By now, everybody knows about the dangers of cholesterol, smoking, and a high-fat diet. Not everybody knows about the potential of vitamin B-6.

Vitamin B6 benefits are vital in your daily supplementation routine because it fights another culprit in cardiovascular illness, namely homocysteine. Time and time for over 10 years scientists have shown that even mildly elevated levels of homocysteine in the bloodstream raise the risk of heart disease.

Homocysteine is a naturally occurring amino acid. By itself, it's not bad. It's even part of the process the body uses to make its own SAM-e. But when there's not enough vitamin B-6, B12, and folic acid, homocysteine builds up in the blood and causes arterial damage.

High homocysteine levels may be even more damaging than high cholesterol levels, but the benefits of vitamin B-6 include protecting your heart.

A clinical study in Poland found taking just 300 mg of vitamin B-6 every day for two months (along with adequate amounts of vitamin B12, that is, 1000 micrograms weekly, and folic acid, 5 mg daily) cut homocysteine levels in half.

And this B-vitamin combo also reduced levels of thrombin, the clotting agent that sets the stage for a heart attack or stroke.

Protecting your heart against the perils of homocysteine is simple, but most people don't do it. A researcher at Emory University, Atlanta, GA, Godfrey P. Oakley, Jr., MD, MSPM, says "approximately 70% of the adult population in the United States is exposed to a risk factor for cardiovascular disease-an elevated plasma homocysteine concentration-that can be easily avoided simply by consuming a B vitamin supplement."

But if you know the truth about the benefits of vitamin B-6 and heart health, you can protect your heart for just pennies a day. And you will also get protection for your brain.

When homocysteine levels are high, your body can't make SAM-e. This is the same SAM-e you see in supplement outlets for everything from depression to fibromyalgia. When you take vitamin B-6, your body can convert excess homocysteine into this mood-lifting, brain-protective compound.

Preventing vitamin B-6 deficiency may help protect you against Alzheimer's disease, depression, memory loss, and even fibromyalgia and insomnia.

How Much Vitamin B-6 Should You Take?

In the USA, the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of vitamin B-6 is 2 mg. Researchers at Harvard University studied a group of 80,000 nurses and found that the amount of vitamin B-6 needed for heart protection is more than twice that amount, at least 4.6 mg a day. You can round that number up to 5 mg a day for ease in checking labels.

What's the Safety of Vitamin B-6? Is There a Risk of a B-6 Overdose? Is There Any Toxicity of Vitamin B-6?

Well, yes. A few women have taken 500 to 5,000 times the recommended daily dosage of vitamin B-6 for 2 months to 4 years to prevent PMS and suffered permanent nerve damage. The amount of vitamin B-6 they took is equivalent to taking a handful of pure B-6 every day for several years at a cost of over $10 a day. You will never experience this problem if you take a balanced daily supplement in the dosage recommended by the manufacturer.