Low vitamin B increases inflammation and causes oxidative stress: Eat these foods to boost your levels

Friday, April 05, 2013 by: PF Louis
Tags: vitamin B, oxidative stress, foods

(NaturalNews) Researchers at Tuft University in Boston, Massachusetts, conducted a study entitled "Association of vitamin B-6 status with inflammation, oxidative stress, and chronic inflammatory conditions: the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study."

It was called the Boston Puerto Rican study because the researchers used 1,205 ethnic Puerto Rican elders living in the Boston area who exhibit a higher rate of depression and cognitive impairment as well as hypertension, obesity, and Type II diabetes than non-Hispanic or Hispanic groups.

Vitamin B6 deficiency has already been loosely associated by observing low B6 concentrations among those with cardiovascular disease (CVD). But the medical field has suspected the resultant higher homocysteine levels as a major factor for CVD.

The Boston researchers noticed DNA oxidative markers remained high from lower B6 concentrations even after homocysteine was neutralized.

So they decided that low vitamin B6 concentrations are associated with inflammation and oxidative stress by lowering glutathione's protective antioxidant properties. Vitamin B6 is needed to help produce sufficient cysteine as a glutathione precursor.

Glutathione is considered the master antioxidant by many experts. (https://www.naturalnews.com/028570_glutathione_GSH.html)

From their report: "Our data suggest that vitamin B-6 may influence cardiovascular disease risk through mechanisms other than homocysteine and support the notion that nutritional status may influence the health disparities present in this population." (Emphasis added)

Vitamin B6 and the B-Complex

Vitamin B6 is one of the eight B vitamins of B complex. Each one has an independent but coexisting function. Vitamin B6 or pyridoxine is involved with with metabolizing amino acids and the synthesis of neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine in addition to the sleep hormone melatonin.

Vitamin B6 also helps vitamin B12 produce red blood cells. It also manages to convert non carbohydrate sources, such as proteins and lipids, into glucose for cellular metabolic energy.

Foods high in vitamin B6 and other B vitamins include brewers yeast, bee pollen, bell peppers, mushrooms, turnip greens, summer squash, tuna, cod, turkey or chicken, and all the other cruciferous vegetables, such as kale, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Supplementing B6 should not exceed 200 mg, while 100 mg is usually adequate. Any high dose single B vitamin should include most or all of the other B vitamins in with complementary normal doses, as they have an interdependent synergy. Many B-complex supplements contain almost all or all the B vitamins:

Vitamin B1 (thiamine)

Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)

Vitamin B3 (niacin or niacinamide)

Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine, pyridoxal, pyridoxamine, or pyridoxine hydrochloride)

Vitamin B7 (biotin)

Vitamin B9 (folic acid is the synthetic form; folate is the natural form that many consider healthier for human consumption)

Vitamin B12 (various cobalamins are used in supplements, but methylcobalamin is the best)

Sometimes it's necessary to beef up on one of them more than the others depending on the person's health needs. Three common examples are vitamin B12, folate or folic acid, and niacin.

Vitamin B12 is important for mental and overall energy, but it has a hard time getting by the gut unless you're eating lots of meat. If not, sublingual tablets and B12 patches work well if you in lieu of injections. Make sure you stick with methylcobalamin B12 sources.

You can supplement with folate instead of folic acid if your dietary intake is inadequate. Look for products that contain the Metfolin brand, or list "5-methyltetrahydrofolate" or "5-MTHF" on the label or say folate. Watch out with multivitamins. They usually contain folic acid.

Niacin is the basis of Orthomolecular Psychiatry's mega-vitamin solutions to mental disorders. And it can be used along with induced heavy sweating to blow apart lipids for detox and/or weight loss.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/38782

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2806890/

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=108

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B_vitamins

http://chriskresser.com/folate-vs-folic-acid

https://www.naturalnews.com/031940_mental_acuity_Alzheimers.html

https://www.naturalnews.com/033168_niacin_detoxification.html