Vitamin B-12 and other B vitamins play a role in producing brain chemicals that affect mood and other brain functions. Low levels of B-12 and other B vitamins such as vitamin B-6 and folate may be linked to depression.
B vitamins are known for their mood-altering properties. They can help fight fatigue, improve your memory, and allow you to function all-around with more clarity. Deficiencies in B vitamins, including Thiamine (B1), Riboflavin (B2), and B12, can lead to depression, anxiety, fearfulness, and irritability.
Vitamin B1 (thiamine): The brain uses this vitamin to help convert glucose or blood sugar into fuel, and without it the brain rapidly runs out of energy. This can lead to fatigue, depression, irritability and anxiety.
Deficiency of Vitamin B12 can result in hematological changes, neurological and psychiatric problems, which can manifest as irritability, changes in personality, depression, and memory loss [9]. It is also known to worsen depression by excitotoxic reactions caused by the accumulation of homocysteine [10].
How to raise your B12 levels fast. The most common way to treat B12 deficiencies is by adjusting your diet. If this is unsuccessful, vitamin supplements may be recommended. If you're looking to boost the amount of vitamin B12 in your diet, you should eat more animal products, like meat, seafood, dairy and eggs.
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.
Irritability causes include vitamin deficiencies, hormonal imbalances, or lifestyle triggers (such as increased stress). Symptoms of severe vitamin B1 (thiamine) and B6 deficiencies may include irritability.
A shortage of copper or magnesium in the diet may affect human behavior, according to scientists with USDA's Agricultural Research Service.
Oily fish such as sardines, anchovies, mackerel, herring and salmon. Fish is high in the omega 3 fatty acids needed for brain health. Nuts and seeds, especially pumpkin and sesame seeds as they contain important minerals to help regulate mood. Bananas are high in B6, a nutrient required for serotonin production.
Some anticonvulsant medication can be used to help stabilise mood. You may also hear these drugs referred to as anti-epileptic medication. Anticonvulsants which are used as mood stabilisers include: carbamazepine (Tegretol)
Adaptogens: maca, turmeric, ashwagandha, panax ginseng, Rhodiola rosea. More magnesium: greens, pumpkin seeds, black beans, Epsom salt baths. Turmeric has been shown to boost serotonin and dopamine, which both improve mood. Avoid refined carbs: white pasta, bread and high sugar foods.
As I mentioned, B vitamins serve an important part in the production of mood-boosting brain chemicals, including dopamine. These vitamins, particularly B12 and folate, have been shown to help maintain a positive mood.
In females, mood swings may occur as part of the typical hormonal fluctuations that occur during the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, or menopause. They can also be the result of medical conditions that require treatment.
When vitamin D levels are low and the body isn't able to properly absorb calcium and phosphorus, there is an increased risk of bone pain, bone fractures, muscle pain and muscle weakness. In older adults, severe vitamin D deficiency (levels less than 10 ng/mL) may also contribute to an increased risk of falls.
You can become deficient in vitamin D for different reasons: You don't get enough vitamin D in your diet. You don't absorb enough vitamin D from food (a malabsorption problem) You don't get enough exposure to sunlight.
Details. Use the CVS Health At Home Vitamin D Test Kit to get accurate and comprehensive results in the privacy and comfort of your own home. Simply collect your blood sample using this convenient kit, mail it to the lab, and receive your results through a secure online portal in just a few days.
It's common to feel irritable from time to time, but if you feel unusually irritable or irritable all the time or on edge, it is important that you talk to your doctor as it could be a symptom of a mental health condition, like depression, anxiety or bipolar disorder, or a physical condition.
Too much stimulation
Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol can affect mood, particularly if you're drinking/smoking a lot, and especially late into the night. Stimulants have a knock-on effect, meaning that too much stimulation affects your sleep, which then causes irritability when you're sleep-deprived.
Thyroid dysfunction can influence mood and cause mood swings. Hypothyroidism can be the result of low thyroid hormone and high cortisol levels. This can affect sleep, energy and appetite, all of which can impact mood. In general, out of balance hormones can affect mood.
Several commercially available test kits allow you to collect a sample for vitamin B12 testing at home. Some kits test only your vitamin B12 level. Others test B12 in combination with other vitamins, and there are at-home micronutrient test kits that include B12 in the panel.
Stage 1 is decreased levels of vitamin B12 in the blood. Stage 2 is low concentration of vitamin B12 in the cell and metabolic abnormalities. Stage 3 is increased levels of homocysteine and MMA and decreased DNA synthesis resulting in neuropsychiatric symptoms. Stage 4 is macrocytic anemia.
It may take a few weeks before your vitamin B12 levels and symptoms (such as extreme tiredness or lack of energy) start to improve. If you have hydroxocobalamin injections to boost your vitamin B12 levels at the start of treatment, the cyanocobalamin tablets may start to work within a few days.