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This substance, also nicknamed vitamin B9 (folic acid), is important for our health and helps the body create and repair DNA and also produce red blood cells.
If you are deficient in it, certain symptoms may appear and you may even develop anemia, a condition in which your internal organs do not receive the required amount of oxygen to function properly. We bring you a list of 10 symptoms that will warn you that you are missing folic acid.
Cognitive problems:
Folic acid is extremely important for our central nervous system. If the body lacks this vitamin, you may experience depression, concentration problems, begin to forget and react irritably to everything. If you do not address this problem, disorders such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease may even occur.
Body pains:
In severe cases of anemia caused by folic acid deficiency, your brain does not receive enough oxygen. The brain’s arteries begin to swell and you start to get headaches. However, your brain is not the only organ that suffers from lack of oxygen, so you may also feel pain in other parts of the body, especially in the chest and legs.
Pale skin:
Hemoglobin, the protein contained in red blood cells, is responsible for carrying oxygen from the lungs to all our tissues. When your body lacks vitamin B9, you have a deficiency of red blood cells (and hemoglobin) and your body therefore cannot supply your internal organs with the necessary amount of oxygen. Because of this you may feel muscle weakness, fatigue, numbness in the hands and feet, and your skin may pale.
Digestive problems:
Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhea after eating can also be the first signs that your body lacks folic acid. You may also develop anorexia, which leads to significant weight loss.
Shortness of breath:
If you have noticed that you suddenly can’t climb stairs as briskly as before without becoming breathless, which didn’t happen before, it means you have a low oxygen level in your body because you are missing red blood cells. You may also notice an increased heart rate, dizziness and you may even faint.
Swollen tongue and canker sores:
These symptoms usually appear when a person suffers from a severe folic acid deficiency and you should no longer ignore them. Your tongue swells, is red and shiny, usually around the tip and edges. Because of the reduced number of red blood cells you may feel pain when swallowing or canker sores may appear on the lips.
Loss of appetite:
According to some studies, folic acid deficiency can cause problems with appetite. This happens because your taste receptors cannot send messages to your brain through your nervous system due to problems with the tongue.
Bonus: How to treat a vitamin B9 deficiency:
First of all you must adjust your diet. You should eat more dark green vegetables such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach and asparagus. As for other foods, it is better to consume citrus fruits, beans, mushrooms and do so regularly.
If you have noticed the first symptoms on yourself, you should visit a doctor who will confirm the diagnosis and only then change your eating habits. Are you suffering from folic acid deficiency too? Do you know other ways to treat this problem? Be sure to express your opinions down in the comments.
