Vitamin B12 is known as the energy vitamin and if there’s one vitamin that older people are frequently low in, it’s vitamin B12. In one study, 15% of adults older than 65 had clinically low levels – and most researchers and nutritionists think the number is much higher.
As we get older we make less stomach acid and you need a protein found in the gastric juice called intrinsic factor in order to absorb B12. This is also important if you have a low production of stomach acid or similar problems with your stomach and intestines (which is more and more common).
Symptoms of B12 deficiency include depression and low energy. B12 is also critical for reducing homocysteine, an amino acid that can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Even if you’re not in the danger zone for low levels of B12, there’s many good reasons to make sure that you get extra B12 from your food or from supplements. While vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, and vitamin K2 are crucial for bone health, vitamin B12, on the other hand, is often overlooked.
B12 can help with strengthening and mineralize bones, protects against environmental toxins, enhances immunity and greatly improve nervous system function – which is very important for any athlete, especially where strength and explosiveness is of concern.
If you go the supplement route, always take B12 with folic acid. They work together, and any B12 supplement should include both of these nutrients. Also, look for the methylcobalamin form of B12, which will have a higher absorption rate. Still, it’s a far cry from consuming animal products, which is the only source of bioavailable B12.
Finally, if you are a vegan (or even a vegetarian), don’t buy into the globalists New-World-Order propaganda that you get all the B12 you need from plant food. You simply don’t. It’s biologically impossible. Veganism is a weapon upon the gullible. You will get nutrition deficiencies and your health will suffer! Vitamin B12 is only found in animal products such as clams, liver, trout, sockeye salmon, free-range eggs, raw milk and beef.