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A vitamin supplement that improves metabolism in the eye appears to slow down damage to the optic nerve in glaucoma. In glaucoma, the optic nerve is gradually damaged, leading to vision loss and, in the worst cases, blindness. High pressure in the eye drives the disease. Glaucoma researchers have long theorized the substance homocysteine is somehow relevant to understanding the disease. Now, researchers have investigated the role of homocysteine in several ways. In the current study, the researchers discovered that when rats with glaucoma were given elevated levels of homocysteine, their disease did not worsen. The researchers also found that...

Your brain might not be getting enough B12 — even if your levels are considered “normal.” A new study suggests that older adults with lower B12, even within the accepted range, show signs of cognitive decline and brain damage. Researchers found that these individuals had slower thinking and reaction times, along with white matter lesions linked to dementia. Normal B12 Levels Still Linked to Brain Deficiency Getting the recommended amount of vitamin B12 is essential for making DNA, red blood cells, and nerve tissue. But new research suggests that meeting the minimum requirement may not be enough — especially for...

Meeting the minimum requirement for vitamin B12, needed to make DNA, red blood cells and nerve tissue, may not actually be enough—particularly if you are older. It may even put you at risk for cognitive impairment. A new study found that older, healthy volunteers, with lower concentrations of B12, but still in the normal range, showed signs of neurological and cognitive deficiency. These levels were associated with more damage to the brain's white matter—the nerve fibers that enable communication between areas of the brain—and test scores associated with slower cognitive and visual processing speeds, compared to those with higher B12....

Acute pancreatitis (AP), which affects people of all ages, is one of the leading causes of hospital admission due to gastrointestinal diseases. To date, many questions regarding the optimal treatment of acute pancreatitis remain unanswered. A team combined human genetic epidemiology and animal models to discover and confirm the role of vitamin B12 in the prevention and mitigation of acute pancreatitis. Fan explained that the team first conducted meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). They then employed a Mendelian randomization approach to investigate the relationships between various one-carbon metabolism nutrients and the risk of pancreatitis. The analysis revealed that higher...

Children with primary nocturnal enuresis may have vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency as well as vitamin B12 deficiency, according to a study published. Hoda Atef Abdelsattar Ibrahim and colleagues examined the prevalence of vitamin D and vitamin B12 deficiencies in enuretic children. The analysis included 288 children seen at an outpatient clinic for nocturnal enuresis. The researchers found that vitamin D insufficiency predominated (48.3%), while vitamin D deficiency was present in 31.3%. Vitamin B12 deficiency was seen in 25% of children. There was a stronger inverse correlation between vitamin D and the number of enuresis episodes per day than vitamin...

A study has identified why a diet rich in magnesium is important for our health, reducing the risk of DNA damage and chronic degenerative disorders. Scientists measured blood samples from 172 middle aged adults, finding a strong link between low magnesium levels and high amounts of a genotoxic amino acid called homocysteine. This toxic combination damages the body's genes, making people more susceptible to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, gastrointestinal diseases, a range of cancers, and diabetes. Whole grains, dark green leafy vegetables, nuts, beans and dark chocolate are all magnesium-rich foods, which help the body produce energy, build teeth and...

I recently learned where and how vitamin B12 is made. Moat of it is in the form of cyanocobalamin which is used to make synthetic B12. Cyanocobalamin is derived from sewage or milorganite which it is reffered to. Milorganite is also used for fertilizer. Worse, 2/3 of the stuff is manufactured in China. It is in all kinds of cereals, vitamnins, breads, etc. A more healthy option is methylcobalamin. Check it out, many sources available. It may be safe (cyanocobalamin) but it's disgusting never the less.

A research team recently discovered that propionate, a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA), strongly suppressed neurodegeneration in animal models of Parkinson's disease (PD) by regulating interorgan signaling between the intestine and brain. Either inhibiting propionate breakdown or supplementing propionate through diet reversed PD-associated transcriptional aberration and enhanced energy production in the intestine, which in turn promoted neuronal health without the need of dispersing the protein aggregates. PD is often characterized by the abnormal accumulation and aggregation of alpha-synuclein (alpha-syn) proteins in the dopaminergic neurons, which causes proteotoxic stress and neuronal death. One class of bacterial metabolites that have attracted a lot...

Folate is a B vitamin and a necessary nutrient to prevent neural tube defects, such as spina bifida. Folic acid, a synthetic form of folate, has been added products to ensure pregnant women get adequate amounts. However, research suggests there may be such a thing as too much folic acid. Researchers showed imbalances in folic acid and vitamin B12 can alter brain development in mice. Green said: "The safe upper limit for folate is 1,000 micrograms per day. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data showed that a substantial percentage of women's diets were above that limit." The team...

