P5P 50 mg Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate – Active B6 for Energy | 60 Vegetarian Capsules
P5P 50 mg is single-ingredient vitamin B6 in a coenzyme form, pyridoxal 5’ phosphate. Each vegetarian capsule gives you 34 mg of vitamin B6 (2,000% of the Daily Value) from 50 mg of P5P, and each bottle holds 60 capsules at one a day. B6 helps your body turn food into usable energy, process protein, and make the chemical messengers your nervous system runs on.†
This one is for people who want their B6 as one clear number in one capsule, not tucked into a blend, and in the coenzyme form itself. A lot of them are in their 30s and 40s, already paying attention to energy and metabolism so they can still be hiking, lifting and keeping up with the grandkids in their 70s and 80s. Aging isn't optional. Getting old is.
It's also a deliberate dose. Most adults need 1.3 to 1.7 mg of B6 a day, according to the NIH vitamin B6 fact sheet, so 34 mg is a high-potency choice you make on purpose, ideally with your practitioner in the loop. If you only want the basics covered, your multivitamin may already do it.
Why people take P5P 50 mg
- Supports energy metabolism, including turning stored glycogen back into usable fuel.†
- Supports protein and amino acid metabolism, which is most of what B6 does all day.†
- Supports normal nervous system function by helping make neurotransmitters.†
- Supports normal red blood cell formation, since B6 helps build hemoglobin.†
- Supports normal immune function.†
What's in each serving
| Ingredient | Amount per serving | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|
| Vitamin B6 (from 50 mg of pyridoxal 5’ phosphate - the coenzyme form of B6) | 34 mg | 2,000% |
Serving size: 1 Vegetarian Capsule. Each bottle holds 60 vegetarian capsules, a 60-day supply at the label's serving of one capsule a day. Other ingredients: L-Leucine, vegetarian capsule (hypromellose and water), ascorbyl palmitate, silica, and vegetable stearate. The label states: "NO alcohol, soy, salt, yeast, gluten, milk & egg products, starch, or preservatives."
How P5P 50 mg works
P5P is the form your enzymes plug in
Vitamin B6 is a family of six related compounds, and pyridoxal 5’ phosphate (P5P, also written PLP) is one of its two active coenzyme forms, the ones enzymes actually use, per the NIH. The other forms you eat or swallow have to be converted first. A lab study using human intestinal cells found the gut carries the full enzyme set for that conversion and does a real share of the work, not just the liver.
Now the honest part. P5P isn't absorbed whole: the phosphate comes off in your small intestine, the B6 crosses over, and your cells put a phosphate back on. The NIH also notes that absorption doesn't differ much between the B6 forms used in supplements. What P5P changes is the route. Pyridoxine HCl, which the NIH says is the most common B6 form in supplements, needs two enzyme steps to become P5P, including an oxidase that depends on riboflavin (vitamin B2), per the NIH riboflavin fact sheet. Pyridoxal, which is what P5P turns into as it's absorbed, needs only one. So you're starting with B6 that is already most of the way there.
Once it's in place, P5P works as a coenzyme in more than 100 enzyme reactions, mostly in protein metabolism. Researchers usually judge B6 status by measuring P5P in blood plasma, and a review of how B6 status is measured lists P5P-dependent reactions across amino acid metabolism, from the kynurenine pathway to transsulfuration.
Energy and protein metabolism
B6's day job is amino acids. P5P helps move nitrogen-containing groups from one molecule to another so your body can build, break down and repurpose protein. It's also part of how you tap stored fuel: B6 is involved in breaking down glycogen, the glucose your muscles and liver keep in reserve, and in making glucose from scratch between meals. It helps form hemoglobin too, the protein that carries oxygen in red blood cells.†
Being candid: none of that feels like a cup of coffee. B6 keeps the machinery running; it doesn't floor the gas.
Brain and nervous system
Your nervous system uses B6 to make neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers nerve cells use to talk to each other.† The human research here is real but modest. In a 3-month trial in 76 healthy men aged 70 to 79, 20 mg a day of pyridoxine HCl showed positive effects only on memory, mostly long-term memory storage, and the authors called the improvement modest. A 5-week trial in 211 healthy women of various ages tested folate, B12 or 75 mg of B6 against placebo: supplementation slightly helped some memory scores and had no effect on mood. Neither trial was about P5P specifically, so read them as evidence about B6 in general.
