Why do athletes use Vitamin B12?
Vitamin B12 has long been held in high regard for its purported capacity to increase energy, and while this claim is largely anecdotal, there is no disputing the decrease in health, performance and energy that a B12 deficiency could produce.
While serious deficiencies are not a common occurrence in normally healthy people, an athlete's body is taxed by intense workouts and dietary modifications that prevent the comparison to the "average" adult.
Toxicity of Vitamin B12
None known. Well tolerated even at high dosages.
Vitamin B12 is used in several of our formula's including: EP-NO, Athlete's Multivitamin and Rapidade Recharge.
Vitamin B12 Features:
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B12 is necessary for our nervous systems to function properly by nourishing the outer covering of our nerves called the myelin sheath, promoting healthy conduction of energy throughout the entire nervous system.
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B12 aids in the normal formation of the red blood cells that carry oxygen throughout our bodies.
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B12 decreases homocysteine levels in endurance-trained men.
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B12 metabolizes iron, carbohydrates, and fats and is needed for proper digestion and absorption of other nutrients from food.
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B12 supports memory and learning capabilities as well, aiding the formation of the powerful chemical signal in our brains acetylcholine.
Did you know for every 100 mcg (micrograms) of Vitamin B12 as little as 1 mcg may be absorbed. Some companies bost that they can get higher absorption by using sublinguial (under the tounge), liquids, capsules and patches all of which have very little to no research backing any of it.
The only way that is proven to get Vitamin B12 to absorb better is to get Vitamin B12 injections.
However the benefits of taking B12 orally everyday is that you would never need an injection. This; we believe, will help athletes stay away from needles that may eventually crossover to illegal doping.
The problem is that most companies do not use enough of a highly active amount of B12 in their formulas to make a difference. We use the right amounts with the highest activity, that ensure you are actually getting B12 in your system and is one more step in keeping athletes honest.
Vitamin B12 also comes in different forms such as, cyanocobalamin (most common), methyl-cyanocobalamin and hydroxy-cyanocobalamin at 1% to 100% activity levels.
The level of active ingredient and form that a company uses in their formula's all boils on how much you actually want to pay.
Dedicated Athlete uses the two forms, cyanocobalamin and methyl-cyanocobalamin both at 100% active.
The amounts used can help an athlete feel more energetic, speed recovery and maintain good health throughout the year.
We make sure you are getting what you are paying for.
Here is some research on Vitamin B12:
Factors affecting the response to erthyropoesis-stimulating agents
Service de nephrologie et de transplantation renale, hopital Sud, CHU d'Amiens, avenue Rene-Laennec, 80054 Amiens 01, France.
Recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) has transformed the management chronic renal failure (CKD) and considerably improved the outcome of patients on regular chronic dialysis. However, a significant number of patients fail to respond to high of Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) and several causes of inadequate response to epoetin therapy have been identified. Some factors, such as gender, age, length of time on dialysis, type of dialysis and co-morbidities such as hemoglobinopathy, are not susceptible to clinical intervention. However, many other factors can be adjusted. Iron deficiency, whether functional or absolute, is the most common factor that limits the response to rHuEPO. Monitoring of iron parameters and a large use of iron supplementation result in an efficient epoetin response. Infection and inflammation have been shown to reduce responsiveness to ESAs by disrupting iron metabolism and increasing the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines that inhibit erythropoiesis. Increase dialysis dose is associated with improvements in anemia correction and reduced requirements for ESAs. Severe hyperparathyroidism and aluminum overload lead to a reduced number of responsive erythroid progenitor cells. Finally, a number of nutritional factors, such as deficiencies of carnitine,vitamin B12, folic acid, and vitamin C, are susceptible to alter erythropoiesis. Optimizing patient response to ESAs therefore requires consideration of many of well-established factors and is important for both patient outcomes and cost of treatment.
Folate and vitamin B-12 status in relation to anemia, macrocytosis, and cognitive impairment in older Americans in the age of folic acid fortifification.
