American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 8, 374-376, Copyright © 1960 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc.

Serum Vitamin B₁₂ Concentration in Dietary Deficiency

¹ From the Nemazee Hospital, Shiraz Medical Center, the University of Shiraz Medical School, Shiraz, Iran, and the Veterans Administration Hospital, Syracuse, New York

Serum vitamin B₁₂ concentrations in twenty-three villagers of Iran consuming a diet extremely low in animal protein and presumably in vitamin B₁₂ content did not differ significantly from that found in twenty-three villagers who ate animal protein and who presumably received adequate amounts of the vitamin. Possible explanations are offered for this finding. The serum vitamin B₁₂ concentrations were not significantly different from those found in normal persons in the United States. This study indicates that vitamin B₁₂ deficiency caused only by a deficient diet must be very rare.