Vitamins B-1 and B-6 are water-soluble vitamins essential for healthy nervous system function. Neuropathy is a group of disorders characterized by damaged nerves that can adversely affect cell function, communication and muscle movement, and usually causes pain and numbness in the hands and feet. It is caused by injuries, infections, diabetes and dietary deficiencies. Vitamins B-1 and B-6 might help you prevent and recover from neuropathy caused by nutritional deficiencies.
Vitamin B-1
Vitamin B-1, also called thiamine, is found in a variety of foods, including whole grains, legumes and meat. Vitamin B-1 is vital for helping to release energy from foods, enhancing your appetite and supporting normal function of your nervous system. Thiamine in the forms of thiamin monophosphate, thiamin triphosphate and thiamin pyrophosphate is a coenzyme and assists enzymes in chemical reactions that produce energy within cells.
Vitamin B-1 and Neuropathy
A vitamin B-1 deficiency can lead to neuropathy and supplementation might help to reverse it. Research by scientists at Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine in Japan that was published in the November-December 2004 issue of "Nutrition" found vitamin B-1 deficiency induces neuropathy after surgical removal of part or all of the stomach. Vitamin B-1 can be fed either enteral or parenteral to patients following surgical removal of the stomach. Enteral nutrition is feeding through a tube inserted directly into your small intestine, whereas parenteral nutrition is feeding directly into your bloodstream. Vitamin B-1 supplementation is effective in treating neuropathy in patients with bladder disorders who are vitamin B-1 deficient, according to research by scientists at Hopital de la Pitie-Salpetriere in Paris that was published in "Annales de Réadaptation et de Médecine Physique" in February 2005.
Vitamin B-6
Vitamin B-6, also called pyridoxine and pyridoxal-5'-phosphate, is essential for helping you metabolize carbohydrates and proteins, form red blood cells and support proper nerve function. Vitamin B-6 also is vital for production of neurotransmitters, substances in your brain that communicate between nerve cells. Vitamin B-6 is found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and cereals, fish, poultry and meat.
Vitamin B-6 and Neuropathy
A deficiency of vitamin B-6 can cause neuropathy. Research by scientists at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, that was published in the "Annals of Plastic Surgery" in August 2001 found a diet totally deficient in vitamin B-6 causes peripheral neuropathy. Vitamin B-6 supplementation is effective in treating diabetic neuropathy. Research by scientists at the University of California in San Diego that was published in the "European Journal of Pharmacology" in June 2009 found vitamin B-6 alone reduces pain in diabetic rats with neuropathy. The scientists conclude that vitamin B-6 can be used to treat patients with painful diabetic neuropathy.
References
- Colorado State University; Water Soluble Vitamins; 2010
- Medical News Today; What Is Neuropathy? Neuropathy Causes and Treatments; April 29, 2009
- Linus Pauling Institute a Oregon State University; Thiamin; Drake, V.; June 2007
- "Nutrition"; Postgastrectomy Polyneuropathy with Thiamine Deficiency Is Identical to Beriberi Neuropathy; Haruki Koike, et al.; Nov-Dec 2004
- "Annales de Réadaptation et de Médecine Physique"; Neuropathy with Non-Alcoholic Thiamine Deficiency: Two Cases of Bladder Disorders; D. Mazevet, et al.; Feb 2005
- McKinley Health Center University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Vitamins and Minerals; 2008