Jean Mayer US Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, Tufts University, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
BACKGROUND: Historic reports on the treatment of pernicious anemia with folic acid suggest that high-level folic acid fortification delays the diagnosis of or exacerbates the effects of vitamin B-12 deficiency, which affects many seniors. This idea is controversial, however, because observational data are few and inconclusive. Furthermore, experimental investigation is unethical. OBJECTIVE: We examined the relations between serum folate and vitamin B-12 status relative to anemia, macrocytosis, and cognitive impairment (ie, Digit Symbol-Coding score < 34) in senior participants in the 1999-2002 US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. DESIGN: The subjects had normal serum creatinine concentrations and reported no history of stroke, alcoholism, recent anemia therapy, or diseases of the liver, thyroid, or coronary arteries (n = 1459). We defined low vitamin B-12 status as a serum vitamin B-12 concentration < 148 pmol/L or a serum methylmalonic acid concentration > 210 nmol/L-the maximum of the reference range for serum vitamin B-12-replete participants with normal creatinine. RESULTS: After control for demographic characteristics, cancer, smoking, alcohol intake, serum ferritin, and serum creatinine, low versus normal vitamin B-12 status was associated with anemia [odds ratio (OR): 2.7; 95% CI: 1.7, 4.2], macrocytosis (OR: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.01, 3.3), and cognitive impairment (OR: 2.5; 95% CI: 1.6, 3.8). In the group with a low vitamin B-12 status, serum folate > 59 nmol/L (80th percentile), as opposed to < or = 59 nmol/L, was associated with anemia (OR: 3.1; 95% CI: 1.5, 6.6) and cognitive impairment (OR: 2.6; 95% CI: 1.1, 6.1). In the normal vitamin B-12 group, ORs relating high versus normal serum folate to these outcomes were < 1.0 (P(interaction) < 0.05), but significantly < 1.0 only for cognitive impairment (0.4; 95% CI: 0.2, 0.9). CONCLUSION: In seniors with low vitamin B-12 status, high serum folate was associated with anemia and cognitive impairment. When vitamin B-12 status was normal, however, high serum folate was associated with protection against cognitive impairment
Influence of training volume and acute physical exercise on the homocysteine levels in endurance-trained men: interactions with plasma folate and vitamin B12.
Department of Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Sports Medicine, Center of Internal Medicine, University of Freiburg, Germany.The interrelation between physical exercise and plasma levels of homocysteine (Hcy), vitamin B(12), and folic acid has not been examined. Therefore, we investigated the influence of extensive endurance training and acute intense exercise on plasma concentrations of total Hcy, vitamin B(12), and folic acid in 42 well-trained male triathletes. Examinations and blood sampling took place before and after a 30-day endurance training period as well as before and 1 and 24 h after a competitive exercise (sprint triathlon). Following the training period, no significant change in Hcy levels could be detected for the whole group. Subgroup analysis in quartiles of training volume revealed that - as compared with the lowest quartile (low-training group: 9.1 h training/week) - athletes in the highest training quartile (high-training group: 14.9 h training/week) exhibited a significant decrease in Hcy levels (from 12.7 +/- 2.3 to 11.7 +/- 2.4 micromol/l as compared with levels of 12.5 +/- 1.5 and 12.86 +/- 1.5 micromol/l in the low-training group; p < 0.05). The plasma folate levels were significantly higher in the high-training group at all points of examination (p < 0.05). 1 h and 24 h after competition, the Hcy concentration increased in all athletes independent of the previous training volume (24 h: 12.3 +/- 1.8 vs. 13.5 +/- 2.6 micromol/l; p < 0.001), although the increase was decisively stronger in the low-training group. 1 h after competition, the plasma folate concentration increased (7.03 +/- 2.1 vs. 8.33 +/- 2.1 ng/ml; p < 0.05) in all athletes. Multivariate analysis showed that the exercise-induced increase in the Hcy levels was dependent on baselines levels of folate and training volume, but not on the vitamin B(12) levels. In conclusion, although intense exercise acutely increased the Hcy levels, chronic endurance exercise was not associated with higher Hcy concentrations. Moreover, athletes with the highest training volume, exhibiting also the highest plasma folate levels, showed a decrease in Hcy levels following the training period as well as a much lower increase of the Hcy concentration after acute intense exercise. The combined effect of training and higher plasma folate levels to reduce Hcy should be investigated in future studies.
Homocysteine increases during endurance exercise.
Department of Clinical Chemistry/Central Laboratory, University Hospital of Saarland, Homburg/Saar, Germany.Hyperhomocysteinemia is a risk factor for cardiovascular and other diseases. Recently many endogenous and exogenous modulators of homocysteine (Hcy) have become known, e.g., B-vitamins. However, little is known about the effect of exercise on Hcy. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of three different types of acute endurance exercise on serum Hcy. We measured Hcy in 100 recreational athletes (87 males, 13 females) who participated in a marathon race (n = 46), a 100 km run (100 km; n = 12) or a 120 km mountain bike race (n = 42). Blood samples were taken before, 15 min and 3 h after the race. In athletes with pre-race Hcy > 12 micromol/l we also determined folate and vitamin B12. Marathon running induced a Hcy increase of 64%, while mountain biking and 100 km running had no significant effect on Hcy. Pre-race Hcy (25th-75th percentile) overall; marathon race; 100 km; mountain bike race was 9.7 (7.1-11.5) micromol/l; 9.8 (7.4-11.1) micromol/l; 10.2 (6.6-13.2) micromol/l; 9.1 (6.9-13.5) micromol/l, respectively. At 15 min and 3 h post-race, Hcy was 11.9 (8.4-16.4) micromol/l; 16.1 (12.7-20.4) micromol/l; 9.5 (7.8-15.9) micromol/l; 8.8 (7.1-11.2) micromol/l, respectively, and 11.5 (8.9-15.7) micromol/l; 14.9 (11.5-20.0) micromol/l; 10.0 (8.1-11.8) micromol/l; 9.4 (7.4-12.1) micromol/l, respectively. The change in Hcy correlated negatively with the running time. Twenty-three athletes had pre-race Hcy levels > 12 micromol/l, which were associated with relatively low folate (14.3 (11.6-18.9) nmol/l) and vitamin B12 levels (231 (183-261) pmol/l). Endurance exercise may induce a considerable Hcy increase, which varies between different disciplines and is most probably determined by the duration and intensity of exercise. Furthermore, about 25% of recreational endurance athletes exhibited hyperhomocysteinemia in association with low vitamin B12 and folate levels.
