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Could It Be B12?: An Epidemic of Misdiagnoses Paperback – January 26, 2011
| Sally M. Pacholok (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
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The book that has literally saved lives.
Could It Be B12? An Epidemic of Misdiagnoses uncovers a public health crisis that even many doctors don't know exists―the chronic misdiagnosis of vitamin B12 deficiency.
Few patients are tested for B12 deficiency, even though it's a common disorder that can be easily diagnosed and inexpensively treated. The manifold symptoms of B12 deficiency can look exactly like a myriad of different diseases, misleading doctors to misdiagnosis. B12 deficiency can cause dementia, multiple sclerosis, early Parkinson's disease, diabetic neuropathy or chronic fatigue syndrome. It can cause depression and mental illness, infertility in men and women, or developmental disabilities in children.
Written in a highly accessible style that makes complex medical information clear and comprehensible to ordinary patients and their families, Could It Be B12? gives readers the knowledge and confidence to fight the ignorance and rigidity of the medical establishment and take control of their own health. Could It Be B12? presents vital information and strategies for readers to learn if they or their loved ones are suffering from B12 deficiency and how to work with their doctors and other health care professionals to get the treatment they need.
Could It Be B12? also presents a stirring message against the medical profession's indifference to the epidemic levels of crippling B12 deficiency and a demand for worldwide social action to raise awareness and win the fight against this easily prevented disorder that so needlessly ruins millions of lives.
- Print length321 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherQuill Driver Books
- Publication dateJanuary 26, 2011
- Dimensions6.15 x 0.93 x 8.97 inches
- ISBN-101884995691
- ISBN-13978-1884995699
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Could It Be B12? is both powerful and revealing. It serves as a reminder that often times a simple precaution and nutrition awareness will save lives and a ton of money." ― Charles H. Liu R.Ph., clinical pharmacist and nutrition and preventive care specialist
"I defy you to read this book then not get yourself or a loved one tested for B12 deficiency." ― Eric Norman, Ph.D., developer of the uMMA test for B12 deficiency
"I recommend this book to professionals and patients alike who are interested in finding the underlying cause and cure of many common diseases and conditions related to deficiency of vitamin B12." ― Kilmer McCully M.D., author of The Homocysteine Revolution
"Could it be B12? has literally saved lives and is the only complete and authoritative guide to B12 deficiency and shows what you can do to protect yourself and your family from this crippling disorder." ― Senior Beacon
"The definitive book on B12 deficiency, diagnosis and treatment for the lay reader and for the interested physician." ― Jeffrey Dach, M.D.
"As a practicing physician I can only hope that malpractice attorneys don't read this book." ― Richard Nimbach, D.O.
"The most important book I have read in decades ... clearly, concisely and convincingly calls our attention to a condition that exists in epidemic numbers. This book is a must read for all doctors." ― Dr. Bill Koch, The American Chiropractor
About the Author
Jeffrey J. Stuart, DO, is a board-certified physician and a member of the American Osteopathic Association, the American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians, the Macomb County Osteopathic Society, and the Michigan Osteopathic Association.
Product details
- Publisher : Quill Driver Books; 2nd ed. edition (January 26, 2011)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 321 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1884995691
- ISBN-13 : 978-1884995699
- Item Weight : 15.2 ounces
- Dimensions : 6.15 x 0.93 x 8.97 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #62,188 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #22 in Vitamins & Supplements (Books)
- #124 in Neurology (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Sally Pacholok, RN has been researching B12 deficiency and practicing emergency nursing for 26 years. She diagnosed herself with B12 deficiency after doctors failed to identify her condition. Pacholok is an educator, public speaker, a frequent radio guest on nationally syndicated talk shows, as well as print and television interviews. She is an international lecturer, and member of the Emergency Nurses Association. Could It Be B12? has been translated into Dutch and Slovenian and won the Indie Excellence Award for best health book in 2011. Currently Bulgaria and Spain are considering translating her book.
Pacholok's book inspired Emmy winning film producer Elissa Leonard to produce a documentary on misdiagnosed B12 deficiency in 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BvEizypoyO0
In 2014, Leonard took on a bigger project in which she wrote, directed and produced the movie Sally Pacholok, which is based on Pacholok's life-long battle to raise awareness about B12 deficiency, the consequences of its frequent misdiagnosis, and what she was up against. The drama is fast-paced and cleverly written. Pacholok is a whistle-blower who goes up against a wealthy heath care system and saves lives behind closed doors.
The movie explains what forced her to write Could It Be B12? Passionate, romantic, and suspenseful, this film shows the power of one woman who refused to give up and changes the standard of care-but nothing is as easy as it looks. Well known actress Annet Mahendru plays Pacholok. The movie was entered into the Sundance Film Festival January 2015. The film will be available to the public sometime in 2015. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3520022/ https://www.facebook.com/sallypacholokthemovie/infor
Pacholok received her bachelor's degree in nursing from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Prior to entering the field of nursing, she received an Associate's Degree of Applied Science with magna cum laude honors. She was also an Advanced Emergency Medical Technician and worked as a paramedic prior to and during nursing school. In addition, she is an Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) provider and has assisted instructors at a local college in training paramedics in ACLS. She is a Trauma Nursing Core Course (TNCC) provider, and an Emergency Nurse Pediatric Course (ENPC) provider.
