Vitamin b12 and strokes

Vitamin B-12 and strokes:


The Link Between Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Strokes


Brain & Nervous System Stroke Causes & Risk Factors

The Link Between Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Stroke

Vitamin B12 Deficiency Contributes to Stroke Risk


By Heidi Moawad, MD Heidi Moawad, MD, is a neurologist and author of "Careers Beyond Clinical Medicine.


Overview


Vitamin B12 deficiency is one of the surprising factors that contributes to stroke risk. Vitamin B12 is an important nutrient found in several types of food. Nutritional deficiency has long been known to cause health problems, particularly in children and pregnant women. It turns out that not getting enough vitamin B12 can contribute to stroke among people of all ages, and it can lead to an increased risk of stroke among children and pregnant women as well.

The link between vitamin B12 deficiency and stroke involves multi step process.

Nutritional deficiencies of folic acid, B vitamins, and especially vitamin B12, cause an increase of a chemical called homocysteine. Excessive homocysteine creates two problems; one of these problems is inflammation of the blood vessels and the other problem is process called oxidative stress.

Inflammation is a major contributor to stroke. Inflammation is the buildup of white blood cells that are intended to fight infection. But the unnecessary inflammation that is associated with vitamin B12 deficiency results in damage to the blood vessels and excess deposits inside the blood vessels. This buildup can ultimately lead to interruption of normal blood flow in the brain- which is a stroke

The other consequence is called oxidative damage, which injures the blood vessels, making them more likely to catch sticky material and blood, leading to blood clots and predisposing to bleeding.
Therefore, vitamin B12 deficiency can be the culprit in a cascade of stroke-inducing physiological events.

[www.verywellhealth.com]

Happy New Year, Liz ! Yes.. B12 and other nutrients help reduce or control the "silent inflammation" factor that is foundational in what contributes to stroke risk... And just as pointed out in the recent Mitochondrial report, the oxidative damage is also a very important factor.

For that reason, those previous posts on Silent Inflammation and Stroke Risk and the Clot Risk emphasize various factors that underlie the hyperviscosity factor that helps promote the sticky, thick blood and the tendency for blood to clot more easily.... as proven by the hemorheology studies from long ago and emphasize the importance of having those specific labs that help monitor the various markers mentioned in those posts.

It's good to see this being addressed because the silent inflammation factor can be managed. The B12 form most useful is methylcobalamin and dosing often has to be quite high in milligrams to be effective. Initially, injections may be needed if repletion responses are too slow.

Jackie

Shouldn't that be hypoviscosity, Jackie?

Joe - the hyper is correct... meaning viscosity too high which according to the hemorheology studies involves the shear stress/friction factors that relates to flow rate and also arterial damage in addition to the elevated tendency for clot formation..... thus, the terms: thick, sticky blood and risk of clot formation regarding stroke or MI risk.

Jackie

Thanks Jackie!

I cannot take Vitamin B6 supplements or a high dosage of B12 supplements due to cystitis of the Bladder. Many individuals have to be careful with there supplement intake because of this and stomach inflammation causing acid reflux. I have to take a proton pump inhibitor (Prevacid) to help repair these issues. Nothing OTC has ever helped me. I take 30 mg of Prevacid a day and Zantac for breakthrough times.

Well just goes to show you we are indeed all different, I have been taking Vit. B supplements since my 20s, I am now 80, no problems, my b 12 has always been on the high side, which is good, better than taking drugs.

Smackman… This is the proverbial ‘rock and a hard place’ scenario. Sorry to read about your struggles. I’m sure you’re frustrated. Has the potential interference of any of the ‘calming’ meds you take been evaluated for promoting the gastric issues?

It’s known that Prozac causes acid reflux so one thing promotes another and another med to counteract the first. And it’s also known that antidepressant type meds interfere with CoQ10, magnesium, melatonin, B vitamins and folate and therefore the important downstream functions in the body.

The stomach inflammation/acid reflux reaction is a "Catch 22" situation for many people who aren't able to produce their own stomach acid due to lack of the nutrients… and often, there’s not enough stomach acid produced to facilitate absorption of the B vitamins critical to making stomach acid in the first place. This can cause inflammation, reflux, GERD and other symptoms brought on by the undigested food lying in the stomach for longer than it should and because it can't be broken down, it putrifies or rots and causes reflux/gas/discomfort. There are also reports that the lack of protective acidity from natural stomach acid can lead to kidney and bladder problems including H. pylori infections.

Plus, the fundamental issue… that PPIs do nothing to help provide the essential B’s that the body needs for other functions besides making stomach acid.

Here are a few links out of many reports on this topic:

[www.drweil.com]

[www.webmd.com]

[bmjopen.bmj.com]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[bladder-help.com]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

Jackie

I understand there are acidic medications that cause “secondary” issues. I make no excuses but I have survived a major car accident, Have had and still deal with bladder issues, The AFIB issue which curt is under control etc etc. I had to have help with the anxiety and chronic bladder problem plus chronic back pain for life.
You do what you have to do for quality of life and everyone handles there “life issues” differently.

Hi Smackman - Truly, I'm so sorry you have those major issues as a result of that serious accident and I appreciate your clarification as to why you need to remain on meds that can (unfortunately) also cause problems with essential nutrients.

For everyone else without traumatic complications and since B12 was the topic of this post, it definitely remains something that everyone, afibbers or otherwise, needs to know about, be tested and make sure you are at the recommended levels so you have good homocysteine levels..because elevated HCY can lead to cardiovascular problems including stroke risk. It's also very important to recognize the importance of the various B vitamins and their specific forms since many are far less effective than others and the fact there are other insufficiency issues in addition to elevated HCY.

When my B 12 levels tested low a number of years ago, in addition to taking 10,000 mcg daily doses of B12 in the activated, methylcobalamin form, I also went for weekly injections until the numbers were at the right level.

For maintenance, I still take 10,000 mcg B12 (methylcobalamin) daily plus a B complex and am tested at least twice a year. This B12 is in a lozenge form "designed to deliver B12 through the mucous membranes in order to bypass the need for intrinsic factor, a protein produced in the stomach needed for maximal GI absorption of B12."

So, thanks again, Liz for posting the B12 alert info.

Jackie

Smackman said:

Quote
I cannot take Vitamin B6 supplements or a high dosage of B12 supplements due to cystitis of the Bladder.

I have seen vitamin D stop cystitis of the bladder fast. The dosage needs to be high--8,000 iu to 10,000 iu per day. A one week trial should let you know without any risks of an overdose.

Hi Jackie,
I already take 5000iu daily of the lozenge form of B12: what brand of general B supplement in addition would you recommend? I'm particularly concerned about B12 as I took PPIs for 3 decades up until very recently - no nightshade family foods whatsoever and lots of gobs (gobfulls!) of EV olive oil have helped me get off PPis altogether (that and no alcohol).
Mike

Quote
Jim Benton
Smackman said:





I have seen vitamin D stop cystitis of the bladder fast. The dosage needs to be high--8,000 iu to 10,000 iu per day. A one week trial should let you know without any risks of an overdose.

I have Intertestial Cystitis. Look it up. There is no known cure. It is a chronic issue. I have been dealing with this since 2012. I am doing better but I can have flare ups.

Hi Mike - Glad you are making progress! Good for you.

You can view the components in the B complex I use at this link.
[www.rockwellnutrition.com]

Additionally, I take the B12, Alpha Lipoic Acid, L-5 MTHF and one called Homocysteine Supreme
[www.rockwellnutrition.com]

While this seems like a lot, it was needed to get the B markers into range with the NutrEval assessment.

Jackie