You May Be Vitamin B12 Deficient If Your Skin Starts Looking Like This

The insufficiency of vitamin B12 forces the body to create abnormally huge red blood cells that fail to properly function. Naturally found in animal products like poultry, dairy, meat, and eggs, this vitamin is one of the key elements that support the vital functions of the body. This includes ensuring the health of the nervous system. Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause a broad range of warning indicators. Among these is the color of the skin.

Different Causes

Vitamin B12 deficiency is among the most common ailments in the UK, particularly among elderly adults. If you are vitamin B12 deficient, it may mean that your food is not providing you enough of this important vitamin. It may also be that you have are not able to absorb sufficient amounts from the foods you consume.

You may also develop this deficiency if you are suffering from atrophic gastritis, a condition characterized by the thinning of the lining in the stomach. Some medications and types of immune system disorders can disrupt the way your body absorbs vitamin B12. If you are suffering from celiac disease or Crohn’s disease, you can become more vitamin B12 deficient.

The Skin Color

If you are vitamin B12 deficient, then you may start experiencing a variety of symptoms, including the gradual change in the hue of your skin. With vitamin B12 deficiency, your skin may start looking paler.

You may also observe your skin, sometimes displaying a yellowish hue. The whites of your eyes may also show a slight yellowish tinge. This medical condition is known to doctors as jaundice.

This occurs when B12 deficiency causes chaos in the red blood cell production of the body. Furthermore, since this vitamin has a major role in DNA production, the structure of the cells will be incomplete, and they will fail to divide.

This situation often leads to a kind of anemia referred to by scientists as megaloblastic anemia. This ailment is characterized by the bone marrow’s production of abnormally large and frail cells. Because the red blood cells are too big to pass through the bone marrow and flow freely in circulation, the skin will start looking pale in color. Other symptoms include dizziness, disturbed vision, mood changes, mobility problems, and mouth ulcers.