Visit Sally Pacholok's and Dr. Jeff Stuart's website at www.b12awareness.org
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This book explains the different forms of B12 and how the cheapest forms used in most vitamins cannot be absorbed by most people. And some people get severely deficient and how B12 deficiencies mimic other diseases. If the deficiency is caught in time, how it can be life changing and symptoms are reversed. However if not caught in time, it becomes life threatening.
With the knowledge I gained from this book, I now understand the differences between the different types of B12. I then called all of the weightloss clinics I'd been to and found out they were ALL using the least absorbable form of B12 - cyano. The doctor I saw the very first time gave me the most absorbable form - methyl - and that's why hers worked so well form me. I then called around various clinics and found a wellness clinic nearby that had cyano and methyl. I told them I only wanted methyl. After my 2nd shot of methyl, I felt great - my energy was back. I explained to the wellness clinic that if I didn't know the difference, and they had given me cyano, I would not have come back to get another one and I would not be a repeat customer. I then questioned why they would even use cyano. Someone who is suffering from a deficiency that may seek out B12 shots, may not be helped by cyano. It's a lot cheaper - but it's not worth losing a patient who doesn't come back because it didn't help them?
The Wellness Clinic agreed and stopped carrying cyano and is now only using methyl. I found that when I don't get the shots once per week, I'm unable to cope with the huge amount of stress I'm faced with. I recluse, I'm not motivated, and I can't focus. With regular shots, my house and all the projects I'm working on get done. I am happier and stressful situations don't bother me as much.
I wish more people would read this book and some of the other great books on vitamins. Vitamins are essential and are key components to life. I'm appalled at our medical system. Fixing vitamin deficiencies is a lot easier and a lot less expensive than drugs, extensive tests and medical procedures doctors prescribe. Vitamins can save lives. Unfortunately there is a lot of crappy vitamins out their that are a waste of money.
I'm glad I found this book and plan to share it with other family members and friends.
...so I've ordered a second one.
Well written, easy to read but with enough detail to be very useful.
Found my mum had almost all the symptoms. I hadn't realised how extensive the symptoms can be.
Checked through her past tests and the doctor had failed to test her for B12 anytime in the past 5 or so years.
The book is noteworthy for:
Listing the b12 deficiency symptoms (in lots of detail and with examples).
Listing the various kinds of B12 and their advantages/disadvantages (cyano/hydroxo/methyl/dibencozide (also known as cobamamide or adenosyl)
Listing what research needs to be done
Costing the savings if it was addressed (a huge saving)
It gets a 4/5 because:
it fails to mention adenosyl-b12 except in passing and this is one of the two forms of B12 natural to the body. There's got to be more to adenosyl than they've mentioned! It would have also been helpful if they had mentioned it sometimes goes under two other names (makes it easier to look up).
There is also a relative lack of information about the hydroxyl (OH) form. That means the differing effects of the OH-B12 are not explained meaningfully eg. I suspect OH-B12 soaks up excess methyls (CH3's)... and excess methyl's are implicated in triggering cancer.
The book fails to provide a diagram of B12 and especially of the groups hanging off the cobalt molecule ie. methyl (CH3), hydroxo (OH), Cyanide (CN) and adenosyl (a bit bigger). A picture is worth a thousand words?
While the book talks about B12 analogues messing with B12 results it fails to explain how they know analogues exist and how they are messing up the tests. That kind of stuff is useful if they want people to follow up and figure out how to bypass the analogues.
Really found the bits on homocysteine useful: Homocysteine worries most doctors and many have twigged to folic acid but few have considered B12. Urinary MMA is not tested.
You get the impression that the hydroxo-B12 form is given subcutaneously from the book (they use the abbreviation sc)... but elsewhere on the net they refer to IM (Intra muscular). This highlights one of the few problems with the book. They use a few too many abbreviations e.g. It was unclear in one section if ED stood for erectile dysfunction or Emergency Department... as either of them could have been right.
However they repeat themselves a lot of times... so by the end of the book you have finally memorised that MMA stands for Methyl Malonic Acid and most of the other abbreviations too: this might put off some people. Try to put the full word in at least once per chapter just to remind us?
Could have used an appendix with a few suggestions where to get the various forms: Iherb has the methyl, adenosyl and hydroxyl forms... but who's going to know that? Amazon have large dose hydroxyl-B12... which according to the book is poorly absorbed orally (can someone verify this?).
Don't let the miserly 4/5 put you off buying this book. It's well worth reading!
Well done. Hope they put out a third edition with extended content.
:-)
Top reviews from other countries
Highly recommended for anyone suffering from, or suspecting that they suffer from B12 deficiency. A must-read if you have a ‘mystery illness’ or symptoms which modern drug regimes don’t alleviate - it could be B12 deficiency.
Also, Dr Chandy explains how safe B12 supplementation is, and how it can promote optimum wellbeing even alongside another illness. A trial of B12 supplementation, or a prophylactic dose, can help.
A fascinating read, very detailed, well referenced and extensively researched.