Comparison of the influence of volume-oriented training and high-intensity interval training on serum homocysteine and its cofactors in young, healthy swimmers.
Department of Clinical Chemistry/Central Laboratory, University Hospital of Saarland, Homburg/Saar, Germany.BACKGROUND: Since homocysteine (Hcy) is a risk factor for cardiovascular and other diseases, it is important to know how exercise can modify it. Previous studies have suggested that endurance training influences Hcy. However, little is known about the effect of training intensity on Hcy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We investigated Hcy, vitamin B12, vitamin B6, folate and methylmalonic acid (MMA) before and after 3 weeks of volume-oriented training (VOL) (30 km/week) and high-intensity interval training (HIT) (20 km/week) in 20 young swimmers (16 +/- 2 years). Afterward, the athletes completed 5 days of recovery training. RESULTS: The training induced a Hcy increase in HIT and VOL (6.47 +/- 0.95 micromol/l vs. 7.44 +/- 1.17 micromol/l and 7.33 +/- 1.92 micromol/l vs. 8.28 +/- 1.42 micromol/l, respectively) that persisted during the recovery period (8.02 +/- 1.69 micromol/l and 8.00 +/- 1.81 micromol/l, respectively). Vitamin B12 was unchanged after the training (539 +/- 166 ng/l vs. 556 +/- 192 ng/l and 480 +/- 144 ng/l vs. 491 +/- 124 ng/l, respectively) but decreased during the recovery period (459 +/- 134 ng/l and 451 +/- 116 ng/l, respectively). Folate showed an increase during the training (9.07 +/- 2.01 microg/l vs. 11.71 +/- 4.08 microg/l and 10.34 +/- 2.32 microg/l vs. 11.13 +/- 4.64 microg/l, respectively), which was reversible by the end of the recovery training (8.57 +/- 1.98 microg/l and 9.60 +/- 2.38 microg/l, respectively). Vitamin B6 and MMA did not change. For none of the measured parameters were there significant differences between HIT and VOL. CONCLUSION: Three weeks of strenuous swimming caused a prolonged Hcy increase, which was accompanied by changes in vitamin B12 and folate. The magnitude of these effects was not influenced by the training intensity.
The effect of two different doses comprising the simultaneous administration of intravenous B-complex vitamins and oral folic acid on serum homocysteine levels in hemodialysis patients.
Renal Unit, Greece.
Background: Several regimens using different doses of folic acid (FA) alone or supplemented with B-complex vitamins (BCVs) have been tested for their ability to reduce total homocysteine (tHcy) serum levels in hemodialysis (HD) patients. In the present study, we assessed the effect of two different doses comprising the simultaneous administration of intravenous (IV) BCVs and an oral FA supplementation on serum tHCy levels in HD patients. Patients-methods: In a cohort of 49 patients (31 male, 18 female) undergoing chronic HD treatment for a mean of 40.0+/-40.7 months, serum concentrations of tHcy, folate and vitamin-B12 (vB12) were determined at the end of three sequential periods as follows: 20 weeks without any BCV and/or FA supplementation (period A), 20 weeks with a dose comprising the simultaneous administration of IV BCVs and an oral supplementation of 5 mg of FA once a week (period B), and 20 weeks with a dose comprising the simultaneous administration of IV BCVs and an oral supplementation of 5 mg of FA thrice a week (period C). An IV dose of BCVs consisting of a 5 mL solution containing vitamin B(1) (250 mg), vitamin B(6) (250 mg) and vitamin B(12) (1.5 mg) was administered at the end of hemodialysis. Results: Mean serum tHcy levels were significantly higher at the end of period A relative to levels at the end of periods B and C (35.8+/-23 mumol/L vs. 22.0+/-17.6 and 15.0+/-4.5 mumol/L, respectively; p < 0.000001). Mean serum folate levels and mean serum vB12 levels were significantly lower at the end of period A relative to levels at the end of periods B and C (p < 0.000001). Mean serum tHcy levels were lowest at the end of period C (p < 0.000001 in comparison to periods A and B), and 26 of the 49 HD patients (67.3%) possessed tHcy levels below 16 mumol/L. Conclusions: In HD patients, high doses consisting of the simultaneous administration of IV BCVs and an oral FA supplementation resulted in the efficient reduction of serum tHcy levels