severe peripheral neuropathy and vitamin B6

The daily RDA of B6 is something like 1.7 mg per day but many supplements, especially B complex, have 50-100 mgs. Many people say that you can't overdose on B6 since it is water soluble but I am living proof (as are many others) that B6 can accumulate in our tissues and not urinate it out. You are smart to talk to your neuro about it first.

Grampa Lou,
Glad you didn't take gabapentin. I have no pain either my neurologist said all he could offer was gabapentin but said it does nothing to treat neuropathy it is just for the pain so no reason to take it. Exercise seems to help more than anything else.

My neurologist said it can take a year or more for your body to flush it out. Drink lots of water.

My neurologist didn't know that much about it but I have read that. There is a great website called Understanding B6 Toxicity which also has a Facebook group. I got most of my info about how to treat it off of that site. You are right. You are supposed to drink lots of water (the site says coconut water is great also). It also says to workout as much as possible to sweat out much of what is in your tissues.

I just started reading the understanding B6 toxicity website someone here posted. I was aware of B6 - and how confusing the issue is because both low B6 and high B6 can cause neuropathy symptoms. 10 years ago I suddenly came down with tingling feet and burning pain which spread upwards. I was diagnosed with mild giullane-barre and recovered and felt very lucky not to have lost all nerve function. But it came back and I eventually was diagnosed with CIDP. I did gamma globulin infusions for 3 years. My symptoms were relatively mild and I was fully functional but numb and often in pain. My neurologist left the major teaching hospital where I was being seen and my new doctor (a famous specialist in the field) told me I didn’t have GBS or CIDP but idiopathic SFN. Testing in 2023 confirmed this.

After all my own research, multiple neurologists, functional doctors, nutritionists, acupuncturists over the last 10 years, the Understanding B6 Toxicity website explains things in a way that makes sense. I took P5P for years. I’ve taken B supplements. I tend to not drink enough liquids. In addition to my neuropathy (which for over a year has been stable) I suffer from autoimmune, gut and urinary issues, and shortness of breath during exercise which no doctor has been able to explain. Most of these are listed as a possible sign of B6 toxicity.

I’m going to look into this further. People here at the Mayo Clinic site have been helpful and share a wealth of information.

I suppose most of those posting about B6 had too much. I’m curious about low or marginal levels. Mine was 4 on my test last year. I was told it was normal, but it’s actual marginal. Has anyone been treated at that level?

i recently logged in and just saw your message

b6 has dual action and i take b6 too.
only in very doses it can cause worsening of symptoms. i think in lower doses it helps with neuropathy .
there is a popular supplement called Metanx with b6 b12 that has been studied and helps neuropathy and even help nerves

are you still taking b6
what did your doctors say
thx

i have peripheral neuropathy trying to see what other people are using and seems to work .

i am using lyrica and b vitamins supplements like Metanx

are u still using pyridoxal phosphate ? how is it helping ?
did u check levels ?
thanks

My one a day multi had 75 mg of b6. When i started on vitamins and alternative health in 1997, and all the reading from dr.s using alternative treatments, i looked for vitamins with at least 50 mg of b's. so many only have 2 mg......i guess they are using RDA, but, RDA has everything too low. Check out NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF HEALTH WEBSITE ......in google, type in is B6 toxic, and of several websites , that one will pop up, and give you some info. it says rare cases of toxicity at 500 - 1,000 mg of b6. But very saft under 200 mg. Silly thing, i thought, about 20 yrs ago, my toe curved and wouldn't straighten out. after a few days, i saw my naturopath Dr., who said........take b vitamins. I said my multi has it, she said, well take extra. So, thinking that was the dumbest thing i ever heard for a crooked toe, i got a bottle of 50mg b complex.
So, now i had the 75 mg in my multi, plus 50.........Boom,, the next day, my toe was back to normal............For a few years, i was using at least 100 mg of b complex............after over 25 yrs of using alternative things, not just vitamins/herbs, but many other things , at 82, i am on NO drugs, NO surgeries. So, for me, the higher doses of B vitamins, did no harm. We are all facing a puzzle, with the problems we all have, trying to figure out what to do. so every piece of info we get from each other helps up with our personal puzzle, to see if that bit of info fits our scenario. Somehow, i dont' think we will ever get the 1,000 piece puzzle together, but, every little bit gives us a better picture. this wasn't very helpful, but, it is just one more piece of your puzzle.........maybe helped a little. Check out National Inst for a little more infor.

I have a dry very irritating cough for about 2 weeks. No apparent reason except low B12 can cause and neuropathy can cause irritation to lungs. Is there anything neuropathy doesn't make worse? It is the most frustrating and debilitating disease without a treatment. I do take a spin off new supplement to Metanyx called EB-N6. Prescribed by my podiatrist; the only doctor who has really helped me. I have ideopathic neuropathy not diabetic but my doc said it is an improvement over metanxy and provides you with the correct amounts of B6 and B12. Twice a day with food. I take no other B supplements so I am not overdoing the B6 or 12. Anyone else have a cough? I haven't gone to Urgent care or primary but I will since it is not a cold or upper respiratory. Guess I should have a chest X Ray.