Thanks, I appreciate any information you might come across. I wonder why there are several non-coated brands if they are ineffective?

I will also ask around and see what I can find out from some of the companies that sell or make the non-coated P5P.

Janet

Supplement makers are common on the internet. Not all are quality or based on current research.

The better companies produce the better products.

It will be a week or so before I can get to this subject again.
I am sorry, but I have tons to do coming back from the boonies with 2 cars filled with stuff...and 3 cats..and and and....

Hello,

I am looking for some advice/information regarding some neuropathy issues I have been having recently. A blood test just came back showing my Vit B6 levels are 122 ng/ml and I was searching for info on the net and found this thread.

I am 42, slim athletic and healthy, good vit D status, low HA1bc, low fasting insulin, low CRP, etc. For a couple of months I have been experiencing mild, randomly shifting numbness and nervey type pain in my left leg, foot, left arm/hand and sometimes right hand and leg. The doc tested me for Vit B6 status and it came back 122. I have not supplemented more than 15-20 mg/day of Vit B6 over the past year. Aside from the numbness I feel good, no loss of coordination or strength.

I stopped taking my multi-vitamin (20 mg vit b6) last week with no change in status (actually I feel a little worse.) I am curious why my levels got so high, whether they are a cause of the problem, and what I should do.

I'm not sure I understand the info provided on this thread, but does it imply that one possible scenario is that I would actually need to take more B6 and not less? Or perhaps some activated form?

Any advice/info is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

The B6 in vitamins is not the active form. If you do not convert properly to P5P in the body (liver) the regular builds up.

The ranges are not given for people who have been supplementing. B6 can remain in the body for a while, so stopping just a day before doesn't really help.

There are also studies showing some autistic children have tested high even when NO vitamins have been given. That means they have some error in handling the B6.

You can switch to P5P version and see what happens.(dropping the vitamin you currently use).

But I also wonder what were your D levels? The actual numbers? Because lab ranges are reported as normal with very low bottom range.

Have you had a B12 serum? What were those numbers? Same problem, low numbers can be called "normal", when they are not.

For some nutrients, labs can just be confusing. There is a better way.... measuring the nutrients inside cells, and SpectraCell does this.
http://www.spectracell.com/

Labs for serum results are sometimes only useful when really really high (toxic) or really really low. All the inbetweens are guarded and hard to interpret.

I would be very difficult to get toxic on what you were taking.

This is an example of a popular P5P out there:
http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-P-5-P...blets/740?at=0

Thank you very much for the reply.

My D levels are 60 something - they have been thereabouts for a year or two after supplementing approx. 4k per day D3 and getting sunshine.

B12 was just measured at 673 pg/ml.

I will consider a test from the lab you mentioned.

Do you think the high B6 is a good clue to my PN?

Also, if I was to try the P5P, at what time frame should I look at my symptoms to evaluate whether that is helping or hurting? A few days? A few months?

Thanks again for the help.

So D and B12 seem okay for now.

There are other things to consider, so I would suggest you come to our PN board. There is a subforum above, with informational threads. One of them is Drugs That May cause PN.
That is one you should look at.

I would think if your B6 metabolism is wonky, then at least a month on the P5P would tell you something.

Thanks.

I will look into the Board.

I haven't taken any drugs.

Is there any risk to supplementing with the P5P for month?

Getting toxicities from B6 is very difficult. Most of the few cases were in the upper ranges back when B6 was given for PMS in 500mg doses.

Traditional doses today are suggested to avoid over 100mg a day.

The P5P is 33mg/tablet.

B6 is an odd nutrient...when low it gives neuropathy. When toxic it gives neuro symptoms too. Because of this it is hard to gauge.

It is your decision after all in the end.

The enzyme that activates it in the body is pyridoxal kinase and that is dependent on B2, riboflavin in order to work.

You may have something all together different going on with you, as well.

I’m having a difficult and frustrating time finding what I need – nutrition-wise – and was hoping someone could help. Essentially I’m looking for a low-dose B coenzyme complex (*without* any Pyridoxine), in enteric tablet form. The idea is to complement the P-5-P that I started taking a week ago.

1) I know that P5P is best in enteric coated tablet form. But, what about the rest of the B’s. What is the best form for them? (I’ve heard B12 is best in sublingual form due to its poor absorption.) All the active coenzyme B complex formulas I’ve seen are all in capsule form!

2) If I decide to just forget about the B complex pill – and take them individually, do I need to supplement all 8 B’s, or can I just do some? If just some, which ones are the most important to increase? I am already taking a multi-vitamin which has some amounts (in their crappiest form) of each.

• Note: For single Bs, I’m also running into the problem of only finding high dosages. Pantethine (B5), for example, I can only find in ‘therapeutic’ 300 mg dosages. I want around 10 mg.

Btw, B Complex formulas, even B-100s, had never noticeably done much for me, other than interfere with a good nights sleep. The difference with P-5-P, however, was like night and day. Like flipping a mood-elevating switch. Fantastic!

Thanks,
Annette

B12 does not have be sublingual. Taking a high oral dose, will be absorbed passively (without intrinsic factor) thru the intestines, provided there is no food present with it.

Many people believe taking a complex is best. Some of them work with others as cofactors. Riboflavin is needed for activating pyridoxine, for example. I think P5P needs to be enteric coated, but not the others. The reason is the phosphate will be cleaved off in the present of acid, and it will revert back to pyridoxine.

P5P is a cofactor for making serotonin in the brain. So people do feel better when that is fixed when low.

People with really low B6 may have a condition called pyroluria.

http://www.drkaslow.com/html/pyroluria.html

If this is the case for you, you may need zinc as well.