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SuppIy oB12~ CL < Oeprodu<ct .. .since there was another sup- e'plier of Vitamin B12 in the market to re- E? spond to total customer care demand," MJensen said. -Zak Patel, pharmacy manager at Zak's Phar- z macy in Milton, said he ordered 100 botules f of liquid B1 2 fr 'om Sandoz but only received E three in late March. z People have been waiting for it since De- C. cember," Patel said, acknowledging that cus- z 0 0 0- -aL EZ ooco xpected to be available at pharmacies third week of ApdI tomers have been "very frustrated or upset." A supply of Bi 2 from Cytex is expected to become available to pharmacies the third week of April. According to the Dieticians of Canada web- site, B12 is needed to form red blood celîs but up to 30 per cent çf older aduits may have trouble absorbing the vitamin. "A lot of the people that take it have anemia - they can't absorb Bi 2 through the gut - anadian Champion! 0U 1220 StiM. av@ E. * 90547"1183 so thats why they get it injected especially as they get older," Patel said. The same is true for people who have had their ileum removed - the part of the intes- tine where B12 is absorbed. It's a procedure performed on those with Crohn's disease. Others stili might require Bi 2 supplements if they have trouble naturally secreting stom- ach acid to properly absorb the vitamin. Dr. Stephanie Atkinson, associate chair in the Department of Pediatrics ait McMaster Uni- versity, said most people store Bi 2 naturally in their body. "If you had normal B12 status, you would have normal blood level and you would have some stored away in your lîver and its replete would probably last you about six months," she said. Atkinson saîd she disputes a common mis- conception that B12 pilîs can't be taken in place of injections. 1I think some people have had the misunder- standing that if you're Bi 2 deficient you have to have injéctions - that supplements won't work,"she said. B12 injections are appropriate for initial di- agnoses of deficiencies but "once you've got that in you then you can survive on supple- ments," she said. Burlington pharmacist Rahim Mussani said the last stock of liquid Bi 2 his pharmacy re- ceived "flew off the shelves.7 Since July of 2013 he's only. been able to or- der about a dozen 60 ml bottles from Sandoz for his patients. "l've had our regular patients asking, but 've also had random people calling to ask if we have any," he said, adding that for a whilo ho was having a few inquiries each woek from people looking to fll prescriptions. Across Halton, there have been no reported shortages at long-term care facilities. Halton Hoalthcare Services (HHS) spokes- person Trish Carlton said the hospitals expe- rionced "significant supply problems" aftor the initial 2012 shortage but have since been able to meet patient demands. "Measures were taken by HHS to mitigate the shortage, most notably increasing the use of oral tablets instead where feasiblo7' she said. "The HHS supply of injection was roservod for use in the small number of cases whero oral doses wore not appropriate7" Michael Gregory con be reached or mgregory@ miltoncanadionchampion.comn or on Twitter @ miltonreporter. fl~EIIj, International Centre, Hall 6 LsArbO Mississauga Iml ho FREE PARKING Don't miss Canada's celebration of everything English, Irish, Scottish & Welsh! Plus: Great entertainment shop for specialty products, baked goods, live dart tournament authentic pub, and more! ~$lSSm~r.L$12Sa~u~1.s1z.is<n .umd.i Pu' uw snow au weemcna + oeaue mebute concertappearance. Uimmed number of wristbands avadable online &at the door. F«r au» hifomado FRIDAY APRL il Perfame*d byrhe Cavemners. Concert doars open at 7pm. Concert tickets are $50, limfited seats available. * ff&'m.*maw 2a 1 a no "mm-3ffl