Horseman’s Health: Vegan Nutrition: Getting Enough B12?

A lot of people know that Vitamin B12 (cobalamin) is important to
health, but they may not know HOW important this vitamin is. Did
you know that Vitamin B12 is critical for:

– energy production (red blood cell production)
– a healthy nervous system
– a strong digestive system
– vibrant hair skin and nails
– antioxidant protection

So B12 is definitely important to a healthy diet. Unfortunately
B12 is also one of the vitamins that is very difficult to get
from plants. That’s bad news for vegans. If your diet consists
exclusively of food plants, chances are that you are not getting
enough B12.

Vegans and B12
If you are a vegan and want to ensure you get enough B12 in your diet, you may think that simply taking a B12 supplement is enough to cover the bases. It’s not. It turns out that your body can only absorb B12 in the biologically active form of cobalamins. So taking any random store-bought B12 pill may not help you much. Vegan nutrition is much more specific.

The good news is that there are natural sources of vegan food plants that have high levels of biologically active B12 easily
absorbed by the body. One of these sources is blue-green algae, specifically AFA (aphanizomenon flos aquae) blue-green algae from Klamath Lake. Compared to spirulina and chlorella, this AFA algae has a higher content of biologically active B12.

Whether or not you are a vegan, getting enough B12 is crucial to health. Luckily, AFA blue green algae offers a well-balanced, plant-based superfood that provides a dense source of easily absorbed B12. Health in a pill–you can’t ask for anything simpler than that!

 

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3 thoughts on “Horseman’s Health: Vegan Nutrition: Getting Enough B12?

  1. SunnyHawk

    Hi Madalyn,
    Thank you for your work on the horse classifications. I’ve only recently discovered them and the information is both powerful and fascinating.

    As a vegan, I am very interested in this new post from you and would love to know the research behind it. B12 is very much a concern of mine. I wonder, since the amount of B12 we require is so minute, if the differences in spirulina vs. AFA are really significant from a nutritional requirement perspective. Would love to hear your thoughts on that.

    Thanks again,
    Sue in Ohio

  2. Madalyn Ward, DVM Post author

    Sue,
    The source I have is Paul Pitchford who says the micro algae often contain analogs to B12. The research on AFA shows that it does not contain the analog but is active B12. I don’t know if additional research has been done on spirulina. Madalyn

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