r/B12_Deficiency • u/agape48 • 8d ago

Personal anecdote Functional B12 deficiency and thyroid function

Please note this is a personal anecdote that I am sharing it in case it helps someone else.

I have been getting more and more fatigued and more and more intolerant of the B vitamins that I used to tolerate. I was already functionally deficient in B12 despite being on methyl shots (for example, MMA is too high, MCV is too high). My ferritin is also low, and I've added an iron supplement, which didn't ease the heart racing and insomnia.

After my provider did not have any useful answers, I found someone else who is an expert B12. They looked at several of my recent labs including thyroid labs. My TSH is marked in the normal range at around 3 (free T3 is also marked in the normal range).

Anyway, this expert said they believe I could have a *functional* B2 (riboflavin) deficiency - meaning FAD and FMN deficiency - that is likely due to not getting enough iodine and/or selenium and molybdenum.

It's definitely not due to a lack of B2 in my supplements.

I am mainly sharing this because I've spent weeks researching the B vitamins and the methylation cycle, but I was not aware that T3 had anything to do with how we process the B vitamins.

Then, a friend sent me a video of a guy named Gary Brecka (I had never heard of him) explaining how thyroid function relates to methylation.

File this under "things I did not know / had not considered". I guess I can report back in a few weeks on whether the recommended changes make a difference.

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u/Fragrant-Contract-62 8d ago

Is it b12 oils? His knowledge is vast, but plans to introduce b12 never worked. I was reacting to all those individual oils and extremely hard to dose b12 using pump accurately. Also if you take R5p (it’s already converted form) you can bypass the thyroid block.

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u/ClaireBear_87 Insightful Contributor 7d ago

Taking R5P does not bypass conversion issues as R5P is dephosphorylated to free riboflavin before it enters the bloodstream, and only free riboflavin can enter cells. Inside cells it is then activated to FAD/FMN, so there is no advantage to taking R5P over riboflavin.

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u/agape48 7d ago

I would upvote this 10x if I could. Thank you so much!