| By now, everybody knows about the dangers of | | | | But if you know the truth about the benefits of vitamin |
| cholesterol, smoking, and a high-fat diet. Not everybody | | | | B-6 and heart health, you can protect your heart for |
| knows about the potential of vitamin B-6. | | | | just pennies a day. And you will also get protection for |
| Vitamin B6 benefits are vital in your daily | | | | your brain. |
| supplementation routine because it fights another culprit | | | | When homocysteine levels are high, your body can't |
| in cardiovascular illness, namely homocysteine. Time | | | | make SAM-e. This is the same SAM-e you see in |
| and time for over 10 years scientists have shown that | | | | supplement outlets for everything from depression to |
| even mildly elevated levels of homocysteine in the | | | | fibromyalgia. When you take vitamin B-6, your body |
| bloodstream raise the risk of heart disease. | | | | can convert excess homocysteine into this mood-lifting, |
| Homocysteine is a naturally occurring amino acid. By | | | | brain-protective compound. |
| itself, it's not bad. It's even part of the process the | | | | Preventing vitamin B-6 deficiency may help protect |
| body uses to make its own SAM-e. But when there's | | | | you against Alzheimer's disease, depression, memory |
| not enough vitamin B-6, B12, and folic acid, | | | | loss, and even fibromyalgia and insomnia. |
| homocysteine builds up in the blood and causes arterial | | | | How Much Vitamin B-6 Should You Take? |
| damage. | | | | In the USA, the recommended daily allowance (RDA) |
| High homocysteine levels may be even more | | | | of vitamin B-6 is 2 mg. Researchers at Harvard |
| damaging than high cholesterol levels, but the benefits | | | | University studied a group of 80,000 nurses and found |
| of vitamin B-6 include protecting your heart. | | | | that the amount of vitamin B-6 needed for heart |
| A clinical study in Poland found taking just 300 mg of | | | | protection is more than twice that amount, at least 4.6 |
| vitamin B-6 every day for two months (along with | | | | mg a day. You can round that number up to 5 mg a |
| adequate amounts of vitamin B12, that is, 1000 | | | | day for ease in checking labels. |
| micrograms weekly, and folic acid, 5 mg daily) cut | | | | What's the Safety of Vitamin B-6? Is There a Risk of |
| homocysteine levels in half. | | | | a B-6 Overdose? Is There Any Toxicity of Vitamin |
| And this B-vitamin combo also reduced levels of | | | | B-6? |
| thrombin, the clotting agent that sets the stage for a | | | | Well, yes. A few women have taken 500 to 5,000 |
| heart attack or stroke. | | | | times the recommended daily dosage of vitamin B-6 |
| Protecting your heart against the perils of | | | | for 2 months to 4 years to prevent PMS and suffered |
| homocysteine is simple, but most people don't do it. A | | | | permanent nerve damage. The amount of vitamin B-6 |
| researcher at Emory University, Atlanta, GA, Godfrey | | | | they took is equivalent to taking a handful of pure B-6 |
| P. Oakley, Jr., MD, MSPM, says "approximately 70% of | | | | every day for several years at a cost of over $10 a |
| the adult population in the United States is exposed to | | | | day. You will never experience this problem if you take |
| a risk factor for cardiovascular disease-an elevated | | | | a balanced daily supplement in the dosage |
| plasma homocysteine concentration-that can be easily | | | | recommended by the manufacturer. |
| avoided simply by consuming a B vitamin supplement." | | | | |