38 LISTENER SEPTEMBER 7 2019
THIS LIFE
G
ET
TY
IM
AG
ES
Marmite,
maybe?
As more people give up
eating animal products,
they’re asking how they can
get enough vitamin B12.
Question:
A British health expert has dismissed concerns about
vitamin B12 deficiency, saying a 1/2 teaspoon of Marmite
a day provides all you need. Would you agree with that?Answer:T
he short answer is no. The longer
answer is that it depends where the
Marmite comes from – Britain or New
Zealand – although the verdict is the
same. And don’t imagine that Vegemite
is a better bet – it’s actually worse.
How should you interpret all that?
Marmite is actually a good source of vitamin B12,
and the British variety contains almost double the
amount of the New Zealand-made version. But you
would still need nearly two teaspoons of the British
product to meet your daily B12 needs. Vegemite,
the taste of which many people prefer to Marmite,
has no B12.
Both spreads, which are made from yeast extract,
are marketed as rich sources of vitamin B, notably
thiamin, riboflavin and niacin. These three B vita-
mins each have an essential role in breaking down
food in our body into energy molecules our cells
can use for fuel.
Thiamin is found in many cereal foods, ribofla-
vin in milk and milk products and niacin in a wide
range of foods including meats, wholegrain cereals,
eggs and milk.
But the B vitamins of particular interest are B9
(folate) and B12. Both spreads are rich sources of
folate: Marmite has 150 micrograms (mcg) per
teaspoon and Vegemite 170mcg, equating to about
40% of our daily required intake of 400mcg.
Folate is essential for the synthesis of moleculesby Jennifer Bowden
NUTRITION
needed to build DNA and amino
acids.
Without it, our cells cannot divide,
so it is particularly important during
fetal development.
But back to B12: Marmite wins
hands down, the local product
containing a helpful 0.74mcg per
teaspoon to Vegemite’s none. This
has a simple explanation: B12 is a
Marmite additive, whereas none goes
into standard Vegemite.
Vitamin B12 is normally found
only in animal products such as meat,eggs, fish and dairy. Hence, those who
have a low intake of animal products
can find themselves running short of
it. And, as noted in the June 22 Nutri-
tion, vitamin B12 deficiency becomes
more common as we age, probably
because of problems absorbing the
vitamin from food.
Going short of the vitamin can
have serious consequences. It is
essential for the proper function-
ing and development of the brain
and nerve cells, and a deficiency
is dangerous because it causes