Yes, vitamin B12 deficiency can significantly affect the ears, leading to issues like hearing loss (especially in older adults and children) and tinnitus (ringing in the ears) by damaging nerves in the cochlea, impairing blood flow, and interfering with nerve protection (myelin sheath). It's crucial for auditory health, and low levels are linked to poorer hearing thresholds, requiring further research but suggesting supplementation might help.
[23] Vitamin B12 deficiency may cause the demyelination of neurons in the cochlear nerve, resulting in hearing loss and tinnitus.
Symptoms of vitamin B12 or folate deficiency
The role of vitamin D deficiency has been attributed to cochlear deafness, Meniere's disease and otosclerosis including cochlear otosclerosis representing with trough shaped pure tone audiogram with a dip during 1 and 2 kHz frequencies [17].
A total of 17 were revealed to be B12 deficient when compared to a normal level of 250 pg/ml. With 42.5% of the patients, this is a significantly high prevalence. After six weeks, the results showed that patients in Group A saw improvements in their mean tinnitus severity index scores.
Tinnitus has been linked to vitamin B12 and vitamin D deficiencies. Vitamin B12 helps create myelin, which is the insulating and protective cover that surrounds the nerves. Vitamin B12 deficiency can irritate and hamper the function of nerves in the ear.
The study found that lower serum levels of folate and vitamin B12 were significantly associated with increased hearing thresholds in high frequencies. Additionally, advancing age was found to have a significant impact on hearing thresholds in speech frequencies and serum levels of vitamin B12.
Sudden, specific food cravings, beyond the usual sweet or salty desires, might signal nutrient deficiencies like Vitamin B12. Craving meat, fish, or eggs could indicate a B12 shortage, especially in older adults, potentially causing irritability or memory issues.
Cutaneous manifestations associated with vitamin B12 deficiency are skin hyperpigmentation, vitiligo, angular stomatitis, and hair changes. A diagnosis of vitamin B12 deficiency is often overlooked in its early stages because these signs are not specific to vitamin B12 deficiency alone.
Vitamin B12 deficiency can also cause symptoms that affect your brain and nervous system (neurological symptoms), including: numbness. muscle weakness. psychological problems, which can range from mild depression or anxiety, to confusion and dementia.
Vitamin B12 deficiency anaemia is usually treated with injections of vitamin B12, called hydroxocobalamin. At first, you'll have these injections every other day for 2 weeks or until your symptoms have started improving. Your GP or nurse will give the injections.
Neurological changes
Fatigue and weakness
Chronic fatigue is one of the most common and overlooked signs of vitamin deficiency. If you find yourself constantly tired, even after a good night's sleep, a lack of vitamin B12 might be to blame.
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV) has been linked with low vitamin D levels for many years. While BPPV typically occurs without a known cause, decreased levels of vitamin D in the blood has been associated with increased recurrence of BPPV (1).
Hearing loss is the most common sensory disorder in the US, afflicting over 36 million people. Higher intakes of vitamins C, E, beta carotene, B12 and folate have been proposed to reduce the risk of hearing loss.
Vitamin B-12 deficiency increases your risk of noise-induced hearing loss, age-associated hearing loss and tinnitus (ringing in the ears). Vitamin D deficiency can cause bone loss as well as cause abnormal bone growth in the middle ear. Low protein intake can impact auditory capacity.
Morning is the best time to take vitamin B12, ideally on an empty stomach. Here's why: B12 helps convert food into cellular energy (via methylation and ATP production), so taking it earlier supports your body's natural circadian rhythm. Taking it late in the day may increase alertness or interfere with sleep.
In conclusion, our results show that lower vitamin B12 was associated with insomnia symptoms and sleepiness in specific groups of participants. However, further research with objective measurements of sleep is crucial to assess the relationship between sleep and vitamin B12.