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Vitamin B6: the daily reference intake
The vitamin B6 reference intake is 1.7 mg a day for men and 1.6 mg for women. It is also the water-soluble vitamin most worth being careful with: unlike the rest of the B group, sustained high doses damage peripheral nerves.
These are published population reference values, not a diagnosis and not a prescription. A reference intake describes what covers a healthy group; it cannot tell you your own status, and no page can. Pregnancy, chronic illness, medicines and malabsorption all change the picture — take those questions to a doctor, midwife, pharmacist or dietitian.
Vitamin B6 by age, sex and life stage
This page carries the adult values. EFSA also publishes lower reference intakes for each child band; they are not reproduced here.
| Group | Reference value | Type | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men 19-50 | 1.7 mg | PRI | |
| Women 19-50 | 1.6 mg | PRI | |
| Men 51 and over | 1.7 mg | PRI | |
| Women 51 and over | 1.6 mg | PRI | |
| Pregnancy | 1.8 mg | PRI | |
| Breastfeeding | 1.7 mg | PRI |
What it does
Vitamin B6, as pyridoxal phosphate, is the coenzyme for well over a hundred enzymes, most of them in amino acid metabolism. It is required to make haem, to convert tryptophan to niacin, and to synthesise several neurotransmitters. Because so much of its work is on amino acids, the requirement rises somewhat with protein intake — EFSA discussed this and set a single value rather than a protein-scaled one.
The toxicity nobody expects from a B vitamin
Water-soluble vitamins are usually described as safe because the excess is excreted. Vitamin B6 is the exception. Sustained intake well above the requirement causes a sensory peripheral neuropathy: numbness, tingling and unsteadiness starting in the hands and feet. Cases have come from over-the-counter supplements taken for months or years, often for premenstrual symptoms or carpal tunnel syndrome, and recovery after stopping can be slow and is not always complete.
EFSA re-evaluated the upper level in 2023 and lowered it from the earlier 25 mg a day figure. Rather than print a number that may be superseded, this page says what matters: high-dose B6 is not a casual purchase, and a B-complex or "energy" product can contain many times the reference intake.
Who is genuinely short
Low B6 status is associated with chronic alcohol use, with some kidney disease, and with certain medicines — isoniazid used for tuberculosis is the classic example, and B6 is co-prescribed with it for exactly that reason. Coeliac disease and other malabsorption states also feature. Outside those situations, a varied diet supplies it.
Where it comes from
Fish, poultry, pork and offal, potatoes and other starchy vegetables, bananas, chickpeas, nuts and wholegrain cereals. It is one of the more widely distributed vitamins, which is why isolated dietary deficiency is uncommon.
The upper level
Vitamin B6 is the one water-soluble vitamin with a well-documented toxicity: prolonged high intake causes peripheral neuropathy, a sensory nerve damage that begins as numbness and tingling in the hands and feet. EFSA re-examined the upper level in 2023 and set a figure lower than the earlier 25 mg a day. Because the number has changed, this page does not print one — check the current EFSA opinion or ask a pharmacist before taking a high-dose B6 product.
Ordinary food against the 1.7 mg male reference intake
Top of this list: Salmon, 1.13 mg in a 120 g serving (a fillet) — 66% of the 1.7 mg male reference intake. It would take about 2 of those to cover a full day from that one food, which is why a real diet spreads it across several rows.
| Food | Ordinary portion | Per portion | Share of the day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salmon | a fillet, 120 g | 1.13 mg | 66% |
| Veal liver | a small portion, 100 g | 0.96 mg | 56% |
| Chicken breast | a breast, 120 g | 0.72 mg | 42% |
| Boneless pork chop | a chop, 120 g | 0.624 mg | 37% |
| Potato (boiled) | two medium potatoes, 200 g | 0.6 mg | 35% |
| Mackerel | a fillet, 120 g | 0.552 mg | 32% |
| Chicken thigh | a thigh, 120 g | 0.552 mg | 32% |
| Trout | a fillet, 120 g | 0.468 mg | 28% |
| Ground beef | a portion, 120 g | 0.456 mg | 27% |
| Banana | 1 banana, 120 g | 0.444 mg | 26% |
| Sweet potato | a medium one, 150 g | 0.435 mg | 26% |
| Sunflower seeds | 2 tbsp, 30 g | 0.405 mg | 24% |
Portion sizes are ordinary household servings chosen for this table, not official reference portions, and the shortlist is an editorial one: everyday foods eaten in this region rather than the highest per-100 g entries in the database. A raw per-100 g ranking would be topped by dried herbs, drink powders and fortified breakfast cereals, which answers a different question. The composition data is American, so where US fortification practice differs from European practice the row carries a dagger and the reason. For the full per-100 g ranking of a nutrient, the food-data section of this site publishes one.
Sources: EFSA Dietary Reference Values · Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex XIII · USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy (food composition) · EFSA scientific opinion on dietary reference values for vitamin B6 (2016) · EFSA re-evaluation of the tolerable upper intake level for vitamin B6 (2023) · checked 2026-09-06
Frequently asked questions
How much vitamin B6 a day?
EFSA population reference intake is 1.7 mg a day for adult men and 1.6 mg for adult women, 1.8 mg in pregnancy and 1.7 mg while breastfeeding.
Can vitamin B6 be harmful?
Yes. Sustained high intake causes peripheral nerve damage with numbness and tingling in the hands and feet. It is the one water-soluble vitamin with a well-documented toxicity, and EFSA lowered its upper level in 2023.
Which foods contain vitamin B6?
Fish, poultry, pork, offal, potatoes, bananas, chickpeas, nuts and wholegrain cereals.
See your own numbers, not the population average
TempoLife logs what you eat and adds it up, so you can compare a real week against the reference intake on this page instead of guessing.