title: Effects of pyridoxine on dreaming: a preliminary study.
abstract: The effect of pyridoxine (Vitamin B-6) on dreaming was investigated in a placebo, double-blind study to examine various claims that Vitamin B-6 increases dream vividness or the ability to recall dreams. 12 college students participated in all three treatment conditions, each of which involved ingesting either 100 mg B-6, 250 mg B-6, or a placebo prior to bedtime for a period of five consecutive days. The treatment conditions were completely counterbalanced and a two-day wash-out period occurred between the three five-day treatment blocks. Morning self-reports indicated a significant difference in dream-salience scores (this is a composite score containing measures on vividness, bizarreness, emotionality, and color) between the 250-mg condition and placebo over the first three days of each treatment. The data for dream salience suggests that Vitamin B-6 may act by increasing cortical arousal during periods of rapid eve movement (REM) sleep. An hypothesis is presented involving the role of B-6 in the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin. However, this first study needs to be replicated using the same procedures and also demonstrated in a sleep laboratory before the results can be considered certain.
authors.affiliation: City College of New York, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ebben
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lequerica
authors.forename: Arthur
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Spielman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004325:Dreams / Q000187:drug effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011736:Pyridoxine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000187:drug effects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D011736:Pyridoxine