Vitamin B-6 is essential for the metabolism of red blood cells and protein, and also has an important role in the function of your nervous system. While you should monitor your daily intake of this vitamin to ensure you are getting adequate amounts, getting too much may cause nerve damage. This nerve damage may result in numbness, tingling or pain.
Recommended Amounts
The recommended dietary allowance of vitamin B-6 is 1.3 milligrams for people between the ages of 19 and 50. Women older than 50 years old have a recommended dietary allowance of 1.5 milligrams, while men older than 50 should get at least 1.7 milligrams.
You are unlikely to experience nerve pain from vitamin B-6 as long as you keep your intake close to the recommended dietary allowance for your sex and age group. Exceeding the tolerable upper intake level of vitamin B-6, which is 100 milligrams a day, may increase your risk of nerve damage or nerve pain.
Nerve Damage
Nerve damage has occurred from vitamin B-6 doses of less than 500 milligrams a day, according to the Office of Dietary Supplements, but it is more common with larger doses. Your risk of nerve damage and pain increases proportionally to the amount of vitamin B-6 you take. This nerve pain is temporary and will reverse itself when you stop taking supplements and your body excretes the excess amounts of the vitamin.
Misconceptions
Some people with existing nerve pain, from conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome or diabetic neuropathy, believe large doses of vitamin B-6 can treat their pain. While vitamin B-6 can be useful in eliminating nerve pain or damage resulting from a vitamin B-6 deficiency, it may not ease nerve pain in those who already have an adequate vitamin B-6 levels in the body, according to the University of Virginia Health System. Talk to your doctor before attempting to treat nerve pain with vitamin B-6.
Considerations
Because vitamin B-6 is found in numerous foods, vitamin B-6 supplementation may be unnecessary. Good sources of vitamin B-6 include salmon, tuna fish, chicken, pork, bananas, peanut butter, beans, vegetables and fortified breakfast cereals. Monitor your daily intake to determine how much of the vitamin you consume each day. You can check the nutrition labels or online nutrition databases like LIVESTRONG.COM's MyPlate to determine the specific amount of vitamin B-6 in a particular food. Supplements may be beneficial if you consistently fall short of meeting your recommended dietary allowance.
References
- Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin B6 Fact Sheet
- Institute of Medicine of the National Academies: Dietary Reference Intakes: Recommended Dietary Allowances and Adequate Intakes, Vitamins
- Institute of Medicine of the National Academies: Dietary Reference Intakes: Tolerable Upper Intake Levels, Vitamins
- University of Virginia Health Systems: Peripheral Neuropathy and Vitamin B6
