Last updated on 7-7-2025 by Thérésa Lebacq
Why do we study vitamin B6 intake?
- Vitamin B6 refers to a group of six water-soluble chemically related compounds, which all get converted to pyridoxal-5’-phosphate in the liver, the bio-active form. It plays a key role in amino acid metabolism. It is crucial for growth and development, neurotransmission, immune function and the production of red blood cells.
- Vitamin B6 can be found in both foods of plant and animal origin. The highest levels are found in whole grains such as brown rice. Additional sources include shellfish, pulses, fruits like banana and avocado, chicken and beef. Consuming insufficient foods rich in vitamin B6, increases the risk of deficiency, which can lead to growth failure, anemia and neurological disorders.
- The Belgian Superior Health Council considers that a healthy and varied diet supplies sufficient vitamin B6, without risk of overconsumption. Given the low risk of deficiency and the likely intake, the SHC advises that supplements for persons who risk a vitamin B6 deficiency do not supply more than 5 mg/day.
- Overconsumption of vitamin B6 can be harmful. Excessive intake of vitamin B6 can lead to neurotoxicity, memory problems and skin damage, among other issues. Therefore, it is essential to monitor supplement intake to ensure both sufficiency and safety.
How do we study it?
- Inadequate vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements was assessed by comparing the habitual vitamin B6 intake of the population with the reference values set by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA): between 0.5 and 0.9 mg/day for children depending on age, between 1.2 and 1.5 mg/day for adolescents depending on age and sex, and 1.5 and 1.3 mg/day for adult men and women, respectively.
- The prevalence of excessive vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements was estimated as the proportion of the population with habitual vitamin B6 intake above the safety reference values set by EFSA: between 3.2 and 6.1 mg/day for children depending on age, between 8.6 and 10.7 mg/day for adolescents depending on age and 12 mg/day for adults.
- Habitual intake of vitamin B6 was analysed using the SPADE® program. A detailed description on the methodology for deriving the habitual vitamin B6 intake, the type of the reference values used and the age-specific values of these references can be found here.
KEY RESULTS
The mean vitamin B6 intake from food is 1.5 mg/day, while the mean intake from food and supplements is 1.9 mg/day
The percentage of the population with an excessive intake of vitamin B6 from food and supplements is 0.2%
The mean vitamin B6 intake from food did not change between 2014-2015 and 2022-2023
Meat, meat products and substitutes contribute most to the vitamin B6 intake (around 30%), followed by vegetables, cereals and cereal products, fruits, potatoes and other tubers, contributing each between 7 and 10%
Vitamin B6-containing supplements contribute 6% to the total vitamin B6 intake
Proportion of the population consuming a vitamin B6-containing supplement
18% of the population in Belgium aged 3 years and older uses a vitamin B6-containing supplement.
By sex
Mean vitamin B6 intake (mg/day) in the population aged 3 years and older, by sex, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food is 1.5 mg/day in the population aged 3 years and older. The mean intake from food and supplements raises to 1.9 mg/day.
- Men have a higher mean vitamin B6 intake from food (1.7 mg/day) compared to women (1.3 mg/day). When including supplements, both men and women have similar intakes.
Proportion of the population aged 3 years and older with inadequate vitamin B6 intake, by sex, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Results are based on dietary reference values defined as average requirements (AR) and upper intake levels (UL).
- 38% of the population have an inadequate intake of vitamin B6 from food. This proportion decreases to 33% when the intake from food and supplements is considered.
- A higher proportion of women (45%) have an inadequate intake of vitamin B6, as compared to men (31%). This difference remains when intake from both food and supplements is considered, albeit with a smaller difference (39% and 28% for women and men, respectively).
Excessive vitamin B6 intake in the population aged 3 years and older, by sex, Belgium: 2022-2023
- The proportion of the population with an excessive vitamin B6 intake from food only is null.
- When the vitamin B6 intake from supplement is also taken into account, 0.2% of the population is at risk for excessive intake. The risk for men remains almost null, while the proportion of women at risk of excessive intake is 0.3%.
By age
Mean vitamin B6 intake (mg/day) in the population aged 3 years and older, by age, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Older adults (65 years and above) do not include those residing in care facilities, hospitalised individuals, or those who would have required significant assistance during interviews (e.g., people with cognitive impairments).
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food increases with age: from 1.3 mg/day in children to 1.4 mg/day in adolescents and 1.6 mg/day in adults aged 18-64 years and in adults aged 65 years and above.
- When the intake from food and supplements is taken into consideration, the intake of vitamin B6 by adolescents remains lower (1.5 mg/day) than the intake by adults aged 18-64 years(1.9 mg/day) and adults aged 65 years and above (1.8 mg/day). Children have a mean intake from food and supplements of 1.9 mg/day but the larger uncertainty round this value does not allow to determine if it is higher than that the intake observed in adolescents.
Proportion of the population aged 3 years and older with inadequate vitamin B6 intake, by age, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Results are based on dietary reference values defined as average requirements (AR) and upper intake levels (UL).
- Older adults (65 years and above) do not include those residing in care facilities, hospitalised individuals, or those who would have required significant assistance during interviews (e.g., people with cognitive impairments).
