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Comment by lxe | Hacker News Reader

The participants of study referenced here tool 100mg tablets daily for 30-35 days. Before you start popping B6, keep in mind that supratherapeutic doses of >500mg pyridoxine have been linked to peripheral neuropathy and other CNS issues.

Furthermore, the whole subject of B6/B12 supplementation and dosage is muddied by all sorts of facebook groups and self-reported anecdotes as well.

I personally would stick to improving my diet rather then experimenting with supplements.

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I agree with you in regards to diet. Over the last 24 months I slowly, and with many stumbles, changed my entire approach to eating. A foundation of raw fruits and vegetables (carotenoids ftw) with higher protein and fat consumption. Avoiding sugars and carbs but not religiously. I was overweight to obese for 15 years it's like a new lease on life. That said about 10 months ago I started practicing mindfulness and meditation and I think that had the biggest impact on lowering stress and anxiety for me personally but lifestyle changes absolutely had a big impact. I wanted to chime in because a big part of my dietary transition was held in place due to rising food costs. YMMV but for me the produce section became much, much cheaper than all but the most bottom rung foodstuffs at the grocery when it came to packing lunch and snacks for the day, it also helped to really limit my meat intake so I actually replaced most of that with dairy (Greek yogurt, cheese, etc). I don't expect food prices to go anywhere but up over the short to medium term so I think supplements are going to really be worth looking at for a lot of people who want to nudge themselves to a better spot physically and mentally. But do not expect miracles, I've found a lot of my better health was so gradual in affect that it was only by looking back that I realized how much better I was doing.

> But do not expect miracles, I've found a lot of my better health was so gradual in affect that it was only by looking back that I realized how much better I was doing.

That should be underlined. So true. Thank you for sharing your experience!

Edit: typo

Do you know if supratherapeutic dose of B6 combined with a megadose of B1 would avoid peripheral neuropathy? Already people taking DCA (peripheral neuropathy-inducing as well) take megadoses of B1 to avoid that issue.

What clinical evidence is there that the neuropathy would be avoided? Feels very "old lady who swallowed a fly" to mitigate the risks of supertherapeutic doses of one compound with megadoses of another compound. Why would you tolerate that risk?

B1 seems to be safe at any levels (excess excreted in urine and helps kidneys in addition) and is popular among people with peripheral neuropathy.

Peripheral neuropathy is the symptom, not the underlying issue. Zyrtec is popular among people who frequently sneeze but it's probably not what you're looking for if you're ingesting so much of a substance that it makes you sneeze uncontrollably.

Do you really want to be the person who has to explain to the doctor that you have no feeling in your hands because you're taking so much B6 every day for a bit of anxiety relief that it fried your nerves, but you thought that you could just cancel it out by taking a ridiculous amount of B1? Especially when there's so much else that can treat anxiety, including well-studied and benign things like lavender oil?

They're talking about B6. It's not worth risking permanent nerve damage until further studies clarify things.

I meant B6, not sure why I made the B2 typo. Fixed.

I'm taking 100mg B1, 200mg B6 and 0.2mg B12 everyday for the last few years, no issues.

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