 Hello everyone thank you for watching for late as we saw that for late is extremely important during pre-pregnancy period and also during pregnancy because you know baby's neural tube is developing at gestational age of three weeks so it's important that mother has enough for late in her diet during you know when she's planning pregnancy and that will prevent a lot of neural tube defects as you saw in the tutorial. Now today now we're going to talk about B12 okay now B12 is extremely important because it's it's available only in animal source food so mothers who are say vegan if they're not taking non-veg food as well as they're not taking any milk or dairy products this mothers are at risk of developing B12 deficiency and in this tutorial you want to understand that what are the complications if mothers don't have enough B12 not only in her but you will also see that babies will have B12 deficiency and some of them can have a neurological defect you know and sometime permanent so please make sure that you understand this tutorial very well you know write down the sources of B12 how much amount is needed you know and if mothers are say vegan then they need supplement so that's important okay so watch it and just understand thank you welcome to the spoken tutorial about the importance of vitamin B12 in this tutorial we will learn about role of vitamin B12 in the body causes and symptoms of its deficiency food sources rich in vitamin B12 vitamin B12 is an important B vitamin and is naturally present in some foods it is water soluble and is also known as cobalamin some amount of it can be produced by the good bacteria in our intestine supplements of this vitamin are also available in the market please consult your doctor before taking vitamin B12 supplements vitamin B12 plays many important roles in our body it is required for proper red blood cell formation and for DNA synthesis this vitamin is particularly important for women of child bearing age adequate vitamin B12 intake helps to prevent neural tube defects neural tube defects are birth defects of the brain or spinal cord to avoid this defect along with vitamin B12 folate and choline are also needed importance of folate and choline have been discussed in another tutorial to know more please visit our website neural tube defects can result in physical disabilities in the child muscle weakness of the legs and paralysis may also happen curved spine and loss of urinary bladder control are other symptoms difficulty in eating and swallowing is also found to be common another function of vitamin B12 is brain development in children it helps to improve many brain related functions for example attention span memory planning and problem solving vitamin B12 also converts folate into its active form folate is required in its active form to carry out various roles in the body for example growth repair and production of new cells in the body the absorption of B12 is also important for it to carry out all these functions I will briefly tell you the way it is absorbed in the body vitamin B12 in the food is attached to a protein for the body to absorb vitamin B12 two steps are essential firstly the acid in the stomach separates vitamin B12 from that protein the stomach then secretes another protein called intrinsic factor B12 then attaches to the intrinsic factor and gets absorbed in the intestine inadequate absorption of vitamin B12 can result in its deficiency for example absorption is affected in people having pernicious anemia in this condition the body is unable to produce the intrinsic factor protein intrinsic factor is crucial for the absorption of vitamin B12 as explained earlier inadequate absorption can be due to several other reasons also for example due to growth of bad bacteria or inflammation in the intestine gastric bypass surgery also reduces absorption of vitamin B12 intestinal worms also affect the vitamin B12 levels these worms take up vitamin B12 from our blood and cause its deficiency hence regular deworming should be done after consulting a doctor another reason for B12 deficiency is insufficient intake older men and women above 65 years of age may have a very low intake low intake is seen in vegetarians and those who avoid milk and milk products vitamin B12 deficiency may sometimes go undetected in vegetarians this is because their diets can be usually rich in folate excessive folate may mask the early symptoms of B12 deficiency like anemia as a result nerve damage may progress this might get detected only when deficiency gets severe hence adequate intake of both folate and vitamin B12 is necessary recommended folate intake and its food sources is explained in another tutorial let us now look at the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency soreness of the tongue and mouth ulcers are common symptoms inflammation of the stomach can also occur anemia is another common symptom of B12 deficiency it is a condition in which there is a lack of enough healthy red blood cells red blood cells carry adequate oxygen to the body's tissues pallor fatigue and shortness of breath are indications of anemia reduced appetite diarrhea and jaundice is also seen severe deficiency of B12 damages the myelin sheath myelin sheath is a protective layer surrounding the nerves hence the nervous system is affected in babies this can result in infantile tremor syndrome also known as ITS it occurs in babies breastfed by vegetarian mothers who also avoid dairy dairy items include milk and milk products one of the main characteristics of ITS is tremors these tremors are jerky and can be intermittent or continuous pale face thin and scattered dry hair are other characteristics dark skin pigmentation is also seen on the knees elbows and knuckles such babies are irritable and show little interest in the surroundings they stare blankly without any expression B12 deficiency can delay mental and physical development in children they may have difficulty in learning and paying attention in adults there may be poor reflex action and impaired balance and coordination tingling or prickling sensation in hands or legs can also happen confusion and seizures are other symptoms vision and memory also get affected due to deficiency hallucinations lack of concentration and depression can also occur vitamin B12 deficiency increases the risk of heart diseases too chest pain and slurred speech may occur I will explain to you how this occurs vitamin B12 is essential for conversion of homocysteine to methionine homocysteine and methionine are types of amino acids used to make protein elevated homocysteine levels can damage the heart with the help of B12 homocysteine gets converted to methionine in this way homocysteine levels in the body gets lowered thus protecting our heart from damage to avoid deficiency adequate intake of vitamin B12 is recommended for all ages for babies of 6 to 12 months 1.2 microgram per day is recommended 1.2 microgram is also recommended for 1 to 6 year old children for children above 7 years and for adolescents it is 2.2 micrograms adult men and women should also have 2.2 micrograms per day the requirements are higher for pregnant and lactating women 2.45 micrograms per day is recommended for pregnant women 3.2 micrograms per day is recommended for lactating mothers the required amount of vitamin B12 can be met through diet and supplements vitamin B12 is found in animal based foods fish chicken meat and eggs are good sources of vitamin B12 1 egg has about 0.6 microgram vitamin B12 85 grams of goat meat has about 2.3 micrograms of vitamin B12 85 grams of chicken has about 0.3 micrograms of vitamin B12 shellfish liver kidney and heart are also excellent sources 50 grams of goat liver has about 45 micrograms of vitamin B12 50 grams of clams has 49 micrograms please note that shellfish should not be given to children below one year of age milk and milk products also contain vitamin B12 a 250 milliliter glass of milk has about 0.3 micrograms of vitamin B12 150 grams or a bowl of curd has nearly 0.2 micrograms apart from food sources maintaining a healthy gut is also important a healthy gut improves the vitamin B12 absorption in the body vegetarian foods have none or minimal amounts of vitamin B12 however it can be enhanced in some ways for example by sprouting and fermentation soaking and roasting is also recommended all this helps in reducing the anti nutrients from the food anti nutrients inhibit the absorption of some nutrients in our body examples of anti nutrients are oxalates and phytates have adequate intake of vitamin B12 and maintain a healthy gut for a good health this brings us to the end of this tutorial thanks for watching