Active B12 Blood Test

 

Vitamin B12 is found in meat and animal products and is an essential vitamin for healthy life.

Symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency include anaemia, fatigue, pins and needles in your hands and feet, headaches, dizziness, confusion and depression.

 

Normal B12 tests measure the total amount of B12 in your blood. Recently evidence is increasingly showing that this test is not as accurate as we need and may produce false normal results in up to a third of patients.

 

If you have symptoms of Vitamin B12 deficiency but your B12 levels have been reported as normal the new Active B12 Test may be a useful next step to make sure your B12 deficiency has not been missed. The Active B12 test measures the level of B12 in your blood that can actually be used by your body and is therefore a more accurate measure of its B12 availability. This test is currently not available on the NHS

 

For more information please see www.pernicious-anaemia-society.org, www.thyroiduk.org.uk or www.active-b12.com.