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B12 shots and acne?

Hi all:
I'm currently receiving B12 shots to address a diagnosed deficiency. Since I began the shots a few months ago, I noticed my skin breaking out like a teenager. Has anyone else had this happen or heard of it?
By the way, I haven't eaten any chocolate or changed my diet in any way.
Thanks!
Sara

Rare thing and should be easily taken care of

by taking vitamin E. I would make sure it is the better type with gamma and others. Apparently it was found a long time ago that some who lacked sufficient E would get acne when their body started to work with the B12 it needs.

Taking other nutrients in reasonable amounts is important, because if something is lacking, the body can't do its best. In addition, the body draws more heavily on some nutrients when it is repairing.

Best wishes,

rose

Thanks, Rose. I will look into Vit. E supplemetation. I also wonder about the best diet to aid nerve regeneration, since my B12 (and B6) deficiency caused my peripheral neuropathy. I want to do all I can to get better.

Sorry to be late to this thread, but I have been working alot more than usual, and just not on line long enough to research this for you.

Here is a common list of drugs/agents that have shown acne potential:

Quote:

* oral steroids
* contraceptive agents: medroxyprogesterone injection (Depo-Provera)
* oral contraceptives that reduce sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG)
* testosterone
* anabolic steroids including danazol, stanozolol
* halogens (iodes, chlorides, bromides, halothane)
* anti-epileptics (carbamazepine, phenytoin, phenobarbital)
* Anti-tuberculosis drugs (ethionamide, isoniazid, rifampicin)
* anti-depressants (lithium, amoxapine)
* cyclosporin
* B vitamins (B12, cyanocobalamin)

There are anecdotal reports, many of them old, of cyanocobalamin reactions that look like acne, but are a specific type of lesion:

Quote:

Cutis. 1979 Aug;24(2):210-1. Links
Vitamin B-12 induced acnes.

* Dupre A,
* Albarel N,
* Bonafe JL,
* Christol B,
* Lassere J.

A type of acne induced by vitamin B-12 deserves a special place among acneiform eruptions. The eruption is monomorphic and of a particular type. It consists of voluminous folliculitis lesions which develop acutely after the first injections of vitamin B-12 and disappear rapidly when treatment is discontinued. The etiologic and pathogenic mechanisms of the disease are not know.

PMID: 157854 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

This paper is interesting, because it does not say what megadoses were
required:

Quote:

Cutis. 1991 Aug;48(2):119-20. Links
Acneiform eruption due to "megadose" vitamins B6 and B12.

* Sherertz EF.

Department of Dermatology, Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27103.

Medications and other exogenous factors are known to be capable of exacerbating acne or precipitating acneiform eruptions. This case illustrates an eruption resembling acne rosacea that was temporally associated with daily ingestion of high-dose B vitamin supplement. The eruption failed to respond to the usual treatment regimens for rosacea, but promptly improved when use of the vitamin supplement was discontinued.

PMID: 1834437 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Most vitamin supplements do not have megadoses of B12 in them. But they typically do have cyano version.
Here is another:

Quote:

MMW Munch Med Wochenschr. 1976 Feb 6;118(6):155-60. Links
[The problem of vitamin B6/B12 acne. A contribution on acne medicamentosa (author's transl)]
[Article in German]

* Braun-Falco O,
* Lincke H.

Deterioration of acne vulgaris or eruption of an acneiform exanthema could be established during treatment with vitamin B6 and/or vitamin B12 in 14 patients. Females were by far the more frequently affected. The appearance of skin symptoms, even outside the age groups typically affected by acne vulgaris is characteristic. The clinical appearance of acneiform exanthema occurring during treatment with vitamin B6 or B12 consists of loosely disseminated small papules or papulopustules on the face (especially on the forehead and chin), on the upper parts of the back and chest and spreading to the upper arm. The pathogensis of the change is not yet certain. The acneiform rash generally fades within a short time after vitamin B6 or vitamin B12 treatment has been stopped.

PMID: 130553 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

B6 is capable of causing a skin reaction with sun exposure:

Quote:

J Dermatol. 1996 Oct;23(10):708-9. Links
Photoallergic drug eruption due to pyridoxine hydrochloride.

* Tanaka M,
* Niizeki H,
* Shimizu S,
* Miyakawa S.

Division of Dermatology, Kawasaki Municipal Hospital, Japan.

Photoallergy to vitamin B6 is very rare; only a few cases of contact dermatitis and one case of photosensitive dermatitis due to pyritinol have been reported. We report here the first case of photoallergic drug eruption due to pyridoxine hydrochloride. A 71-year-old man developed papulo-squamous erythemata which were confined to sun-exposed sites. Photopatch testing, together with the clinical course, was helpful in reaching the initial diagnosis; this was confirmed by an oral challenge test. Photoallergic drug eruption due to vitamin B6 should be considered a rare cause of photosensitive dermatitis.

