Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause serious health problems
Vitamin B12 is important for lots of functions in the body(Image: Halfpoint Images via Getty Images)
Vitamin B12 plays a vital role across a number of functions performed by the body. This essential nutrient doesn’t just support healthy blood and nerve cells, it also wards off anaemia, a condition that can leave sufferers feeling drained and exhausted.
Typical warning signs of insufficient vitamin B12 include fatigue, persistent headaches and ulcers in the mouth. But there are two tell-tale indicators that might show up on your skin signalling you’re running low on this vital nutrient. According to the NHS website, certain people suffering from anaemia linked to vitamin B12 deficiency experience paraesthesia, otherwise known as pins and needles.
This peculiar feeling, characterised as “pricking, tingling or numbness on the skin”, typically manifests in the hands, arms, legs or feet. The phenomenon happens because declining B12 levels mean the body generates less myelin, a protective fatty coating around nerve fibres.
A further skin-related clue that your system might be crying out for more B12 is a “pale yellow tinge” spreading across your complexion. Studies connect this symptom to how vitamin B12 deficiency disrupts the body’s ability to manufacture red blood cells.
Some people develop low B12 levels simply because their diet doesn’t supply adequate amounts of the vitamin, as reported by Surrey Live. Generally, a diet featuring meat, fish and dairy delivers sufficient vitamin B12, but anyone who doesn’t routinely eat these foods risks becoming deficient.
Treatment for vitamin B12 deficiency anaemia usually involves vitamin B12 injections.
