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Vitamin B-12 and homocysteine status in a folate-replete population: results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey.
Am J Clin Nutr 2011; 94(4):1079-87AJ

Abstract

BACKGROUND

Vitamin B-12 is an important cofactor required for nucleotide and amino acid metabolism. Vitamin B-12 deficiency causes anemia and neurologic abnormalities-a cause for concern for the elderly, who are at increased risk of vitamin B-12 malabsorption. Vitamin B-12 deficiency is also associated with an increased risk of neural tube defects and hyperhomocysteinemia. The metabolism of vitamin B-12 and folate is interdependent, which makes it of public health interest to monitor biomarkers of vitamin B-12, folate, and homocysteine in a folic acid-fortified population.

OBJECTIVE

The objective was to determine the vitamin B-12, folate, and homocysteine status of the Canadian population in the period after folic acid fortification was initiated.

DESIGN

Blood was collected from a nationally representative sample of ∼5600 participants aged 6-79 y in the Canadian Health Measures Survey during 2007-2009 and was analyzed for serum vitamin B-12, red blood cell folate, and plasma total homocysteine (tHcy).

RESULTS

A total of 4.6% of Canadians were vitamin B-12 deficient (<148 pmol/L). Folate deficiency (<320 nmol/L) was essentially nonexistent. Obese individuals were less likely to be vitamin B-12 adequate than were individuals with a normal BMI. A total of 94.9% of Canadians had a normal tHcy status (≤13 μmol/L), and individuals with normal tHcy were more likely to be vitamin B-12 adequate and to have high folate status (>1090 nmol/L).

CONCLUSIONS

Approximately 5% of Canadians are vitamin B-12 deficient. One percent of adult Canadians have metabolic vitamin B-12 deficiency, as evidenced by combined vitamin B-12 deficiency and high tHcy status. In a folate-replete population, vitamin B-12 is a major determinant of tHcy.

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  • Publisher Full Text

    • Authors+Show Affiliations

    MacFarlane AJ
    Nutrition Research Division, Health Canada, Ottawa, Canada. amanda.macfarlane@hc-sc.gc.ca
    Greene-Finestone LS
    No affiliation info available
    Shi Y
    No affiliation info available

    MeSH

    AdolescentAdultAgedBiomarkersCanadaChildCross-Sectional StudiesErythrocytesFemaleFolic AcidFolic Acid DeficiencyFood, FortifiedHealth SurveysHomocysteineHumansLegislation, FoodMaleMiddle AgedNutritional StatusObesityPrevalenceSeverity of Illness IndexVitamin B 12Vitamin B 12 DeficiencyYoung Adult

    Pub Type(s)

    Journal Article
    Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

    Language

    eng

    PubMed ID

    21900461

    Citation

    MacFarlane, Amanda J., et al. "Vitamin B-12 and Homocysteine Status in a Folate-replete Population: Results From the Canadian Health Measures Survey." The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 94, no. 4, 2011, pp. 1079-87.
    MacFarlane AJ, Greene-Finestone LS, Shi Y. Vitamin B-12 and homocysteine status in a folate-replete population: results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011;94(4):1079-87.
    MacFarlane, A. J., Greene-Finestone, L. S., & Shi, Y. (2011). Vitamin B-12 and homocysteine status in a folate-replete population: results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(4), pp. 1079-87. doi:10.3945/ajcn.111.020230.
    MacFarlane AJ, Greene-Finestone LS, Shi Y. Vitamin B-12 and Homocysteine Status in a Folate-replete Population: Results From the Canadian Health Measures Survey. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011;94(4):1079-87. PubMed PMID: 21900461.
    * Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
    TY - JOUR T1 - Vitamin B-12 and homocysteine status in a folate-replete population: results from the Canadian Health Measures Survey. AU - MacFarlane,Amanda J, AU - Greene-Finestone,Linda S, AU - Shi,Yipu, Y1 - 2011/09/07/ PY - 2011/9/9/entrez PY - 2011/9/9/pubmed PY - 2011/12/13/medline SP - 1079 EP - 87 JF - The American journal of clinical nutrition JO - Am. J. Clin. Nutr. VL - 94 IS - 4 N2 - BACKGROUND: Vitamin B-12 is an important cofactor required for nucleotide and amino acid metabolism. Vitamin B-12 deficiency causes anemia and neurologic abnormalities-a cause for concern for the elderly, who are at increased risk of vitamin B-12 malabsorption. Vitamin B-12 deficiency is also associated with an increased risk of neural tube defects and hyperhomocysteinemia. The metabolism of vitamin B-12 and folate is interdependent, which makes it of public health interest to monitor biomarkers of vitamin B-12, folate, and homocysteine in a folic acid-fortified population. OBJECTIVE: The objective was to determine the vitamin B-12, folate, and homocysteine status of the Canadian population in the period after folic acid fortification was initiated. DESIGN: Blood was collected from a nationally representative sample of ∼5600 participants aged 6-79 y in the Canadian Health Measures Survey during 2007-2009 and was analyzed for serum vitamin B-12, red blood cell folate, and plasma total homocysteine (tHcy). RESULTS: A total of 4.6% of Canadians were vitamin B-12 deficient (<148 pmol/L). Folate deficiency (<320 nmol/L) was essentially nonexistent. Obese individuals were less likely to be vitamin B-12 adequate than were individuals with a normal BMI. A total of 94.9% of Canadians had a normal tHcy status (≤13 μmol/L), and individuals with normal tHcy were more likely to be vitamin B-12 adequate and to have high folate status (>1090 nmol/L). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 5% of Canadians are vitamin B-12 deficient. One percent of adult Canadians have metabolic vitamin B-12 deficiency, as evidenced by combined vitamin B-12 deficiency and high tHcy status. In a folate-replete population, vitamin B-12 is a major determinant of tHcy. SN - 1938-3207 UR - https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/21900461/Vitamin_B_12_and_homocysteine_status_in_a_folate_replete_population:_results_from_the_Canadian_Health_Measures_Survey_ L2 - https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article-lookup/doi/10.3945/ajcn.111.020230 DB - PRIME DP - Unbound Medicine ER -