Posted by bleauberry on October 12, 2009, at 19:37:42
In reply to Pyroluria - Zinc and B6, posted by tel1kdj on October 12, 2009, at 15:18:16
> I have pyroluria (urine test score=40). Prior to this diagnosis, I had been taking 300-400mg B6 (pyridoxine HCL) per day for many, many years - not knowing the condition that I had - but I knew that I always needed mega amounts of B6. I always felt much better when taking huge amounts of B6 - by itself or, sometimes, as a B-complex. During this time, I never took a zinc supplement! Now I know my condition and have recently added 50 mg of zinc each day. I really needed the zinc for all these years and didn't know it! With the recent new regimen (zinc/B6), I feel much, much better. I am coming out of a year long depression and my hair stopped falling out, as well as many other changes such as better sleep.
>
> My questions are: When I take B6, do I take the 400 mg/day ALL in B-complex pills or can I take B6 BY ITSELF (without the other B-complex vitamins)? If I take B6 on its own, do I also need B2 to make B6 effective? Also, I have found that P-5-P helps (I am now taking 100mg/day), but I still need to add a lot of regular B6 (pyridoxine HCL) to get the best B6 results? Also, how much Zinc should I take for pyroluria w/o it being toxic?
>Excellent questions. I don't have the answers. But I did want to cheer for you in your discovery. Very exciting.
Did you ever have the tiny random white spots on fingernails? That is an outward clue of pyroluria.
I think with everyone it is different. Some do better with B6, some better with P5P, some better with a mixture of both. Complicated chemistry in the body we just don't know enough about. I am fairly sure the 50 dose of zinc is nontoxic, but not absolutely sure. It will encourage copper excretion in the longrun. High dose zinc is a method of reducing excess copper levels. My gut instinct says lower copper will not be a problem. High copper is more often a culprit in psych disorders.
I think the bottom line is you have to go with whatever feels best, like what you have been doing. Things may change or shift over time, so you may need to shift doses a little here and there as time goes on. Things don't stand still. I don't suspect you would have to change much.
As for zinc toxicity, you could probably do some google searching to find out what symptoms of toxic zinc levels are so you would know what to recognize if it ever happened. You may be able to find out if there are certain testable blood levels that are toxic and maybe be tested once in a while? I wouldn't worry about it right now, but maybe 6 months or a year from now it might be good to know what signs or symptoms would give a clue to having too much zinc. The worldwide web has made that kind of knowledge attainable at the click of a mouse.
Great news!
poster:bleauberry
thread:920644
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20090727/msgs/920689.html