A Vitamin B12 Blood Test is done to check vitamin B12 levels in the blood. Adequate amounts of vitamin B12 are needed to produce red blood cells and to maintain a healthy nervous system.
Vitamin B12 is found in animal products such as meat, shellfish, milk, cheese, and eggs. Most people who eat meat are not likely to develop a vitamin B12 deficiency unless their bodies cannot absorb it from food. There is normally enough vitamin B12 stored in a person's liver to last a year or more, even if the person does not eat any foods that contain the vitamin during that time. Strict vegetarians (vegans) who do not eat milk, cheese, or eggs, and babies born to women who are strict vegetarians, are at increased risk for developing vitamin B12 deficiency and should take a supplement containing vitamin B12.
A Vitamin B12 blood test is usually measured along with folic acid, because a deficiency of either one can lead to diseases that have similar symptoms. A deficiency of either folic acid or vitamin B12 can produce a form of anemia called megaloblastic anemia.
Other conditions associated with decreased vitamin B12 include underproduction of stomach acid, pernicious anemia (PA), disorders of intestinal absorption, or inflammatory bowel disease. Diseases with increased vitamin B12 include chronic granulocytic leukemia (and to a lesser degree leukemoid states); chronic renal failure; severe congestive heart failure; diabetes; obesity; COPD and cases of liver cell damage.
You may order a Vitamin B12 blood test online, or for more information call LabSafe toll free at 1-888-333-LABS to speak with one of our medical counselors.
