I have often heard the argument around B12 and a raw diet, if we are meant to live on a Raw Food Plant Based diet, and there are no sources from plants, how did people survive before the use of synthesized supplements to get their B12 when they followed this type of diet?
Well, the good news is before the sanitized life we now live, it was actually easier for people to get their B12. All the natural Vitamin B12 in the world ultimately comes from bacteria found in the soil that plants grow in. Some folk argue that meat is the only true source of B12. Well, the truth of the matter is, neither plant nor animal are the source of B12.
This quote from The Vegetarian Way, by Virginia Messina, explains “Neither plants nor can animals synthesize B12. But plants can be contaminated with B12 when they come in contact with soil bacteria that produce it. Animal foods are rich in B12 only because animals eat foods that are contaminated with it or because bacteria living in an animals intestines make it”.
Historically, when we grew our own food and harvested it ourselves from our gardens and farms, and possibly weren’t so obsessed with germs and cleanliness, I’m sure we got all the B12 we needed from the consumption of a little dirt in our diet!
Secrets of the Kind Living Cafe Chefs
How many times do you eat at a cafe or restaurant and think… hmm, I wish I could make that at home. Well, our wonderfully cheeky customers actually asked us all the time for the recipes that we made.
So here they are… our most popular dishes, all in one book. Filled with ideas and health tips, you will be preparing food like our amazing chefs in no time.
I’m not suggesting we abandon our more superior health practices of modern times, when we can get supplements to do the job, bearing in mind, we only need 2-3 micrograms per day. As our liver, kidneys and muscles store it, and most B12 is re-absorbed by the body anyway, getting our daily requirement really isn’t hard.
Vitamin B12 is essential for proper functioning of the brain and nervous system and a true deficiency can be life threatening. If you are genuinely concerned about being deficient, you may want to have a test. Modern diets of processed acid foods can harm our ability to absorb B12, as well as the use of antibiotics, alcohol and cigarette smoking.
It is a myth that all vegans are B12 deficient. Some have suggested that meat eaters are more likely to have a vitamin B12 deficiency as meat and dairy are actually a poor source of B12 as they are cooked, which will destroy the Vitamin B12.
B12 fortified rice and soy milks, nori (seaweed) and mushrooms all contain small amounts of B12, and if these foods are consumed on a regular basis, they may help maintain adequate stores of B12 in the body.
Nutritional yeast is another great source of B12 when you follow a plant based diet. It has a nice cheesey flavour and you can just sprinkle it over your salads.
My suggestion is we should go back to nature as much as possible and not be scared by germ phobic advertising that advise us to scrub our vegetables and fruits. Buy organic and eat home-grown or wild foods and do not clean them too fanatically! For some beautiful recipes for nutritional yeast, check out our recipe book “Kind Living Kitchen“.
