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by moby_click 1919 days ago
https://veganhealth.org/vitamin-b12/ has pretty much everything one needs to know about B12. It's worth a read in general, but especially important for vegans. Teasing the crucial part: Relying on 100% RDA of B12 from a daily multivatimin will get you in trouble because that likely exceeds the capacity of your transport proteins in a single dose. For the less efficient "unassisted" absorption, you need to dose a lot higher.
1 comments
rewq4321 1919 days ago
Basically all B12 supplement brands know this (it's their job) and so they have something like 2000% RDI (or whatever) to account for it.
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moby_click 1918 days ago
Right, I should probably have written RDI or DV (or DRI?). Doses improved, but in Germany, I can still find multivitamins marketed specifically at vegetarians and vegans with 10ug of B12 (labeled as 400%) in the supplement aisles of supermarkets.

Even in pharmacies, I have to tell that the supplement may be my only source of B12 and that I know about the dosing. I reduce the frequency when I have other sources like toothpaste. I think it is worth to RTFM for something that is relevant for the rest of my life.

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