Introducing Puori B12 Berry Booster?
A plant-based diet is becoming ever more popular due to its health, environmental and ethical benefits. Whilst eating more plants definitely provides the body with higher levels of antioxidants, fiber, and certain vitamins, specific micronutrients are often lacking in a plant-based diet compared to an omnivorous diet. One of those micronutrients is vitamin B12.
So what is vitamin B12?
Vitamin B12 is an important water-soluble vitamin that is used to make red blood cells. It is found naturally in foods like eggs, fish, and red meat, in particular organ meats like liver and kidneys. Although certain meat-free foods are fortified with B12 it is not uncommon for someone on a plant-based diet to be deficient in vitamin B12 (1). More worryingly, a deficiency can take years to develop.
It is extremely difficult to get B12 from plants. Research suggests that fermented soy products such as tempeh, seaweed, and certain mushrooms (e.g. Shiitake) may have a very small amount of B12, but you would have to eat a huge amount of them in order to meet your daily requirements. To give you some perspective, 100g of shiitake mushrooms contain only 1.3–12.7 μg/100 g dry mushrooms (2)
Why is B12 important?
Vitamin B12 plays a key role in the body, in particular keeping our nerves and blood cells healthy. Deficiency of vitamin B12 can lead to a type of anaemia (inaccurately often thought of as a condition only caused by iron deficiency), known as megaloblastic – meaning the body produces abnormally large red blood cells.
Symptoms of megaloblastic anaemia are fatigue, a change in bowel habits, and an enlarged liver, as well as a tingling or burning sensation on the skin. Shortness of breath is also a classic symptom.
In cases of extreme B12 deficiency, individuals can actually develop potentially irreversible and severe neurological disorders (damage to the nervous system and brain - such as psychosis, mania and dementia) as well as an increased risk of heart failure. So, as you can see, B12 is a really important nutrient and whether you are getting enough should be considered when eating a plant-based diet (3).
B12 is also particularly important in those who exercise regularly, as the large red blood cells caused by megaloblastic anaemia are less efficient at carrying oxygen than their healthy counterparts. For that reason, if you want to perform your best in high intensity or endurance exercise you want an adequate store of vitamin B12 in your body.
Puori Vitamin B12 Berry Booster
Puori Vitamin B12 Berry Booster with Nordic wild blueberries was designed in collaboration with Green Kitchen Stories’ David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl. They are the couple behind an award-winning vegetarian food blog and app. David and Luise are also acclaimed authors of five vegetarian cookbooks that have now been published in more than 15 languages. Perhaps not surprisingly, they have gained followers all over the world and have assisted many along the path towards greener eating habits for 10 years.
We use vitamin B12 in the nature bioidentical form of methylcobalamin which has superior bioavailability (4). Puori Vitamin B12 Berry Booster contains 500µg per serving and comes as an easy to absorb stick pack. We recommend taking a stick once or twice per week. Our high-quality B12 is mixed with hand-picked wild Nordic blueberries (also known as bilberries). Not only does this provide a fresh berry taste, and vivid color, but it is packed with natural flavonoids in concentrations much higher than shop-bought blueberries. In fact, wild bilberries can have up to four times the antioxidants of supermarket blueberries.
We add a touch of organic fermented stevia to balance the taste.
The stick pack is versatile enough so that you can take the product on its own, or mix it into a liquid of your choice, or make a smoothie. Additionally, you can use it to top up yogurt, chia pudding, or your favorite oatmeal.
Here at Puori, we do everything we can to ensure that the products you enjoy are the best they can be. Puori B12 booster is no different, we third-party test Puori Vitamin B12 Berry Booster through the Clean Label Project, and publish results for you to access readily, online.
The product is vegan certified by the Vegan Society and is also GMP certified to ensure that the product is manufactured in the best way possible. Not only that but you can be assured that our packaging is sustainable, the bottle is made from 100% recycled PET as with all our products in the Vegan Line and for Puori Vitamin B12 Berry Booster we use a Forest Film™ label, so it can be recycled.
References:
- Mądry, E., Lisowska, A. and Grebowiec, P., 2012. The impact of vegan diet on B-12 status in healthy omnivores: five-year prospective study. Acta scientiarum polonorum Technologia alimentaria, 11(2), pp.209-212.
- Watanabe, F., Yabuta, Y., Bito, T. and Teng, F., 2014. Vitamin B12-containing plant food sources for vegetarians. Nutrients, 6(5), pp.1861-1873.
- Stabler, S.P. and Allen, R.H., 2004. Vitamin B12 deficiency as a worldwide problem. Annu. Rev. Nutr., 24, pp.299-326.
- Paul, C. and Brady, D.M., 2017. Comparative Bioavailability and Utilization of Particular Forms of B12 Supplements With Potential to Mitigate B12-related Genetic Polymorphisms. Integrative Medicine: A Clinician's Journal, 16(1), p.42.
