this post was submitted on 30 May 2026
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[–] lemmylump@lemmy.world 33 points 6 days ago

For fucks sakes BBC that headline is horseshit.

Shame.

[–] EndlessNightmare@reddthat.com 17 points 5 days ago

B12 is readily available at low cost. My B12 supplements cost me roughly 3 USD per annum. The money saved by a plant-based diet will cover this cost many times over.

This is a solved problem.

[–] osanna@lemmy.vg 15 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Weird. I’ve been vegan for a decade and not dead yet.

I was more actively suicidal when I ate animals than when I stopped

[–] T00l_shed@lemmy.world 0 points 5 days ago

Weird. I’ve been vegan for a decade and not dead yet.

Just you wait! Vegans only have a life span of 82 years on average (depending on your country) your time will come, and when it does, veganism will be to blame!

[–] Lettuceeatlettuce@lemmy.ml 11 points 6 days ago

I've seen more compelling writing on the back of a gum wrapper.

Absolutely pathetic, BBC.

[–] itslilith@lemmy.blahaj.zone 1 points 5 days ago

Has someone posted this to /c/vegancirclejerk@lemmy.vg yet?

[–] Greyghoster@aussie.zone 1 points 6 days ago

I suppose that limiting your diet means it now on manual and care has to be taken to ensure that it is adequate.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 77 points 1 week ago (7 children)

Killed herself is a little different from "died".

But what they are burying here is B-12 deficiency is not limited to vegans. Anyone can have it.

"Gray said Owen "reported to her family that she had bought an organic B12 supplement from Canada" and would take a daily dosage of 1mg."

Yeah, not enough. My doc has me taking 2,500mcg or 2.5mg.

Yeah I'm a vegan and obviously it's a significant problem for us, but plenty of people with a normal but shitty diet are also deficient. This isn't unique to us.

[–] rwrwefwef@sh.itjust.works 0 points 5 days ago (3 children)

Seems excessive for daily usage, you're off a few orders of magnitude.

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 3 points 5 days ago

Not if you're deficient. 😉

[–] iglou@programming.dev 1 points 5 days ago

B12 is difficult to absorb, especially in supplements. That's why we take what seems like massive amounts. What is not absorbed is flushed naturally and healthily by the body.

[–] phutatorius@lemmy.zip 1 points 5 days ago

It's water-soluble so that's OK even so. Low risk of OD unless you really go hog-wild.

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[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 56 points 1 week ago

It feels irresponsible to use that headline and not mention that most vegans don't go insane. Because some people actually do seem to think compassion diets kill you, despite the obvious empirical evidence to the contrary.

[–] DarkCloud@lemmy.world 39 points 1 week ago

Posh girl kills herself, family and courts read her personal diaries together in order to blame veganism.

[–] RIotingPacifist@lemmy.world 38 points 1 week ago (9 children)

Any sudden change in diet can have this effect, I think schools do pretty bad job of teaching kids about actual health.

Anyway if you go vegan eat marmite.

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world 33 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Georgina Owen had developed a vitamin B12 deficiency due to the diet she began in 2016

I wouldn't call 10 years sudden.

[–] LordMayor@piefed.social 17 points 1 week ago (1 children)

She died 2019 so 3 years. Still, not sudden.

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Wow 3 years to be so seriously affected by B12 deficiency!? That was quick?
I don't think that's normal. B12 is essential, but I would have thought the detrimental effects would take longer to reach that level.

[–] iglou@programming.dev 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

If you don't get any intake of B12, it takes a few years. But there are symptoms before going insane... You need to be completely deaf to your body's screaming signs to actually die from it.

[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago

The death was suicide. So not directly from B12 deficiency, but from mental illness most likely caused by B12 deficiency.

[–] Semi_Hemi_Demigod@lemmy.world 12 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Fun fact: Vegemite was sent to Australian POWs in Japanese camps to combat B vitamin deficiencies. The guards dismissed it as shoe polish.

Also, either can be used in small quantities to make gravies taste better. Makes mushroom gravy taste extra umami.

[–] phutatorius@lemmy.zip 1 points 5 days ago

Vegemite has a high level of glutamates, which are the source of the umami flavor. And it doesn't often trigger the kind of reactions that some people have to MSG, which the purified form of one particular glutamate.

