Powerful pyridoxine! Bountiful B6! What other names can we give it?

Because for those of you with a deficient luteal phase, B6 is an essential. Well, it's an essential for everybody, but those women need more. The RDA is really low, only 2 mg daily. If you're deficient, you need 50 mg - 100 mg daily. And you can go one step further and take P5P (pyridoxal 5' phosphate), the activated form of B6, because some people do not convert it effectively.

I have talked about this before, but it bears repeating: how do you know if you have a luteal phase defect and why does it matter? First, it matters because if your luteal phase, the time between ovulation and the start of your period, is too short, then a fertilized egg doesn't have enough time to implant and grow. You would know that you have a luteal phase defect if you follow your basal body temperature and it doesn't rise and stay elevated for at least 12 days post-ovulation. Even though tracking your basal body temperature cannot tell you when ovulation is imminent, it is very useful to identify that ovulation did occur and that your luteal phase is sufficient. Become friends with your basal thermometer!

Some women use progesterone supplementation during the luteal phase to boost their progesterone. You could do that, too, but then it depends on your skin absorption, and skin can become saturated if you don't rotate application sites. Plus, B6 has other helpful attributes, like promoting a healthy immune system and carbohydrate metabolism.

And once you are pregnant, B6 helps with morning sickness. Taking 50 mg a day of B6 can curb or eliminate morning sickness.

If you prefer to get your vitamins from foods, then these are the foods highest in B6:
Yellow fin tuna
Banana
Chicken breast
Turkey breast
Chinook salmon
Baked or broiled cod
Baked or broiled snapper
Beef tenderloin
Baked or broiled halibut
Bell peppers
Spinach

However, even foods highest in B6 don't approach 50 mg a day. You would have to eat 50 servings of yellow fin tuna to get 50 mg. Not that you should not try to eat your vitamins, but sometimes a supplement comes in handy.

Good luck, and I hope this month is YOUR month!