VEGANALYZEDaily Vitamin B6 Requirement
Vitamin B6 is a collective term for a group of water-soluble vitamins. These need to be consumed daily through diet. In plant-based foods, vitamin B6 is found in high amounts, so the vitamin B6 requirement can easily be met with a vegan diet. The foods rich in vitamin B6 are listed in the table here.
Vitamin B6 Daily Requirement for the United States
For the United States, the following values have been issued as daily vitamin B6 intake recommendations by the NIH 1:
| Gender and Age Group | Amount in mg |
|---|---|
| Men | |
| 19 to 50 years | 1.3 |
| 51+ years | 1.7 |
| Women | |
| 19 to 50 years | 1.3 |
| Pregnant, 19 to 50 years | 1.9 |
| Breastfeeding, 19 to 50 years | 2.0 |
| 51+ years | 1.5 |
| Children / Adolescents | |
| 0 to 6 months | 0.1* |
| 7 to 12 months | 0.3* |
| 1 to 3 years | 0.5 |
| 4 to 8 years | 0.6 |
| 9 to 13 years | 1.0 |
| Boys 14 to 18 years | 1.3 |
| Girls 14 to 18 years | 1.2 |
| Pregnant, 14 to 18 years | 1.9 |
| Breastfeeding, 14 to 18 years | 2.0 |
* Adequate Intake (AI)
Increased Vitamin B6 Requirement in Athletes?
Vitamin B6 is generally a cofactor for many metabolic reactions involved in energy production 2. Cofactors are essential for the functions of various enzymes.
Athletes may have a higher vitamin B6 requirement 3 4. For example, a study demonstrates the amount of vitamin B6 lost during a marathon 5. On average, it was 1 mg of vitamin B6. However, scientists consider supplementation with B6 unnecessary if the diet is varied.
In addition, exercise and fitness also increase the loss of vitamin B6 in the form of 4-pyridoxinic acid through urine 6. However, the losses are minimal.
A deficiency in vitamin B6 could generally affect performance due to inadequate dietary intake of vitamin B6 7 8.
Influence of Higher Protein Consumption on Vitamin B6 Requirements?
Vitamin B6 is involved, among other things, in the metabolism of amino acids and in energy-producing processes from amino acids. Therefore, scientific studies have been conducted and continue to investigate the influence of a higher protein intake, for example, by athletes, on vitamin B6 requirements. Some scientists recommend 0.019 mg of vitamin B6 per gram of protein in this context to maintain an adequate B6 status in the body 9.
The results vary. There is no clear evidence that the vitamin B6 requirement changes depending on daily protein consumption 10 11. However, the overall protein intake is taken into account when determining the recommended amounts of vitamin B6 12.