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[–] HumanOnEarth@lemmy.ca 12 points 1 week ago (1 children)

First five words of that last sentence are totally unnecessary

[–] trxxruraxvr@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)

How many jars should I eat per day?

[–] P1nkman@lemmy.world 13 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] Buffalox@lemmy.world 8 points 1 week ago

The answer to everything, at least everything was part of the question.

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[–] wolfeh@lemmy.blahaj.zone 37 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Usual BBC slant on anything vegan. They are consistently doing their best to make avoiding animal products seem dangerous.

Nooch FTW. B12's important for vegans to consider, but a vegan diet doesn't make a person "delusional"... B12 deficiency does.

[–] x00z@lemmy.world 22 points 1 week ago

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.

B12 is supplemented to the animals so in reality these are also fortified foods.

[–] Humanius@lemmy.world 21 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (4 children)

Going vegan is quite a bit more involved than going vegetarian.

When eating vegetarian you can mostly kind of wing it and generally get all the nutrients you need. But when going vegan you really should make sure you know what you need to consume in order to be healthy.

Since B12 is only found in animal products, you are probably going to have to take a supplement.

[–] M137@lemmy.today 7 points 6 days ago

All store bought vegan milk drinks have B12 in my country, along with many other vegan products. I winged it but you still gotta check your levels to make sure, but that's something everyone should always do.

[–] phutatorius@lemmy.zip 3 points 5 days ago

My daughter has been vegan (with some deviations) for over 20 years. She's never had health problems related to it. She eats wakame (seaweed) and shiitake mushrooms, which are two of the few non-animal sources of B12.

[–] JasonDJ@lemmy.zip 33 points 1 week ago (4 children)

B12 is not only found in animal products.

Nooch (nutritional yeast) has tons and also an awesome cheesy-nutty flavor that compliments lots of foods.

[–] Humanius@lemmy.world 20 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

I stand corrected.

But my point was more that you need to make sure that your diet includes a source that gives you sufficient B12, which is not quite as obvious on how to get that with a vegan diet compared to a vegetarian one.

Apparently Vegemite also contains B12. But it's also high is salt, which makes it not ideal.

[–] JasonDJ@lemmy.zip 10 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Oh for sure.

I would argue that anybody could find themselves deficient of various nutrients. Not exclusively a vegan thing...but B12 is definitely difficult to get from vegan sources. Omega 3s, as well.

There's also the question of how strict a vegan is. A very strict vegan wouldn't drink most wines (due to isinglass, gelatin, egg whites used in processing), eat most mass-produced bread (diglycerides), or many sweets that contain confectioners glaze (shellac) and refuse many medications (gelatin, at the very least).

Likely such a person would also avoid otherwise non-animal foods fortified with b12, because it's uncertain where that b12 came from.

But, at the same time, vegans are also typically more aware of what they are eating and what they need to supplement. Vegans have a lot of community. At least around here. And community means awareness.

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[–] rowinxavier@lemmy.world 12 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Sad to see this play out again. Lots of people are deficient in B12 and various other essential nutrients. The worst part from my perspective is obviously the loss of life, but the second worst is how easy this is to fix. I am by no means a vegan, I definitely eat my fair share of meat and eggs, but B12 deficiency is easy enough to get, especially if you eat a lot of processed foods or have a mono diet, eating the same thing every day.

For B12 I would recommend nutritional yeast. It gives a cheesy sort of flavour and can be added to foods like beans, refried beans, ragu/bolognaise, various pasta dishes, the list goes on. A fairly small amount packs a lot of B vitamins and you can have quite a bit without any issue. It also keeps very well, just requiring an airtight container and maybe a dessicant packet for longer term storage.

If you take some tapioca starch and add it to water then slowly reduce it you can make a really nice cheese sauce substitute, very similar to Mac and cheese. Nutritional yeast adds the full flavour and colour, making it actually tasty.

[–] scala@lemmy.ml 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)
[–] rowinxavier@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)
[–] scala@lemmy.ml 1 points 5 days ago

Slang for Nutritional Yeast

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