A university student took her own life while suffering delusional beliefs brought about by a vitamin B12 deficiency developed “as a direct result of her vegan diet”, an inquest has concluded.
Georgina Owen, 21, of Saffron Walden in Essex, followed a vegan diet from 2016 “stemming from her environmental concerns”, Cambridgeshire area coroner Elizabeth Gray wrote.
Vitamin B12 is found in meat, fish, eggs and dairy products and the NHS recommends people choosing a plant-based diet should aim to regularly eat fortified foods, or take a B12 supplement, to avoid a deficiency.
But the inquest was told that in August 2019, Miss Owen’s family noted she had not been taking her vitamin B12 supplements for at least six months.
The Swansea University student was found at her home address on 19 September 2019, with a note.
She was resuscitated and taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge where she died two days later, an inquest in writing found.
Ms Gray said Miss Owen had “reported to her family that she had bought an organic B12 supplement from Canada, the dosage of which would be 1mg once per day, oral spray”.
Georgina Owen was studying geography at Swansea University before her death in 2019. Credit: Family photo
“Miss Owen’s family report that Miss Owen had demonstrated unusual, erratic behaviour in the period leading up to her death, and they provided diaries written by Miss Owen which they suggest demonstrates her erratic behaviour and a deterioration in her mental health in the immediate period before her death,” she said.
The coroner said that a psychiatrist concluded Miss Owen’s diary entries viewed on their own did not provide evidence that she was planning to end her life.
But the psychiatrist said her final note “does provide evidence of a possible mental illness and that, on the balance of probabilities, at the time Miss Owen was writing this last note, she was experiencing delusions” and that “psychiatric manifestations caused by vitamin B12 deficiency are recognised”.
Blood tests were found to be “consistent with vitamin B12 deficiency and that this likely resulted from Miss Owen’s vegan diet of around three years duration”, the coroner said.
In her conclusion, the coroner said: “Miss Owen died from a self-inflicted ligature to her neck while, on the balance of probabilities, suffering delusional beliefs brought about by a vitamin B12 deficiency developed as a direct result of her vegan diet.”
She said that an expert report “concludes that Miss Owen’s vague signs of cognitive impairment, anxiety, difficulty with simple decision-making and fatigue, as described by her family in the period before her death, suggest a gradually developing psychiatric disorder culminating in the delusional beliefs expressed in Miss Owen’s final letter”.
She said that Miss Owen, who started studying geography at Swansea University in the academic year 2017/18, was described by the university as “vibrant, full of enthusiasm, passionate and well-liked by her peers and lecturers”.
She had been due to return to university on 19 September 2019 and “had made plans to go surfing over the weekend”.
The NHS website advises that a B12 deficiency can lead to problems including psychological problems, which can range from mild depression or anxiety to confusion and dementia, as well as extreme tiredness, muscle weakness and problems with vision and memory.
If you have been affected by the issues discussed in this article, you can seek support from the Samaritans, anonymously, on 116 123, visit www.samaritans.org or email jo@samaritans.org
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