The True, Enzymatic form of Vitamin B6 can help: Control homocysteine levels for cardiovascular health Control PMS symptoms Support protein metabolism and muscle growth Support neurotransmitter production for emotional balance

by R.G. Sturtz, M.S. and P. Hallman, N.M.D.

When the Hungarian scientist, Gyorgy, confirmed the existence of vitamin B6 in 1934, he knew that it had at least one important function: it healed an intractable skin disease called dermatitis acrodynia. Although it took four more years for German scientists to define the chemical structure of vitamin B6, nearly every year since then has been marked by the discovery of conditions that improve with vitamin B6.

Sadly, as with so many nutrients, economics rather than health benefits have controlled the quality and availability of vitamin B6 in the marketplace. Notwithstanding the fact that vitamin B6 is an essential nutrient, few know that the true, active form of vitamin B6 is not the inexpensive pyridoxine HCl typically found in vitamin supplements.

The fact is that pyridoxine HCl must be converted to the active form of vitamin B6, called pyridoxal 5-phosphate (P5P), the only form your cells can use, and the only form of vitamin B6 in TrueB6.

We all know that a healthy body can tolerate foods and perform chemical reactions that a less-healthy body sometimes cannot. In the case of inexpensive pyridoxine HCl, your body must have healthy liver function in order to make the conversion to P5P. Under optimal conditions, then, P5P is transported through your bloodstream by albumin to the rest of your cells. Your cells must have P5P, not pyridoxine HCl, to thrive.

According to physician feedback we have received, however, this conversion to P5P may be obstructed by common infections, such as candidiasis. This conversion to P5P in your liver requires a simple chemical reaction called phosphorylation. However, during times of infection, phosphorylation may slow down, causing P5P levels to diminish ... possibly leading to vitamin B6 deficiency symptoms, such as those widely reported in candidiasis patients. The problem does not necessarily end there.

Your body’s cells may begin to starve for vitamin B6 if nothing but pyridoxine HCl is circulating in your blood. According to a recent medical hypothesis, this circulating pyridoxine HCl may actually interfere with vitamin B6 utilization by binding with P5P receptors and preventing true vitamin B6 from entering your cells. Thus, contrary to our instincts, a vitamin B6 deficiency may actually be aggravated by taking the ordinary pyridoxine HCl.

Although excess cholesterol is still considered a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, recent research has shifted much of the attention to a far more-accurate predictor, homocysteine levels. Studies have consistently found a link between cardiovascular disease and red-meat consumption in Western cultures, but only now is it becoming clear that homocysteine is one of the key reasons. Homocysteine is found in much higher levels in the blood of Western cultures precisely because red meat is high in the amino acid, methionine, and it is from methionine that homocysteine is made. It is the natural breakdown of homocysteine that is facilitated by P5P.

Homocysteine itself has no biological value, and when it is quickly converted to cysteine, little damage is done. In fact, the transition to cysteine is important because cysteine must be present for the formation of collagen and keratin (the proteins found in skin, hair, nails, and connective tissue). Cysteine can further be converted to taurine, which is the most abundant free amino acid in heart muscle and plays a vital role in regulating the electrical activity of both the heart and brain.

It should be clear that if proper levels of P5P are not available, not only will homocysteine begin to accumulate, but the downstream amino acids, cysteine and taurine, may come into short supply.

Give TrueB6 a try. A trial may be the simplest way to tell if the natural, enzymatic form of Vitamin B6 is a missing link to your health.

Only the natural form of Vitamin B-6 is used by your cells for over 100 enzymes critical to all amino-acid metabolism.