B-6 vitamin danger!

@helencola I agree we are each different and should run supplements by our doctors. I do take B-12 along with other supplements for my peripheral neuropathy with the exception of B-6 since it is different than the other B vitamins. Here's some additional links for more information.

Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy - Nutritional and Vitamin Deficiency Neuropathy:
-- https://www.foundationforpn.org/what-is-peripheral-neuropathy/causes/vitamin-nutrition-deficiency/

What is the purpose of a vitamin B-12 level test?:
-- https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322286

@helencola . As you age your body loses a lot of its vitamins and minerals especially the ones our body does'nt make so you need to supplement to keep healthy . B 6 is known as the nerve vitamin and if you lack it you can get not only neuropathy but a lot of other things out body needs as well a B 12

I was told that it would boost my energy and help with my anemia. Been taking the ones that dissolve under your tongue for many years. Just saw this site and the talk of B6 was interesting and wondered about B12

Hi @azgama. Yes, B-12 can increase your body’s energy and also help with the anemia caused by a lack of B-12. There are other causes of anemia. For each type of anemia, the treatment is different. For example, an iron supplement will help an anemia caused by a deficiency in iron. Your body does not produce B-12. Any foods derived from an animal source will contain B-12 like eggs, milk, meat, and fish. A person needs the intrinsic factor in their intestine for absorption if taken orally. For people who lack the ability to absorb through their digestive system, B-12 is also prescribed to be given in injection form subcutaneously.

I am still confused! It seems as if you John and Lioness are both saying you think one should supplement with B12 vitamins (not food) even if you are not deficient, according to your lab results which have shown to be of a normal range?That would suggest that B12 actually can benefit even when a deficiency was not the cause of neuropathy as is the case with some.I did read those articles among others but they did not really address my question. Thanks, Helen

@helencola I supplement with B-12 along with other supplements because it helps with my neuropathy.

thanks for your response John. Helen

@helencola I use Vit B 12 along with whatever I eat as I said before as we age our bodies lose the naturel vitamins we have in our bodies all our lives so even though we eat the food that has the B -12 in it our bodies are still deficient . However if you have a disease that is low in B-12 as with neuropathy then its not going to hurt your normal labs For instance I have fibromyalgia and I take about 450mg of magnesium a day as fibro patients need more mag. My labs are in normal limits. Does this make sense ?

Thanks for this pay as I have MTHFR and although I've done writer a butt of research on it, I don't recall seeing anything about B vitamins processing being an issue. I'm having an issue with B12, have SFN and PN. Heading to check my supplements for B6 for toxicity. I seem to fit into the this group with thyroid and other diagnosis.
My daughter has issues and is on a B Complex. We might need to rethink that. She's going on 23 and I suspect she's got Fibro or CFS like me or POTS. Salt tablets are there only way she can tolerate our Texas heat.

I came across this recent article that seems to indicate that it is specifically the pyridoxine form of B6 that can kill cells. (There are other forms, such as pyridoxal, pyridoxal-5-phosphate and pyridoxamine that DON'T injure cells.)

You can buy pyridoxal-5-phosphate and get a prescription for pyridoxamine, but the form most readily available in most supplements is pyridoxine!

Toxicol In Vitro
. 2017 Oct;44:206-212. doi: 10.1016/j.tiv.2017.07.009. Epub 2017 Jul 14.
The Vitamin B6 Paradox: Supplementation With High Concentrations of Pyridoxine Leads to Decreased Vitamin B6 Function

Misha F Vrolijk 1 , Antoon Opperhuizen 2 , Eugène H J M Jansen 3 , Geja J Hageman 4 , Aalt Bast 4 , Guido R M M Haenen 4
Affiliations expand
PMID: 28716455 DOI: 10.1016/j.tiv.2017.07.009
Abstract

Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin that functions as a coenzyme in many reactions involved in amino acid, carbohydrates and lipid metabolism. Since 2014, >50 cases of sensory neuronal pain due to vitamin B6 supplementation were reported. Up to now, the mechanism of this toxicity is enigmatic and the contribution of the various B6 vitamers to this toxicity is largely unknown. In the present study, the neurotoxicity of the different forms of vitamin B6 is tested on SHSY5Y and CaCo-2 cells. Cells were exposed to pyridoxine, pyridoxamine, pyridoxal, pyridoxal-5-phosphate or pyridoxamine-5-phosphate for 24h, after which cell viability was measured using the MTT assay. The expression of Bax and caspase-8 was tested after the 24h exposure. The effect of the vitamers on two pyridoxal-5-phosphate dependent enzymes was also tested. Pyridoxine induced cell death in a concentration-dependent way in SHSY5Y cells. The other vitamers did not affect cell viability. Pyridoxine significantly increased the expression of Bax and caspase-8. Moreover, both pyridoxal-5-phosphate dependent enzymes were inhibited by pyridoxine. In conclusion, the present study indicates that the neuropathy observed after taking a relatively high dose of vitamin B6 supplements is due to pyridoxine. The inactive form pyridoxine competitively inhibits the active pyridoxal-5'-phosphate. Consequently, symptoms of vitamin B6 supplementation are similar to those of vitamin B6 deficiency.

Keywords: Neuropathy; Neurotoxic; Pyridoxine; Supplements; Vitamin B6.

Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.