What is vitamin B12 for?

Vitamin B12 is one of the eight B vitamins. It’s an essential vitamin that plays a role in supporting energy release, your immune system and your psychological function. It’s found naturally in animal products and some fortified foods.

Table of contents

How vitamin B12 helps the body

What is the recommended daily dose for vitamin B12?

Where vitamin B12 is found

How vitamin B12 helps the body

Energy – Vitamin B12 helps to support energy release and reduce tiredness & fatigue
Immunity – Vitamin B12 helps to support your immune system
Psychological function – Vitamin B12 contributes to normal psychological function
Nervous system – Vitamin B12 contributes to the normal function of your nervous system
Blood – Vitamin B12 supports the formation of red blood cells

What is the recommended daily dose for vitamin B12?

Adults (aged 19 to 64) need about 1.5 micrograms a day of vitamin B12 which is 100% NRV.
NRV stands for nutritional reference value.

Like all B vitamins, vitamin B12 is water-soluble. This means that it cannot be stored in your body, so you need to replenish it regularly. You should be able to get all the vitamin B12 you need from a healthy and balanced diet.

Where is vitamin B12 found?

Vitamin B12 is found naturally in animal products. This means meat, especially red meat like beef, fish like tuna and salmon, eggs, and dairy products like milk, cheese and yoghurt. Vitamin B12 does not naturally occur in vegetables or grains, which means vegans may not get enough from their diet alone.

Vegan or vegetarian sources of vitamin B12 are typically in the form of fortified foods (foods that have added vitamins), like certain breakfast cereals.

Berocca also contains vitamin B12, and it's absolutely fine to glug down a Berocca every day – in fact, we recommend it!