metformin and Vitamin B12

Hi and Welcome
I am a type1 diabetic on insulin and Metformin and yes you are right There is info on B12 defiency.
There is no need for anyone to give you a lecture we are here to help and try to keep everyone well. We can only go by own experiences.
Ask your GP to do a blood test for B12 and Vitamin D as you could be low in both of these.
I was like you i never looked after myself but i have suffered complications, I have lost my sight in the left eye and have no peripheral vision in the right eye so i have been stopped driving for 3 years now.
All i can recommend is go back to the GP, but remember diabetes can cause depression as well.
All i can say is try just testing once a day (but only if you want) i can't preach to you as i never did the same till 7 years ago.
Please keep in touch if you want, as i would like to know how you are getting on.
Take care
Tracey

Hi Morgan

I am type 2 and on metformin and also suffer with depression, though my depression was there a good 18 months before my diabetes diagnosis. You are right that vitamin B12 deficiency can be caused by metformin and can, in turn, cause depression. Because of this, I had my B12 levels checked at my last 6 month review/Hba1c test. Oddly, it was fine! However, eating all the right things and losing 9 stone in 12 months hasn't half boosted my self esteem. My depression seems to have lifted. If I hadn't been diagnosed with diabetes last year, I may still be size 24 and clinically depressed! Hang in there. I also agree that you should go back to your GP and get your B12 levels checked, then do so every time you have your review or at least twice a year.

I have had LOTS of therapy due to depression and it does work. Finding the root of the depression is key and whilst specialists try to ram CBT (cognative behaviour therapy) down our throats, it focuses mainly on positive thinking and not on the cause of the depression. Search the web for a therapy that matches your needs and talk to your GP about it. With your mental health improved, you will then feel more able to tackle the diabetes. No amount of nagging from loved ones to 'do the right thing' will work unless you are in the right mindset. I only succeeded because I could see the diabetic complications my 42 year old brother suffers and this served as a dire warning to me.

Finally, I think that access to mental health services is one of the 15 diabetic entitlement standards that have been set by the NHS as the two are often linked. :?:

Good luck, take care
Juliette x

Don't wait to be diagnosed as Vit. D deficient - just buy some Vit. D soft gels and take 'em for a week or 2! You'll soon enough know if it's making any difference...

Hi morgan
How are you today. You mentioned your not much of a "Joiner", but if you posted and talk to us on the forum perhaps we can help you in some way of keeping in touch with others. I know you said you had tried different therapies but it may be worth giving a therapy that would suit may help. I see a counsellor which is working really well, but if one doesn't suit you ask to see another, that's your rights when you start these things.
Take care
Tracey

Hi Morgan

Hope the move goes well. :thumbup: This should be an exciting phase for you and hopefully a happy one. Keep us posted about the depression and B12 thing once you're settled in. There is definitely a link between B12 deficiency and depression as B vitamins help our brain make neurotransmitters like serotonin...a lack of which causes depression. B6, B12 and folic acid work together to combat depression so it may be worth investing in a B complex supplement. I've recently bought one from Pound Land - made in Birmingham. I'll let you know if it helps.

All the best, Juliette x :crazy:

ps I had a similar experience whereby a long PM of mine deleted itself instead of getting sent. Gotta love technology! :think:

Hi there, I am the last one to give you a lecture !! I am as bad. I am very much aware I should be living on a protein diet with very little carb, I know I should not eat sausage rolls, and have sugar in my tea, I like you, am truly fed up with having to watch every mouthfull I take, having to turn down a sweet or a juicy orange. Metformin is supposed to be the safest and most effective they know. Tonight I had only half a sausage roll and a cup of tea with sugar., Blood sugar 9.5 (NZ) should be no more than 8 at the most. If I lived on cheese, eggs, fish, meat, green veg. tomatoe chicken etc. my blood sugar would be great and my cholesterol would come down. The problem is we are human and can remember when we did not have to deal with this rubbish. Cheer up, Start and see how many foods you really like, that you can eat in a plenty. My reward for neglecting my diet is now feet that are constantly numb.
Anne

I purchased a book recently "Could it be B12?" many are misdiagnosed and B12 depletion is rife.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Could-B12-An-Epidemic-Misdiagnoses/dp/1884995691/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344960071&sr=1-1-fkmr0

My Review this year flagged up a low B12 level,but not too serious .Another blood test in four months for B12 serum.

Part of a review: This book is a life saver.

I have pernicious anaemia and soon after diagnosis searched on Amazon for a relevant book. Luckily this had just been published. Sally explains all the different 'faces' of lack of B12. Why it's so important to the body and how easily it gets mixed-up with other diagnosis.

Sally explains about her own diagnosis and from her experience as a nurse in a busy out-patients, the multitude of conditions that are 'caused' by lack of B12.

Many factors contribute to the deficiency including diet, gastrointestinal pathology, autoimmune disease and medications.The clinician must be aware of the possibility of metformin-related B12 deficiency in diabetic older patients and test accordingly.

http://newvitaminb12.com/