Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient that we all need to maintain adequate levels to ensure our health. But did you know that vitamin B12 may also play a role in helping you lose weight?
It’s true! By the end of this article, you’ll know everything there is to know about the relationship between vitamin B12 and weight and ways we can increase our intake of this nutrient to lose weight faster and experience better overall health.
Vitamin B12 may help promote weight loss by speeding up the body’s metabolism and reducing the risk of obesity. Anyone interested in vitamin B12 for weight loss can change their diet, take a dietary supplement, or try vitamin B12 injections.
To learn more about how you can take a Vegan Vitamin B12 for weight loss, keep reading. This essential nutrient may be the answer to your weight-loss goals.
What is vitamin B12?
Vitamin B12 is a form of vitamin B that plays a primary role in supporting:
- Nervous system function
- Cognitive function
- Healthy nerve cells
- healthy red blood cells
- Production of DNA
- Increased energy levels
However, this water-soluble vitamin may also promote weight loss, as studies show that vitamin B12 helps maintain a lean, healthy weight.
Vitamin B12 and metabolism
Metabolism describes how our bodies convert the foods we eat into energy.
Those with a faster metabolism may have an easier time keeping off weight, while those with a slower metabolism may be more susceptible to gaining weight.
But how do vitamin B12 levels affect metabolism?
Studies show that vitamin B12 can reduce body weight by boosting our metabolism. Vitamin B12 works to do this by supporting the enzymes that result in energy production, and as a result, we may experience:
- Faster metabolism
- Reduced body weight gain
- Reduced lipid profile
That’s why anyone suffering from a slow metabolism may want to consider increasing their intake of vitamin b-12 via diet, supplementation, or injection.
The link between vitamin B12 and obesity
Plenty of research suggests a relationship between vitamin B12 deficiencies and obesity.
One study, for example, found that vitamin B12 levels were significantly lower in patients who were obese or overweight than in healthy individuals.
Further research supports these findings, explaining an inverse association between vitamin B12 blood levels and obesity among adults in the United States.
That’s why anyone struggling with their weight should consider getting a blood test to determine their vitamin B12 levels. A lack of this essential nutrient may be the thing that’s holding us back from our weight-loss goals.
Sources of vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is an essential nutrient, which means we need to derive it from outside sources to support our health.
If we’re interested in consuming more vitamin B12 for weight loss, we should try to include more of these foods in our diet:
- Fish
- Meat
- Poultry
- Eggs
- Dairy products
- Fortified foods
However, anyone not getting enough of these foods in their everyday diet (such as vegans and vegetarians) may want to consider taking vitamin B12 supplements to ensure they’re maintaining adequate vitamin B12.
That’s why FuelOrganics offers a high-quality vegan vitamin B12 supplement. that promotes a healthy nervous system and may help us maintain a healthy weight.
Vitamin B12 injections for weight loss
Anyone who’s done their research on vitamin B12 for weight loss has probably come across the idea of vitamin B12 injections. But precisely what are they, and why would we need them?
Vitamin B12 shots are injections that doctors may prescribe to assist in medical weight loss for anyone with a vitamin B12 deficiency.
Although oral dietary supplements are cheaper and more convenient, injections allow vitamin B12 to be absorbed faster in the body. Anyone with a severe deficiency (or anyone trying to lose weight fast) may be more partial to trying vitamin B12 shots.
Final thoughts
Vitamin B12 offers many essential benefits to our health and may even be beneficial in promoting weight loss. That’s why overweight people should check to make sure that a vitamin B12 deficiency isn’t the culprit.
Luckily, there are plenty of sources and dietary supplements that we can take advantage of to increase the amounts of vitamin B12 in our bodies and potentially lose weight.
Looking for more interesting articles about B12, read our article 10 Best Vegan Sources of Vitamin B12
Trusted sources
- Zheng Y, Ma AG, Zheng MC, Wang QZ, Liang H, Han XX, Schouten EG. B Vitamins Can Reduce Body Weight Gain by Increasing Metabolism-related Enzyme Activities in Rats Fed on a High-Fat Diet. Curr Med Sci. 2018 Feb;38(1):174-183. DOI: 10.1007/s11596-018-1862-9. Epub 2018 Mar 15. PMID: 30074168.
- Baltaci D, Kutlucan A, Turker Y, Yilmaz A, Karacam S, Deler H, Ucgun T, Kara IH. Association of vitamin B12 with obesity, overweight, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome, and body fat composition; primary care-based study. Med Glas (Zenica). 2013 Aug;10(2):203-10. PMID: 23892832.
- Sun, Y., Sun, M., Liu, B., Du, Y., Rong, S., Xu, G., Snetselaar, L. G., & Bao, W. (2019). Inverse Association Between Serum Vitamin B12 Concentration and Obesity Among Adults in the United States. Frontiers in endocrinology, 10, 414. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2019.00414