- The proportion of people with inadequate vitamin B6 intake from food is the lowest in children (9%). In all other age groups, approximately 40% of people have an inadequate intake.
- This pattern remains similar when the intake from food and supplements is considered.
Excessive vitamin B6 intake in the population aged 3 years and older, by age, Belgium: 2022-2023
- The risk for excessive vitamin B6 intake from food only is null for all age groups.
- When the intake from food and supplements is considered, 0.5% of children have an excessive vitamin B6 intake, while this proportion is 0.2% in adults aged 18-64 years. Adolescents and adults aged 65 years and older have risk close to null to have an excessive vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements.
By educational level
Mean vitamin B6 intake (mg/day) in the population aged 3 years and older, by educational level, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- The educational level is calculated at the household level by considering the highest diploma obtained by: (i) the respondents or their partner for adults (aged 18 years and above), or (ii) the father and mother (or carer, if applicable) for children and adolescents (aged 3 to 17 years). However, for simplicity, we refer to the educational level of individuals rather than the educational level of their households.
- People with a low level of education have a higher mean intake of vitamin B6 from food (1.6 mg/day) than people with a medium or high level of education (1.5 mg/day).
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements is 2.1 mg/day in people with a low level of education, and 1.7 mg/day in people with a medium or high level of education. Given the uncertainty around the mean values, it is, however, not possible to conclude whether or not there is a difference between those values.
Proportion of the population aged 3 years and older with inadequate vitamin B6 intake, by education level, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Results are based on dietary reference values defined as average requirements (AR) and upper intake levels (UL).
- The educational level is calculated at the household level by considering the highest diploma obtained by: (i) the respondents or their partner for adults (aged 18 years and above), or (ii) the father and mother (or carer, if applicable) for children and adolescents (aged 3 to 17 years). However, for simplicity, we refer to the educational level of individuals rather than the educational level of their households.
- The proportion of people with inadequate vitamin B6 intake from food is 40% in people with a medium education level And 37% in people with a low or high education level.
- When the intake from food and supplements is considered, 34% of people with a medium or low education level and 32% of people with a high education level have an inadequate intake of vitamin B6.
By region
Mean vitamin B6 intake (mg/day) in the population aged 3 years and older, by region, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Brussels is excluded from the regional comparison due to an insufficient number of participants, but is included in the national data for Belgium.
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food is higher in Flanders (1.6 mg/day) than in Wallonia (1.4 mg/day).
- When supplements are taken into account, the mean vitamin B6 intake is 1.8 mg/day in Flanders and 1.9 mg/day in Wallonia.
Proportion of the population aged 3 years and older with inadequate vitamin B6 intake, by region, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Results are based on dietary reference values defined as average requirements (AR) and upper intake levels (UL).
- Brussels is excluded from the regional comparison due to an insufficient number of participants, but is included in the national data for Belgium.
- The proportion of people having an inadequate vitamin B6 intake from food is higher in Wallonia (51%) than in Flanders (31%).
- This difference is also observed when the intake from both food and supplements is considered.
By year
Mean vitamin B6 intake (mg/day) in the population aged 3 to 64 years, by year, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Adults aged 65 years and older are not included as they were not part of the target population of the 2014-2015 survey.
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food in the population aged 3 to 64 years remained the same between 2014-2015 and 2022-2023.
- The mean vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements was 2.1 mg/day in 2014-2015 and 1.9 mg/day in 2022-2023.
Proportion of the population aged 3 to 64 years with inadequate vitamin B6 intake, by year, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Results are based on dietary reference values defined as average requirements (AR) and upper intake levels (UL).
- Adults aged 65 years and older are not included as they were not part of the target population of the 2014-2015 survey.
- The proportion of the population aged 3 to 64 years with an inadequate intake of vitamin B6 from food decreased between 2014-2015 (42%) and 2022-2023 (38%).
- A decrease between both survey years is also observed when the intake from food and supplements is considered (from 38% in 2014-2015 to 33% in 2022-2023).
Excessive vitamin B6 intake in the population aged 3 to 64 years, by year, Belgium: 2022-2023
- The proportion of the population aged 3 to 64 years with an excessive intake of vitamin B6 from food only was null in both years.
- The proportion of people with an excessive vitamin B6 intake from food and supplements was 0.6% in 2014-2015 and 0.2% in 2022-2023.
Contribution of foods and supplements
Contribution of foods and supplements to vitamin B6 intake, in the population aged 3 years and older, Belgium: 2022-2023
- Crude = results weighted for season, age, sex, and socioeconomic status.
- Meat, meat products and substitutes contribute most to the vitamin B6 intake (around 30%), followed by vegetables (10%), cereals and cereal products (9%), fruit (8%), and potatoes and other tubers (8%).
- Dietary supplements contribute on average 6% to vitamin B6 intake.
Please cite this page as: Sciensano. Micronutrients : Vitamin B6, Food Consumption Survey 2022-2023, June 2025, Brussels, Belgium, https://www.sciensano.be/en/results-national-food-consumption-survey-2022-2023/micronutrients-vitamins/vitamin-b6