Vitamin B12 deficiency

[pleasehelpme123105]

Hello Doctor,

I'm 31 years old. My problems started about two months back. After having a spicy meal i started having tingling problem in my tongue.
At the tip of the tongue i started getting tiny little red spots. This got followed with  somekind of dry sensation in my mouth especially on th gums . I also started developing some kind tingling sensation on my palm (left hand). This tingling sensation is quite frequent. Ocassionally i get this tingling even in my toes. I visited my primary care physician
and she said that the tingling could be corpal tunnel syndrome and for my mouth she asked to change my toothpaste
and avoid spicy food. But these symptoms kept on  coming on and off.  In addition to this i also started getting persistent headaches accompanied with some kind of dizziness but i never fainted. Having developed these symptoms
i made a doctor visit again and she did a regular blood checkup and figured out that my vitamin b12 content was low ( in the order of 150). She confirmed that all these  symptoms are due  to vitamin b12 deficiency.  She has prescribed
vitamin b12 tablets and has also given b12 injections for the last one month on a weekly basis.  Its been a month but none of these symptoms have subsided. They reappear again. I just wanted to know about the recovery of my body due to vitamin b12 deficiency. How long does it take for the body to absorb the b12 so that symptoms go way. SHould my vitamin b12 shots intake need  to be increased ( on a daily basis). After regularly getting b12 injections every week i also started getting tiny red spots like pimples on my face. But they go off in a day or two. Is this
a side effect of the shots?

Please advise me appropriately.

[Dr Rajgopal]

Hi,
Paresthesias are a symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency. Pimples on the face do manifest as a common symptom of allergy after taking vitamin B12  injections. It may take some time to recover from the deficiency. Please continue your supplements. Do not increase the frequency of injections. Taking too much more than required does not solve the purpose. The body absorbs the required dose and excretes the excess through urine. Do continue the supplements till you feel better. A long term deficiency causes a serious damage to the nerves which may take a lot of time to recover. Hope this helps you. Take care and regards!

[pleasehelpme123105]

Thanks Dr Rajagopal. Thanks for your advise. So i need to have patience and should be
regularily taking supplements so that all the symptoms like dizziness, headache and dry mouth go away.

Thanks
Mohan

[pleasehelpme123105]

Hello Dr Rajagopal,

Normally how many months/years does it take to recover from the b12 deficiency prblems?

[Cath278]

Hi.I suffered last yr from Vit B6+B12+ folic acid deficiency.At first, I was receiving  B12 injections but I didnt seem to be getting any better. I also had neuropathy.  After 5 mths I had a review and I was started on folic acid supplements.With in 6 weeks I started to feel better.I was taking the folic acid for 8 mths and gradually started to feel  myself again. I still have a small problem with the neuropathy but it is getting better by the day. Please dont stop taking your meds.If you are not sure, ask your dr about it.It does take time to recovery, but you will.Cath278.