Researchers have now revealed that vitamin B12 plays a pivotal role in cellular reprogramming and tissue regeneration. The research was focused on an experimental process known as cellular reprogramming which is thought to mimic the early phases of tissue repair. The team found that cellular reprogramming in mice consumes large amounts of vitamin B12. Indeed, the depletion of vitamin B12 becomes a limiting factor that delays and impairs some aspects of the reprogramming process. The researchers validated their findings in a model of ulcerative colitis, demonstrating that the intestinal cells initiating repair undergo a process similar to cellular reprogramming and...

A new study has identified a compelling link between vitamin B12 deficiency and chronic inflammation, which is associated with a range of health problems including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disorders. The research examined the effects of circulating B12 concentration on the levels of two key inflammatory markers in both humans and mice. Vitamin B12, an essential nutrient with roles in various physiological processes, is known to be critical for overall health. Its deficiency can be the result of dietary insufficiency or inefficient absorption in the body. This can lead to a range of complications, including neurological disorders. While previous...

Scientists have published new research which examines the relationship between folate and vitamin B12 status and its associations with greater prevalence of depressive symptoms in a group of community-dwelling older adults. The study shows that low vitamin B12 status is linked to depressive symptoms, but shows that folate is not associated with depression. Vitamin B status in Ireland Deficiency and low status of the B-vitamins such as folate and vitamin B12 are highly present in older people. In Ireland, one in eight older adults are reported to have low B12 status, while low dietary intake and low blood status have...

VITAMIN B12 deficiency produces a number of eerie effects on the body and the type of symptoms you may experience depend on the underlying cause. One common warning sign associated with B12 deficiency caused by pernicious anaemia is a particular sound. Vitamin B12's impact on the body is brought into sharp relief if you become deficient in the vitamin. Vitamin B12 is a nutrient that helps keep the body’s nerve and blood cells healthy and helps make DNA, the genetic material in all cells. If the body does not get enough of the vitamin, it therefore responds in disturbing ways....

A teen in the UK who has eaten nothing but french fries, potato chips and white bread since elementary school is now blind because of vitamin deficiencies and malnutrition damage. The boy was taken to his doctor at 14 because he felt tired. He was diagnosed with macrocytic anemia and a vitamin B12 deficiency and prescribed supplements, according to a study published Tuesday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. He neither stuck with the vitamins nor changed his diet, however, and his condition worsened.Three years later, he was taken to the Bristol Eye Hospital with reported vision loss.According to the...

Dr. Feelgood's Tonic: The Clinton is Getting Needled with "B-12 As Needed" Bardack listed Clinton’s current medications as Armorthyroid, Coumadin dosed as directed, Levaquin (for a total of ten days), Clarinex, and B-12 as needed. Hillary's Physician’s Detailed Letter Of Clinton's Condition This cute little script for "B-12 as needed," written by Hillary's very private doctor, makes me nostalgic for the old days in New York City in the 70s. In those days you recovered from the abuse of “Vitamin C”ocaine with a shot of Vitamin B-12 (with extras) from the man we always knew as Dr. Feelgood. Dr. Feelgood...

...The Iranians may break or cheat on an agreement, and try build a nuclear weapon anyway. That’s why, at least three times in the past year, a B-2 stealth bomber has taken off from an Air Force base in Missouri and headed west to the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. For these missions, the $2 billion plane was outfitted with one of the world’s largest bombs. It is a cylinder of special high-performance steel, 20 feet long and weighing 15 tons. When dropped from an altitude likely above 20,000 feet, the bomb would have approached supersonic speed before...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study has identified a gene mutation that researchers estimate dates back to 11,600 B.C., making it the second oldest human disease mutation yet discovered. Researchers with the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute led the study and estimate that the mutation arose in the Middle East some 13,600 years ago. Only a mutation seen in cystic fibrosis that arose between 11,000 and 52,000 years ago is believed to be older. The investigators described the mutation in people of Arabic, Turkish and Jewish ancestry....

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Older people with low levels of vitamin B12 in their blood may be more likely to lose brain cells and develop problems with their thinking skills, according to a study published in the September 27, 2011, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Foods that come from animals, including fish, meat, especially liver, milk, eggs and poultry, are usually sources of vitamin B12. The study involved 121 people age 65 and older living on the south side of Chicago. Their blood was drawn to measure levels of vitamin B12 and...

Tired? Depressed? Forgetting things? Who isn't these days? Those are also symptoms of a deficiency of B12, a key nutrient needed to make red blood cells and DNA and keep the nervous system working right..... "B12 deficiency is much more common than the textbooks and journal articles say it is," says Alan Pocinki, an internist in Washington D.C., who routinely tests his patients who fall into those categories. He also notes that since the Metformin connection was discovered only recently,

Experimental animal studies have shown that H. pylori shares several antigenic regions in common with acid secreting cells in gastric mucosa. Antibodies triggered by H. pylori destroy acid secreting cells due this antigenic mimicry. H. pylori infection is very common in humans, and about half of the infected patients develop atrophic changes over the years. In end stage severe atrophy, H. pylori disappears and signs of a previous infection are difficult to detect. This research, lead by Dr. L Veijola and her colleagues in the University of Helsinki, Finland, has recently been published on January 7 , 2010 in World...