LIANA
The Liana library · monograph III

Methyl B12

The active form of B12 — for the gap your medication quietly digs.

In Maya's Formula Nº 001: 500 mcg · morning — low-normal B12 under a daily acid reducer.
Three things to remember — that's all
1
Your medication is draining it.

Acid reducers and metformin quietly lower B12 over years — that's why this is in your formula.

2
Let the lozenge dissolve.

Under the tongue, any time of day — it skips the gut problem entirely.

3
It stays while the medication stays.

If that prescription ever ends, the B12 usually follows it out.

“When a daily medication is quietly draining B12, replacing it is about as close to a sure thing as nutrition gets. When nothing is draining it and your level is fine, extra B12 does nothing — so it only appears in formulas that need it.”

Want the depth? It's all here — tap what you're curious about. Nothing below changes the three things above.

What it istap to read

B12 keeps two systems running: red blood cell production and the insulation on your nerves. Absorbing it from food is surprisingly elaborate — stomach acid, intrinsic factor, an ileum that cooperates — and common medications interrupt the chain: metformin and acid reducers (PPIs) both drain B12 quietly over years.

Methylcobalamin is the form your cells actually use — no conversion step, and as a lozenge it absorbs through the mouth, bypassing the gut machinery entirely.

The research — and who paid for it2 studies + 1 against
Strong — in depletion states; unnecessary when replete
Long-term metformin lowers vitamin B12: randomized placebo-controlled trialde Jager et al., BMJ, 2010 · doi.org/10.1136/bmj.c2181Independently funded — university-led; no supplement maker involved.
Metformin and vitamin B12 deficiency across a decade — the Diabetes Prevention ProgramAroda et al., J Clin Endocrinol Metab, 2016 · doi.org/10.1210/jc.2015-3754Independently funded — US public research money (NIH).
Read against us In people with normal levels and no depleting medication, extra B12 does nothing measurable — it's simply excreted. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, B12 fact sheet · ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminB12-HealthProfessional/

If your draw and your medication list don't ask for it, it's not in your formula. That's the whole idea.

How we weigh a study: we read it for you — including who paid for it. A study funded by the company selling the result is flagged and never load-bearing on its own. No supplement brand pays Liana — nobody's thumb is on this scale.

How we dose ittap to read
500–1,000 mcg while the gap exists

High relative to the RDA on purpose: passive absorption is about 1% — the dose is built around the leak.

Lozenge, dissolved, any time of day

Under-the-tongue absorption doesn't care about stomach acid — the exact pathway your PPI blocks.

Watch homocysteine too

When B12 is genuinely short, homocysteine runs high; both should move on the retest.

Safety — and who should skip ittap to read
  • Water-soluble and essentially non-toxic — excess is excreted, which is also why megadosing is pointless.
  • High-dose folate can paper over a B12 gap on a blood count while nerves go unprotected — the formula considers them together.
  • B12 that stays low despite supplementation is a finding for your clinician, not a bigger dose.
When it leaves your formulathe goal is zero
The goal is zero

If the depleting medication ever leaves your regimen, B12 usually follows it out within a season or two of stable retests. While the medication stays, a small maintenance dose stays with it — this is one of the honest exceptions to 'the goal is zero,' and your report says so.

The bottle we chose
One bottle, not a shelf

Jarrow Formulas · Methyl B-12 lozenges, methylcobalamin

In an unregulated aisle, the brand is half the decision — so we made it for you.

The methyl form

Methylcobalamin, not the cheaper cyanocobalamin most gummies use — active as-is.

A real lozenge

Dissolves in the mouth, so a PPI or metformin can't intercept it.

Independently tested

A long record in third-party consumer-lab testing for content accuracy — in a category famous for missing it.

Dose-flexible

Scored dosing fits a 500 mcg or 1,000 mcg formula from one bottle.

Buy on Amazon →

Your own formula names the right bottle for your case. No brand pays to be here.