Hello all, Does anyone else rely on Bolthouse Farms juice drinks (found in the produce section of nearly every grocery store) for their b12 intake? I recommend these drinks to all. Their Vanilla Soy Tea has 195% b12 for one 8 oz serving!!! That's incredible. Should one consume this drink regularly with cereal or just as is (it's very good) there's no need for b12 pills correct? You would be getting more than enough. I rather drink a glass of this a day than take a pill.

Just curious: I love Bolthouse beverages, but I believe sublingual b12 works better/is better absorbed than b12 you eat/drink.

I LOVE Perfectly Protein. The authors of Becoming Vegan that fact-packed nutrition guide, think B12 fortified foods are perfectly adequate... in fact they highlighted it in the text:

"The B12 present in supplements and fortified foods can be relied on and is well absorbed." p.127

However, I have read in another source (can't remember where or how reliable) that large doses aren't that helpful as your body simply excretes the extra, and a large dose may trigger your body to excrete too much. Becoming Vegan doesn't metnion that, so I'm not sure what to think, but I've read that several different times in connection to different vitamins.

Interesting!! I've always heard over the years that vegans need sublingual lozenges or injections of b12, but I'm not sure of the specific source of that data.
I play it safe with lozenges now, in addition to fortified vegan foods.
(Like Bolthouse Juices- mmmmm- love the Green Goodness one!!):pibo:
Another "fact" about b12: you can store it for a long time in your body. MY doctor says that's why I never showed deficiency for years after my meat-eating ended.
Actually- I wonder about this sometimes!! Carnivore propaganda?

Another "fact" about b12: you can store it for a long time in your body. MY doctor says that's why I never showed deficiency for years after my meat-eating ended.
Actually- I wonder about this sometimes!! Carnivore propaganda?

I can tell you what Becoming Vegan says (which I think is a pretty trustworthy, thorough, and objective resource, so it's become my nutrition bible). It discusses a couple of different studies on B12 status of vegans and included people who had been vegan anywhere from 1-28 years, as well as vegans who used/did not use supplements. Some of the vegans who didn't use supplements had dropped below the normal range, while some were still within the low end of the normal range, but all the non-supplement useres were lower than the supplement users, who were all comfortably within the normal range.

Conclusion as stated in the text:

People have a range of responses to having no dietary intake of B12. Some take longer to become depleted, due to efficient reabsorption of the vitamin. However, slowly but surely over time, serum levels drop without regular intakes. It also shows that some vegans have not recognized the need for dietary intake of this essential nutrient. [p. 126]

It would have been even more helpful if they had plotted B12 serum levels versus years of veganism/no supplements so we could see if there's a clear relationship. But the existence of two separate groups, one with low-but-acceptable serum levels, and one with too-low levels, suggests there might not be. More likely there are efficient recyclers and inefficient recyclers, and everyone who isn't supplementing goes down at a different rate.