Vitamin B12 is a foundational building block for the development of RNA, red blood cells, nerve connections, and various other critical functions within our body. In fact, this single vitamin is critical enough to the proper function of the body that the body itself stores an extra 3-5 year supply in the liver. Anything important enough for the body to store an extra 3-5 year supply is certainly something for which you do not want to be found deficient.
Vitamin B12 has been linked to many different ailments and conditions. Some of these conditions are seemingly benign such as feeling tired or fatigued and others are severe such as with its connection to depression and even dementia. Other symptoms on the scale of low severity include pale skin, feeling light headed, losing weight, or even experiencing constipation or diarrhea. The list of severe symptoms, besides dementia and depression, include numbness in your extremities and even a loss of motor function or balance.
Of all of these conditions, none strike a chord of anxiety as much as the connection between vitamin B12 deficiency and hair loss. It is this single symptom of vanity that strikes the fear in more individuals that any other of the named vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms. It may be because of all the symptoms, hair loss is the one that is most often thought to be irreversible.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Hair Loss
The exact connection between vitamin B12 deficiency and hair loss is not exactly known, but what is known is that this deficiency can be identified as a direct cause of hair loss in some individuals. The most likely reason for this hair loss is the reduction of circulation that is caused by a vitamin B12 deficiency. Vitamin B12, being a primary building block for red blood cells, is as a result critical for circulation. Red blood cells are the transport system that delivers oxygen to all of the cells throughout the body, including the cells that make up the hair follicle. It stands to reason that as the body is producing less red blood cells and as a result delivering less oxygen, that hair health will suffer. This is also consistent with another symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency, numbness in the extremities. This too is caused by a lack of oxygen delivery and is the direct result of lower production of red blood cells.
Vitamin B12 deficiency and hair loss are inextricably interconnected and any individual that is experiencing hair loss may benefit from checking their levels of vitamin B12. This is not to say that they should take mega doses of the vitamin and as a result cause themselves other problems, but certainly taking a small supplement would be prudent. Maintaining healthy levels of vitamin B12 will assist your body in the production of red bloods cells and RNA and as a result your body is likely to have better circulation than if your were vitamin B12 deficient. This added circulation may be just the thing you need in order to maintain a healthy head of hair.
Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Hair Loss video
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