Homocysteine: what B6 does and doesn't do
Homocysteine is an amino acid your body makes and recycles. B6 helps keep it at normal levels alongside folate and B12, and P5P is the cofactor for transsulfuration, one of the routes your body uses to clear it.† Here's the less exciting part: in a meta-analysis of 12 randomized trials with 1,114 people, folic acid lowered blood homocysteine by about 25% and B12 added about 7% more, while B6 (averaging 16.5 mg a day) added no significant further drop. So B6 is part of the homocysteine picture, but folate and B12 do most of the lifting.
How to take P5P 50 mg
The label says: "Take one capsule daily, as a dietary supplement."
Keep an eye on your total B6. Each capsule gives you 34 mg. The US upper limit for adults is 100 mg a day from food and supplements combined, per the NIH. In 2023, Europe's food-safety panel set a more cautious adult limit of 12 mg a day, based on the well-established link between excess B6 and nerve problems. So add up every B6 source you take, and if you notice numbness or tingling in your hands or feet, stop and talk to your practitioner.
Ask your healthcare practitioner before use if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition.
Don't take our word for it
- Verified by independent labs. ISO 17025-accredited labs check our test results.
- Every ingredient lot tested before use. Federal rules only require an identity test on incoming dietary ingredients. We test every incoming lot, the P5P included, for identity, potency, heavy metals and microbes.
- If it misses spec, it doesn't go in a bottle. More than 99% of our tests pass, and the lots that don't are turned away.
- A certificate of analysis for every lot. Every lot of P5P 50 mg gets its own.
Made in the USA. Made and tested in Mt. Angel, Oregon. It's a farm town of about 3,500 people in the Willamette Valley, and our UL-certified cGMP facility is right there in it. The people who formulate, make and test P5P 50 mg all work under one roof, and the owners work in the building too (owner-run since 2017), so the people making the decisions are just down the hall.
We've been making supplements in Oregon since 1974. That's 52 years of doing this, and we're not getting old either.
Frequently asked questions
How much vitamin B6 is in each capsule?
Each capsule has 34 mg of vitamin B6 from 50 mg of pyridoxal 5’ phosphate, 2,000% of the Daily Value, as printed on the Supplement Facts panel.
Does P5P absorb more easily than regular B6?
Not in any way we can honestly promise. The NIH notes absorption doesn't differ much among supplement B6 forms. The real difference is the route: P5P skips the riboflavin-dependent step pyridoxine HCl needs.
When should I take it, and does it need food?
One capsule a day, whenever you'll remember it. The label doesn't mention food, so pick the meal or time that's easiest. Keeping the bottle by the coffee maker can help you remember.
Can I take it with B-Complex or B-12 Essential Trio?
Yes with B-12 Essential Trio, but think twice about B-Complex. Trio adds 4 mg of B6, for 38 mg a day in total. B-Complex already has 100 mg of vitamin B6 per capsule, so taking both puts you at 134 mg a day, over the 100 mg adult upper limit. Pick one, or ask your practitioner. For extra B12 with no added B6, Triple B-12 Dots contain none.
How long until I notice anything?
There's no set timeline, and you may not feel anything obvious. The trials above ran 5 weeks to 3 months and measured memory scores, not how energetic people felt. If you already get enough B6 from food, the honest answer may be: not much day to day.
Is it safe to take with my medications?
Ask your practitioner before you start. Vitamin B6 can interact with certain medications, and some medications can affect your B6 levels, according to the NIH. Bring the bottle to your appointment, or use our supplement and medication interaction checker to prep your questions.
Keep learning
References
- Albersen M et al. The intestine plays a substantial role in human vitamin B6 metabolism: a Caco-2 cell model. PLoS One. 2013. PubMed
- Ueland PM et al. Direct and Functional Biomarkers of Vitamin B6 Status. Annu Rev Nutr. 2015. PubMed
- Deijen JB et al. Vitamin B-6 supplementation in elderly men: effects on mood, memory, performance and mental effort. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1992. PubMed
- Bryan J et al. Short-term folate, vitamin B-12 or vitamin B-6 supplementation slightly affects memory performance but not mood in women of various ages. J Nutr. 2002. PubMed
- Homocysteine Lowering Trialists' Collaboration. Lowering blood homocysteine with folic acid based supplements: meta-analysis of randomised trials. Homocysteine Lowering Trialists' Collaboration. BMJ. 1998. PubMed
- EFSA Panel on Nutrition, Novel Foods and Food Allergens (NDA), Turck D et al. Scientific opinion on the tolerable upper intake level for vitamin B6. EFSA J. 2023. PubMed
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Vitamin B6: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. Updated June 16, 2023. NIH ODS
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Riboflavin: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. Updated May 11, 2022. NIH ODS
†These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
