Vitamin B12 is a water-soluble vitamin. Water-soluble vitamins dissolve in water. After the body uses these vitamins, leftover amounts leave the body through the urine. The body can store vitamin B12 for years in the liver. This vitamin, like the other B vitamins, is important for metabolism. It helps in the formation of red blood cells and in the maintenance of the central nervous system.
Vitamin B12 is found naturally in a wide variety of animal foods. Plant foods have no vitamin B12 unless they are fortified. You can get the recommended amounts of vitamin B12 by eating a variety of foods, including:
• Shellfish
• Meat, poultry, eggs, milk and other dairy foods
• Some breakfast cereals and nutritional yeasts
To find out if vitamin B12 has been added to a food product, check the nutrition fact panel on the label. If you choose to take a B12 supplement, ask your doctor what amount is right for you.
Look in our letter vitamin section for Vitamin B-12 supplements!
—Sources: National Institutes of Health
Good Neighbor Pharmacy Health Connection, January 2015
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