No correlation exists between vitamin B12 and quality of life in healthy young adult population

S.I. Alazzam 1,3, K.H. Alzoubi 1, L.T. Al-Hambouth 1, F. AlMahasneh 1, S.M. AbuRuz 2

1 Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid (Jordan) 2 Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Jordan, Amman (Jordan)

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• Hematology

Background and Objectives:  Vitamin B12 (B12) is essential for well-being and healthy life, since it plays a critical role in DNA synthesis, hematopoiesis and neurologic function. B12 deficiency remains one of the most common nutrition deficiencies in the world and is associated with increasing risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, mental health problem, osteoporosis, and defect-birth outcomes. The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of B12 levels on quality of life (QOL) among healthy university students.

Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study involved 359 healthy university students (age 18-30 years) of both genders. Their QOL was as vitamin B12 level was measured using the IMx system (Abbott laboratories IMX, USA).

Results: No correlation was detected between B12 levels and the two major QOL subscales: the Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS). Additionally, none of the other eight subscale of the SF-36 was significantly correlated with b12 levels.

Conclusion: We conclude that no correlation exists between B12 levels and QOL scores among young adult healthy populations. Further investigations are required to confirm the impact of B12 status on QOL among healthy populations.

Corresponding Author: Sayer Alazzam, MSc, PharmD, BCPS; e-mail: salazzam@just.edu.jo