Lesson 19: Vitamin B6

What is vitamin B6?

Pyridoxine, or vitamin B6, is an important part of the vitamin B complex. Like other B vitamins, pyridoxine helps your body process energy, and this nutrient is also involved in various cardiovascular, neurological, and reproductive functions.

Is vitamin B6 water-soluble or fat-soluble?

B6 vitamin is naturally water-soluble. Therefore, this nutrient dissolves quickly, and it doesn’t stay in your body for very long.

Where can vitamin B6 be found naturally? 

Luckily for people who prefer meat-free diets, vitamin B6 is plentiful in chickpeas, and also is one of the only B vitamins to be present in fruit. Beef liver is a second most plentiful source of this vitamin. 

5 foods/drinks containing vitamin B6

1. Chickpeas 55% DV per 1 cup or 128g

2. Beef liver 45% DV per 85g

3. Bananas 20% DV per 1 medium banana

4. Avocados 30% DV per 1 avocado

5. Mangoes 12% DV per 1 cup

What is the recommended daily intake for vitamin B6?

The scientists at the National Institute of Health (NIH) have determined that adult men and women should consume 1.3mg of pyridoxine per day. This recommended daily amount (RDA) jumps to 1.7mg in men and 1.5mg in women for adults 51 or older, and women who are lactating or pregnant should consume about 2mg of pyridoxine per day.

What to consume to get a full daily dose of vitamin B6?

Chickpeas - around 1 cup or 220g

Beef liver - round 170g

Bananas - around 5 medium bananas

Avocados - around 3 avocados

Mangoes - around 8 cups

Can you absorb enough of vitamin B6 from food?

Vitamin B6 is relatively plentiful in a variety of plant and animal sources, and this nutrient is also available in enriched grains and cereals. However, many of the foods in which pyridoxine is most plentiful aren’t a part of most diets, which means that supplementation might be necessary to take in adequate levels of this nutrient.

Why is vitamin B6 necessary for your body?

Vitamin B6 is a coenzyme that’s involved in over 100 enzymatic processes in your body. This nutrient mainly helps your proteins metabolise correctly; without enough vitamin B6, your vital proteins might act sluggishly or burn out too quickly. Pyridoxine improves your overall health and well-being by helping your metabolic processes proceed smoothly.

Functions of vitamin B6

Cardiovascular functions: Vitamin B6 helps prevent anemia by assisting in the uptake of dietary iron. This nutrient also prevents coronary artery disease, and it reduces your levels of bad cholesterol.

Neurotransmitter production: Pyridoxine is necessary for the production of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), dopamine, and serotonin, which means your neurological well-being will suffer if you don’t consume enough of this nutrient.

Morning sickness reduction: Consuming vitamin B6 reduces the symptoms of morning sickness in pregnant women.

Symptoms of vitamin B6 deficiency

Skin Rashes

Deficiency in vitamin B6 results in a variety of different topical conditions. Symptoms include dry, rash-covered skin, cracked lips, sore mouth, and sore tongue.

Neurological Dysfunction

Pyridoxine deficiency can cause changes in your mood, and it can also cause fatigue or insomnia. Worst of all, becoming deficient in this nutrient can even cause seizures.

Immune Weakness

If you keep getting sick or your body has trouble healing small wounds, you might be deficient in vitamin B6.

How long do you need to take vitamin B6 to start experiencing it’s benefits if you’re deficient?

As a water-soluble nutrient, vitamin B6 is absorbed quickly, and it doesn’t take long before you will start noticing the beneficial effects of this vitamin. While cases of severe deficiency might call for intravenous administration of pyridoxine, symptoms of deficiency of this nutrient usually clear up overnight.

How long does it take for your body to digest/absorb vitamin B6?

Like all vitamins in the B-complex, pyridoxine has a remarkable efficient absorption rate. Unless your body’s ability to absorb vitamins is compromised, you should be able to absorb close to 100% of the vitamin B6 you ingest.

How long does vitamin B6 stay in your body after you take it?

Vitamin B6 doesn’t build up in your tissues. Therefore, your body excretes this nutrient within about 24 hours.

Is vitamin B6 an antioxidant?

The role of vitamin B6 as a direct antioxidant is hotly contested within the medical science community. However, it’s clear that the beneficial effects of this nutrient at least indirectly reduce oxidative stress and inflammation throughout your body.

Can you overdose on vitamin B6? What are the effects?

While a one-time overdose of vitamin B6 won’t cause any long-lasting effects, consuming too much of this nutrient over a long period of time can be disastrous. Long-term pyridoxine overdose symptoms include sensory neuropathy, which is a type of nervous system breakdown that causes pain in your extremities and difficulty walking. To avoid these symptoms, stick to the safe quantities of pyridoxine we include in Feel.

Does vitamin B6 dissolve, flush out, or build up in the body?

Under normal circumstances, your body flushes out all the vitamin B6 you consume. In case of repeated overdose however, pyridoxine might start to build up in your liver, kidneys, and other organs.

Can you take vitamin B6 during a diet?

Consuming your RDA of vitamin B6 doesn’t interfere with any dietary restrictions.

Are there synthetic forms of vitamin B6?

Most types of dietary vitamin B6 are synthetic. The only type of natural vitamin B6 available is the type of pyridoxine present in food.

Why might synthetic forms of vitamin B6 be better?

Synthetic forms of vitamin B6 are inexpensive to produce, which makes this nutrient readily available to consumers.

Absorption rate of synthetic vitamin B6

Some research indicates that food-based forms of vitamin B6 might be stored better in your body. However, this apparent benefit could also increase your chances of overdosing on pyridoxine.

Why might natural forms of vitamin B6 be better?

Natural vitamin B6 might accumulate better in your body, but it’s hard to source the vitamin B6 you need from natural food sources.

How to take vitamin B6

You can get all the vitamin B6 your body needs from food or supplements.

Vitamin B6 trends in medicine

Recently scientists found that ingesting high quantities of vitamin B6 can increase your risk of bone fracture. Apparently, women who consume significantly more than their RDA of this vitamin are more prone to bone fractures after menopause, which simply underscores the importance of only ingesting reasonable, safe amounts of each essential nutrient.

Why everyone should be taking WeAreFeel supplements

Here at WeAreFeel, we understand that there's a fine line between an effective  supplementation and supplementation which can have side effects. Seeing the amount of supplements out there with extremely high doses of vitamins and nutrients, we were inspired to create our revolutionary multivitamin Feel.

When it comes to vitamins and minerals, more isn’t always better, which is why we stick to the basics with Feel and only include the amount of vitamin B6 we know your body can handle safely. Instead of making crazy dietary changes or risking pyridoxine overdose, get the perfect amount of vitamin B6 for your body with Feel!