Awareness of vitamin B12 deficiency 'suboptimal'

11 hours ago

Kris HollandEssex

Julian Owen said B12 deficiency was a major issue nationally

Getty Images A bottle of vitamin B12 supplements. A handful of round-shaped pink tablets are shown near the rim of the bottle, which has a yellow label. — Julian Owen said B12 deficiency was a major issue nationally

The father of a university student who took her own life after suffering delusional beliefs linked to a vitamin B12 deficiency said diagnosis and treatment of the issue was "suboptimal".

An inquest found Georgina Owen had developed a vitamin B12 deficiency due to a vegan diet she began in 2016 "stemming from her environmental concerns".

The 21-year-old was found unconscious at home in Saffron Walden, Essex, in September 2019 and died in hospital in Cambridge two days later.

Her father, Julian Owen, said awareness of B12 deficiency was a "major issue nationally".

Vitamin B12 is found in meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and specially fortified foods, and, according to the NHS, a deficiency can lead to psychological problems.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Owen, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, said: "This isn't just plant-based diets.

"I know that we are struggling to diagnose that, we have a very poor sensitivity test that GPs use to measure vitamin B12 in the blood and that isn't an accurate marker of a person's B12 status.

"I know that the awareness that isn't an accurate marker is poor, but growing. I know that once we diagnose a deficiency, the way we treat it isn't perfect and needs improving."

Owen said that NHS regulatory authorities "acknowledged" the shortcoming and "want to help to improve that".

Georgina Owen died at Addenbrooke's Hospital two days after being found unresponsive at home

Jozef Hall/BBC An NHS sign welcoming people to Addenbrooke's Hospital. It is blue and white and is printed with the words Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. There are bushes, pavement, a road and buildings visible. — Georgina Owen died at Addenbrooke's Hospital two days after being found unresponsive at home

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An inquest heard that Georgina Owen, who had been studying geography at Swansea University, died at Addenbrooke's Hospital on 21 September, two days after she had been found at her home address, together with a note.

Her death led to her parents, both healthcare professionals, to investigate the effects of B12 deficiency, and what they saw as gaps in awareness, testing and treatment, particularly around its psychiatric symptoms.

"This isn't about veganism," Julian Owen said.

"Many medicines we give patients in the modern era reduce your ability to absorb B12.

"A lot of people take omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor, and that stops the acid stomach and you can't absorb iron or B12 so well.

"We have a population who are at risk of micronutrient deficiency and B12 is the highlighted one here, but there is a major issue nationally about nutritional status.

"I suppose the bigger issue is to bring nutrition back onto people's awareness."

How vitamin B12 deficiency led a woman to take her own life

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