Vitamin B₁₂ deficiency due to a strictly vegetarian diet in adolescence

A 14-year-old white girl suffered from severe neurologic disturbances caused by vitamin B₁₂ deficiency, due to failure to provide vitamin B₁₂ supplementation to a strictly vegetarian diet. The disturbances resolved completely following treatment with vitamin B₁₂. Physicians should be alert to the necessity for vitamin B₁₂ supplementation for strict vegetarians, who eat no meat, fish, eggs, or dairy products.