- Messages
- 8,470
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
Hi All,Hi,
I've had type 2 diabetes for over15 years now and I controll it pretty well. I started to feel very tired,falling asleep a lot which doesn't make the wife happy. My doctor sent me for a comprehensive blood test including B12. When I got the results my B12 level was very low 78. normal is between 200 and 900.
I looked this up on the internet and found out something called the intrinsic factor which has to do with absorbing the B12 from food. I was then sent for another blood test to see if I had the intrinsic factor and the results came back that I did ,so I didn't have pernicious anemia.My malabsorption came from the various drugs that I take, Metformin Lansoprazole and several others .But taking these drugs over a long time can deplete your store of B12 I had to have six injections over two weeks to bring my B12 levels up and I've just had the first of my three monthly injections.
So just be aware that if you have been on Metformin for over ten years when you have a routine blood test get your doctor to include B12
I was on another thread and posted that I had just been diagnosed as having anemia. This derailed the thread I was in, so I called a halt and said I would make a dedicated thread for this instead, so here I am.
Yes I too have a low feritin level, with low RBC count (red count). I have been on Metformin for over 10 years, and on 2g/day for most of that time. But, surprisingly my B12 levels are fine, so that is not the reason. I am also on Lansaprazole, which can also affect metabolism of iron, but I moved this dose well into the evening so it reduced this possibility, but my levels stayed low. I was also severely Low Carbing, and wondered if this was to blame in some other way, but again this seemed unlikely. But I did increase my Vit C intake just in case. My HbA1c is 43 (7,1mmol/l avg) so I am in good bgl control.
My GP suggested a load of invasive tests I could go for, but I declined, and suggested iron supplementation instead. After 2 months of reasonably high intake my ferritin level has recovered (it takes 2 or 3 months to recover, (i.e. like HbA1c) and my folate and B12 are fine, but my RBC is still low. GP is not worried now, and we agreed to halve my iron supplement for another 2 months and then review. I have also halved my Metformin dose and halved my Gliclazide intake too, I have also cut my Furusomide diuretic to 1/3.
One thing I did find out is that a large percentage of diabetics have anemia of one sort or another. Last year the ADA reported that something like 40% of registered diabetics in USA are anemic, and I found a study report that stated 86% of the T2 diabetic test subjects were anemic, (unfortunately its a Medscape report, and requires subscription fee) The WHO stats say around 4% of general population is the normal prevalence.
I have some diabetic friends here who have been through the usual tests (top and bottom endoscopy, biopsy, MRI, NRM and various blood tests, but so far none has had a Eureka moment. So whatever it is that I have, it seems to be common among diabetics, and seems to continue to be elusive.
If my GP is no longer panicking, then why should I? He looked over my past history notes, and apparently I have always been borderline anemic, so it seems this is the way I was built.
There may be more here who have this condition but who do not know, since the normal annual GP tests here in the UK do not normally test Whole Blood Count.