PMID: 8973037 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Here is an example of acne caused by inhalers containing steroids:

Quote:

Clin Exp Dermatol. 1993 Mar;18(2):148-50. Links
Acne induced by inhaled corticosteroids.

* Monk B,
* Cunliffe WJ,
* Layton AM,
* Rhodes DJ.

Department of Dermatology, Bedford Hospital, UK.

Four cases of acne apparently induced by inhalation of potent corticosteroids prescribed for the treatment of asthma are described. In one case there appeared to be a dose-dependent relationship. While acne induced by topical or systemic administration of corticosteroids is well recognized, acne following inhaled corticosteroids has not previously been reported.

PMID: 8481992 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

All of these reports involve low numbers of patients, and a wide span of time.

Some people just cannot tolerate cyano version of B12. You know, this is a man-made product and not natural to the body.

If you suspect your acne is triggered by cyano version, you could switch to
hydroxy injection, or try the oral methyl form.

Other situations can lead to acne "attacks". Low zinc is one. Low intake of Vit A, C, E, and Selenium, also impact the skin.

Also notice in the list at the beginning of this post, that HORMONES are typically triggers. Many women today have PCOS, and the attendant elevated androgen levels, and if this is a possibility, then acne can be caused by this, or triggered by it. You can have blood tests drawn for androgens, and this will tell you if you are experiencing this effect. PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) is more common today than ever and being diagnosed more accurately.

Normal dosing of methylcobalamin has not appeared in the literature as causing acne, that I have found.

Lack of omega-3 in the diet, also leads to acne. My son's acne resolved with flax oil, evening primrose and fish oil daily (one capsule of each). A diet high in damaging transfats will also show up in the skin, so eliminating these harmful fats (most restaurants still use them) is important.

Since medical resources now list daily 1,000 mcg (1mg) doses of methylcobalamin as equivalent to the shots, it might be worth a trial of switching to the oral form. It only costs .09 a day.

MrsD, Thank you!
I had a strong feeling my skin problems were related to the B12 shots and possible also the high B6 oral doses. I may try to tolerate the chin breakouts since I want to heal so deperately. Or maybe I will try the oral B12 and see if it helps. I appreciate the research you provided. Very thorough and so helpful.
Have a great holiday!
OnTheRoadBack

I sure missed the boat on that one.

I should have mentioned the type of B12.

Certainly, anyone who can use methylcobalamin (or even has access only to hydroxocobalamin and cyanocobalamin) would not to be relying on cyanocobalamin. Cyanocobalamin has saved countless lives, but better forms have been available for many years and the form is extremely important to some.

rose

At the beginning of September, I also had a horrible acne like breakout on my face. I'm still trying to figure out the cause of it. It was very itchy, but it's not so bad anymore.

My nearly doctor doubled my Methyl-B12 shot dosage.
mrsd-the methyl form wouldn't cause the acne to happen?

Ever heard of cadmium causing acne by any chance? I'm doing chelation therapy and my cadmium level is off the chart right now. The reference range is .50 and below. I'm at 1.29!

I'm taking Vitamin C, E, Selenium, but no Vitamin A. What form of Vitamin A is the best? I'll mention it to my doctor next week.

PCOS is something my acupuncturist and I have talked about because I brought it up. Next week I will be pushing for my doctor to test hormones. However, I still have some questions. I will be pushing for testosterone, estrogen, progesterone, Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH), Luteinizing Hormone (LH), and FSH/LH Ratio levels to be checked. Are there any that I'm missing here? Is saliva the best or is blood testing on the 3rd day of the cycle sufficient? If blood testing is sufficient is using Labcorp or Quest Diagnostics okay?

I take Flaxseed/Evening Primrose Oil.

Carolyn

how much primrose, Carolyn?

I found over the years that too much primrose leads to side effects. In my case
they were GI...mostly diarrhea. But primrose can be rather stimulating.

I never went above 500mg after that, (containing about 60mg GLA).
While some is good for dry skin, too much might stimulate oil production.
That is just a thought.

I don't know how much evening primrose oil is in the supplement I take. I take the Barlean's Essential Woman and it lists evening primrose oil in the ingredients. Is it important for evening primrose to be in the refrigerator at the store. I know it's important for flaxseed oil, but wasn't for sure on the evening primrose oil.

However, I haven't been taking this supplement that long so I don't think it's the cause of the acne.

Carolyn

Quote:

Originally Posted by carolyn_lsc (Post 40755)

At the beginning of September, I also had a horrible acne like breakout on my face. I'm still trying to figure out the cause of it. It was very itchy, but it's not so bad anymore.

Carolyn

The chelation you are doing does remove minerals like zinc. Zinc would be the obvious cause, I think.

I don't know how much zinc you take on your "off" days but you might talk to your doctor about adjusting that dose, if this problem continues. My nails get weak when my zinc levels fall. White spots on your fingernails can be another sign of a zinc deficiency.