This is fundamentally due to the exclusion of entire food groups which, in the diet of man - an omnivorous animal - perform functions that are very difficult to replace. It is certainly no coincidence that meat, fish products and eggs on the one hand, and milk and derivatives on the other hand, they are collected under what are defined as the I ° and II ° fundamental group of foods.
Below we will try to understand first of all the basics of the vegan diet, the general information on vitamin B12, the risks attributable to a possible deficit and, finally, how to prevent or treat the chronic deficiency of this very important nutrient.
belonging to the plant kingdom (Plantae), bacteria (Bacteria) and fungi (Fungi).
It does not include any part of the animal organism (meat, offal, etc.), eggs, secretions of all kinds and derivatives (milk and dairy products, honey, royal jelly, propolis, etc.). Apart from mammals, it obviously also excludes birds, fish, crustaceans, molluscs, insects and arachnids - let's not forget that in other parts of the world it is also customary to consume these creatures.
It also eliminates drugs, supplements and cosmetics obtained through animal testing or that contain ingredients that are not allowed - including excipients - silk and wool-based clothing, and vegetables grown using fertilizers of animal origin (flour, blood, horns and bones beef, fish meal, etc.).
of group B.The biological roles of cobalamin are:
- promoting the transfer of an H (hydrogen) ion between two neighboring C (carbon) atoms and of the same molecule;
- reduction of ribonucleotides to deoxyribonucleotics;
- transfer of a methyl group in the same molecule.
In the "mammalian organism, this translates into very important functions:
- synthesis of methionine from homocysteine;
- isomerization of methylmalonylCoA into SuccinylCoA.
Ultimately, in man, vitamin B12 is essential to various metabolic processes, with great involvement in:
- DNA synthesis;
- metabolism of fatty acids;
- synthesis of amino acids.
Ultimately, nerve tissues and erythrocytes (red blood cells) seem to have a greater need for cobalamin.
This is why cobalamin is considered a vital nutrient for the correct development of the central nervous system (CNS) of the embryo-fetus and for the process of erythropoiesis (formation of the red cellular elements of the blood).
