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It would NOT help to consume B12-rich foods. I've been doing just that for months.

This afternoon at just my first consultation with what I regard as an uncommonly astute Neurologist, she ordered a blood test for a Vitamin B12 metabolite. I'll have to ask again what its name was, then write it down.

To more-concisely state my own HYPOTHETICAL addition to my exceedingly astute Neurologist's HYPOTHESIS. That is, I am not _yet_ cured of Broca's Aphasia, Short-Term Memory Loss, Long-Term Memory Loss, Brain Seizures and Dissociative Fugues:

I am genetically predisposed to Pernicious Anemia, a once-fatal genetic inability to metabolize Vitamin B12. It was ultimately cured by daily Vitamin B12 Injections. The original cure to Pernicious Anemia was to eat vast quantities of raw liver every single day! :-0

If I _do_ have Pernicious Anemia, it hasn't killed me because only my Great-Grandfather had it - but he _died_ of it. His DNA's contribution to my genome would be no more than one-eighth, because I had eight grandparents. But _chronic_ B12 deficiency is _quite_ certain to lead to bizarre, unexplainable brain disorders. Just eating such B12-rich foods as beef or yogurt is insufficient.

We know that chronic B12 Deficiency 707a11ee FUX0R5 the brain because from time to time, a Vegan doesn't clue in to that B12 is _only_ found in animal products, and doesn't know to eat Nutritional Yeast.

It's widely - and yes I Am Absolutely Serious - that fungus makes B12, but it does not. Rather, Nutritional Yeast is nutritious in other ways, and _quite_ tasty so it's common for people whose feet don't reach all the way down to the ground to season their food with it.

If your a Vegan, you don't eat _fortified_ Nutritional Yeast and you don't take B12 supplements then your entire brain will go totally on the fritz; it could even kill you.

If I understand correctly, while natural B12 is Methylcobalamin, it works just fine to take Cyanocobalamin supplements, which in my understanding can be economically synthesized whereas industrial production of Methylcobalamin cannot. But that's OK because it's the Cobalamin group that's the actual nutrient as employed by the body after being absorbed by the intestine.

Vitamin B12 Deficiency Anemia - in addition to Pernicious there are some other types - can cause "numbness in the hands and feet". I got a Code 3 ride in an ambulance Saturday evening: Lights And Sirens, but I'm afraid I didn't get to enjoy the ride. Among some other bizarre symptoms, I had numbness in my lips and the soles of my feet.

ALL the ER docs and EMTs are by now completely convinced that this is purely psychiatric. I made plain that I regarded its being due to My Sparky Brain as eminently reasonable, but pointed out that "Just knowing that won't make it go away".

They are all convinced that It's All In My Head because _all_ my symptoms are perfectly symmetric between the right and left sides of my body; Dr. Hamburg gave me a far more extensive neurological exam today, but _every_ component of that exam was intended to detect neural asymmetries. It Found None.

BUT!

Systemic brain disease in the case of B12 deficiency is actually a _blood_ disorder. Again my previous understanding was incomplete, in that I've read repeatedly that B12 is "required to make red blood cells". While strictly speaking true, B12 is required to make _every_ kind of human bodily cell.

That it's so crucial to Red Blood Cells is due to their average lifetime of forty days. That means our Red Blood Cells consume B12 far out of proportion to all our other cells.

Cobalamin is a key part of the process that transcribes DNA into Amino Acid Chains.

It happens that I'm quite certain that I have - or perhaps "had" by now - an l-Tryptophan deficiency. I'll explain this in more detail late tomorrow night, but my self-diagnosis I'm quite certain is correct due to my diet having been exceedingly poor since my divorce with Bonita.

Simply Put: cooking for one makes me miserable, I far prefer to each cold chili directly from the can with a spoon.

I've been working around my I Hate Cooking blockage by carefully and methodically selecting then eating vast quantities Of Truly Fat-Ass Lazy Yet Nutritionally Balanced Foods.

In the specific case, that's Chickpeas and Sesame Seeds - Hummus - Soy Beans - Tofu - and Sardines.

I've had a problem with my sardines so far, the ones I've got were cured with salt; I cannot tolerate eating a sardine all by itself. Just now I found it minimally acceptable to eat sardines on bread, but tomorrow I'll chop some up then stir them into Spaghetti Sauces.

This Time For Sure:

Nighty-Night! Don't Let The Code Bugs Byte. ZZZzzz...

 

Reply to: Testing...

    (Score: 3, Informative) by KilroySmith on Sunday December 09 2018, @12:42AM

    by KilroySmith (2113) on Sunday December 09 2018, @12:42AM (#771716)

    Test for:
    B-12
    Folic Acid
    Homocysteine
    Methylmalonic Acid
    Intrinsic Factor Antibodies
    Parietal cell Antibodies

    B-12 levels can be misleading - I measure low normal on B-12 despite being solidly in the PA camp. Homocysteine and Methylmalonic acid are much more sensitive tests - they'll be elevated in the case of B-12 deficiency - but they're not specific because e.g. low Folic Acid will also cause elevated HC/MMA readings. Testing for Folic Acid eliminates one of the major secondary reasons for elevation. IFA and PCA will tell whether your immune system is attacking the cells in the stomach that produce Intrinsic Factor, which permits B-12 absorption.

    There's good evidence that high-dose oral B-12 (3000 ug / day) will alleviate PA without injections. There's a secondary absorption path that doesn't use Intrinsic Factor, but it needs high doses to absorb enough B-12 to meet the body's need. Didn't work for me, but such is life.

    Good luck.

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