If you experience numbness and tingling in your fingers and toes, or your muscles feel weak and tired, see a neurologist about pernicious anemia. The condition develops when your body can't absorb Vitamin B12, or cobalamin, which is an essential nutrient your body needs to maintain good red blood cell formation and healthy neurological functions. Pernicious anemia, or vitamin B12 deficiency anemia, interferes with your body's ability to make new red blood cells, which are needed to help control the functions of your nerves and muscles. Here's how a lack of B12 causes pernicious anemia and what you can do to treat it.
How Can a Lack of B12 Cause Pernicious Anemia?
Pernicious anemia doesn't develop because of an insufficiency of B12. It develops because you simply can't absorb the cobalamin that enters your digestive system. You generally get all the vitamin B12 your body needs from eating protein-based foods, such as tuna, eggs, and beef, as well as consuming vitamin-fortified foods, such breakfast cereal, and milk. In order to absorb into your body properly, the vitamin mixes with a protein called intrinsic factor, or IF, which the cells inside your stomach lining makes on a regular basis.
But if your stomach can't make the cells needed to produce IF, you won't be able to absorb cobalamin. Certain factors, such as gastric bypass surgery, digestive system diseases, and excessive stomach acids, may contribute to the reduction of intrinsic factor cells. The unabsorbed vitamin passes through your digestive system and out the body through your urine.
The red blood cells, or RBCs, in different parts of the body, including your hands, legs, and feet, begin to slow down in production. Some of the cells enlarge instead of dying to make room for new cells. The nerves in your fingers and toes begin to react to the lack of B12 by tingling. Sometimes, you don't feel any sensation in these body parts. You might even develop headaches, muscle weakness, and general unwellness because of your cobalamin deficiency.
To combat the problems above, contact a neurologist for assistance.
How Can a Neurologist Diagnose and Treat Pernicious Anemia?
Your neurologist may measure how much cobalamin is in your blood. If you have less than 110 picograms per milliliter of B12 in your blood, a doctor may diagnose you with vitamin B12 deficiency anemia and prescribe vitamin B12 injections to treat it. The injections allow cobalamin to bypass your digestive system altogether and enter your blood instead.
In most cases, the injections help increase the cobalamin and red blood cells in your body. However, you may expect to receive ongoing injections because they're the only ways to receive the B12 you need to stay healthy. A neurologist will discuss why you need the injections in greater detail during your appointment.
For more answers about pernicious anemia and vitamin B12, contact a neurologist today. If you're interested, click the following link to get more info.
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