B12...the search continues

Since sharing my first blog, I have received questions about B12 and what kind I am taking/how much etc.  I first want to say that this information is my journey and is not my promoting the use of the vitamin for weight loss.  My husband's favorite quote is "knowledge is power" and that is what I am doing.  I want people to be informed enough to make the decision for themselves. 

As a pharmacist, I get questions all the time from customers who are tired and lack energy.  Other than getting the proper amount of sleep, our recommendation has been good ole' vitamin B.  I usually recommend the B-complex because of the benefits those B vitamins.  There is a product in a liquid that you use sublingually (there's that word again....so there must be something in using it that way) that contains all the B vitamins...

I'm going off on a tangent right here to give some good information that I learned when I was on one of my rotations during pharmacy school.  My FAVORITE preceptor had an extensive OTC (over the counter) review which asked questions about what ingredient was in each product, how it worked and who would benefit from them.  She also encouraged me to learn the RDA of each of the vitamins.  (RDA is recommended daily allowance) and well, that was almost 20 years ago and although I do not remember those exact numbers, I do remember many things that have been very helpful over the past 16 years as a pharmacist....so here is our pharmacy lesson for today......
How do you remember which number correlates with the  B vitamins.  This is catchy and you won't forget it!!!
The  "B" vitamin              It's "B" number                                 Word to remember
Thiamine                                B1                                                           "The"
Riboflavin                              B2                                                         "Rabbit"
Niacin                                     B3                                                         "Never"
Pyridoxine                             B6                                                           "Peels"
Cyanocobalamin                   B12                                                       "Carrots"

Now this information may not be helpful to most of you, but if you are a student in the medical field or just would like to know something catchy to impress your friends, here you go.  Some of you might be thinking "Hey smartie, there are other B vitamins that you haven't listed" and well, that is correct...there are four more, but they didn't fit in this cute little saying so we won't be too worried about those.  But feel free to come up with a phrase that includes all of the B vitamins if you fell like it.  :-)

So back to B12 and it's possible use in weight loss?  Is it safe to take B vitamins at any quantity?  My answer as a pharmacist if someone were to ask me this at my pharmacy would be---B vitamins are water soluble meaning the body takes what it needs an eliminates the rest.  I just googled this to see if anything has changed since I was in pharmacy school and learned that there are some problems if you take too much of some of the B vitamins.  According to Wiki (I know, not a solid resource but we all use it daily), there is no known toxicity of taking too much B12.  I do not encourage taking excessive amounts without talking to your physician first.  Remember, my blog is to relay my personal journey or what I call my own clinical trial where I am the lab rat so please do your own research before you take amounts that are above what is recommended on the product package.

I will now begin my search of what the experts say about B12 and weight loss.  So far what I have found is very interesting.  But I will close with what I have found that makes me feel encouraged....

B12 is used in the metabolism of fat and protein for energy...HELLO...metabolism???? and more importantly metabolism of FAT???  Isn't that what has stopped working in my body over the past five years??  I am intrigued......