.