R-pantothenate molecule

FAQ

Contents

About this FAQ

I'm a 23 year (at the moment of starting this FAQ) old male who was using B5 for acne.

The information in this FAQ is based on information from other websites, forums and a bit of my own knowledge.

I'm not a medical doctor and I don't follow medical education. I'm not responsible for any problems caused by reading this FAQ. This FAQ might be incomplete and incorrect.

After reading this, it's recommended to read information from other websites about vitamin B5 (for example the FAQs from AcneMiracle and B5Supplements), and to discuss the use of a mega dose of B5 with your general/medical practitioner.

Contact me if you think that this FAQ is incomplete or incorrect.

Do you recommend to use B5?

No, I do not recommend the use of a mega dose of B5 for acne.

In my opinion, the long term use of a mega dose of B5 might be a health risk on developing chronic diseases. Even though B-complex supplements are recommended to reduce possible side-effects, it's very hard to determine whether the given dose of B-complex is enough and whether a B-complex can cover all possible side-effects. There are as far as I know too less studies on whether a mega dose of B5 is safe.

Also keep in mind that unlike Accutane (a strong medicine for acne), you have to keep taking a mega dose of B5 to get the effect. Once you stop with the mega dose, it is likely that acne will return. So in order to keep the effect, you have to use it continue on daily bases. This increases the risk on developing chronic diseases.

I don’t use B5 myself anymore because: 1) I don't have much acne 2) B5 probably increased hair loss in my case (most people don’t have, notice or report this). 3) The possible risk of developing chronic diseases.

Do you think B5 helps for acne? : I am sure that B5 had a clear visible positive impact in controlling my acne. Whether B5 will have the same impact in controlling your acne, is hard to say and is probably a matter of testing.

Measurement Unit conversion

For those who are unknown with the units grams or liters, see http://www.lcc.ctc.edu/info/charts/conversions.htm for conversion charts.

1 gram = 1 g = 1gr = 1000 milligram = 1000 mg = 0,03527 ounce = 0,03527 oz.
1 ounce = 1 oz. = 28,35 gram = 28,35 g = 28,35 gr = 0,02835 milligram = 0,02835 mg

What is B5?

From the FAQ of AcneMiracle:

Vitamin B5 is also known as Pantothenic Acid. An organic compound, part of the vitamin B complex, essential in animal metabolism. Found in all living cells and tissues, in animals it occurs in the combined form called coenzyme A, which promotes many reactions necessary for growth and well-being. Since it is synthesized by bacteria normally in the human intestine, deficiency leading to disease does not occur. B5 is sometimes referred to as Panthenol or Calcium Pantothenate. It has been shown to help metabolize fats as well as break down sebum. Please be sure to read the research study (Click here) for additional information.

When I talk about B5 (B 5, or B-5) in this FAQ, I mean a mega dose of B5. (Even 1 gram is a mega dose.)

Who discovered the treatment of B5 for Acne?

Medical Doctor Lit-Hung Leung from Hong Kong.

Some articles of Dr. Leung:

How much B5 do I need per day?

How much you need, depends on: how effective B5 will work in your body, how quick you want acne to disappear, how much money you are willing to spend and how much risk for side effects you are willing take. This differs from person to person. The following dosages are often recommended:

  1. Take about 2gr B5 for the first 3 days.
  2. Take about 10gr B5 for the 3 months or until acne is clear.
  3. Slowly drop the dose to the lowest dose which is still effective in your body. This differs from person to person. Drop for example 1gr per week.

10gr of B5 is a mega-dose, which is a risk for side-effects. If you want to take less risk, you should probably take a lower dose than 10gr, for example 5gr or 3gr. A lower dose than 10gr will probably work less quickly.

When you quit using B5, your face will probably become oily again and acne will probably return. In my case something like within 3 weeks. But the older you get (when above 20?) the less acne you will get, so the less dose of B5 you will need.

Some people report that B5 will become less effective over time, for example over 20 months. Some of those people drop B5 for a period and start again with better results.

Personally I don't feel very safe because of the risk of side effects at for example 10gr, so I would start low and stay lower.

When should I take B5?

It's usually recommended to spread to dose over a day, so that your B5 levels will be more constant than a lot of B5 at once. Usually something like 4 to 5 times a day. Taking B5 15 minutes before of during a meal will probably give less gastral/mild-diarrhea problems.

What type of B5 form should I buy?

Vitamin B5 is usually named as "Pantothenic Acid".

Three forms

There are 3 often used forms:

Time Released

Some supplements are Time Released. This means that instead of a peak of absorbed in the body, Time Released will make absorption more constant. Some articles say that Time Released does not work as good as it should do. Most people don't use Time Released and most "vitamin B5 for acne shops" do not sell a time released form.

But, according to Don (from acne-vitamins.com), a time-released form of B5 will cause less absorption conflicts with other vitamin B's, and therefore reducing the chance of vitamin B deficiency. So then a time released form is safer when looking at vitamin deficiency. His statements about the time-released form:

Most time-release tablets work by using a coating that resists metabolism by stomach acids, with the contents instead being mostly absorbed in the small intestines, which have a higher rate of absorbance. Conversely, the majority of vitamins absorbed from foods and normal supplements are absorbed in the stomach.

Vitamins are absorbed by receptor molecules, and can compete for absorbance by these molecules. A deficiency could presumably occur if an overabundance of one vitamin out-competes other vitamins for the same type of receptor molecules, especially in the case that these receptor molecules have a higher affinity for said vitamin over others.

By using a time-released supplement, you are actually making the chances of this scenario far less likely. This is due to the fact that competing vitamins are almost always absorbed in the stomach (unless you're taking these in time-released form as well), so there is little concern over direct competition between vitamins for the same receptor molecules. Even if some competition occurs, it's nothing like the sudden flush of vitamin B5 (presumably five times per day) from high-doses of standard B5 capsules, again mostly absorbed in the concentrated area of the stomach. The later scenario is much more likely to result in a crowding-out of receptor molecules.

Powder vs. Pills

Powder compared to pills, powder is:

Personally, I prefer powder. In the morning I take a glass of water with B5 solved in it and take a sip every couple of hours. Keep in mind that B5 solved in tap water, probably has a much earlier expiration date.

Pantethine

Although most people use Pantothenic Acid instead of Pantethine, Pantethine can also be used to treat acne. Lochlyn Deckard about Dhr. Leung in http://clearskin.net/viewtopic.php?t=3624

emailed Dr. Lit-Hung Leung about Pantethine. Here's his reply:

"Pantethine, and for that matter, Coenzyme A, are but the active forms that pantothenic acid takes once it gets into the body system. They are probably a little more efficient than calcium pantothenate, the commonly available commercial form of pantothenic acid, but they are much more expensive. If you look up pantethine, you'll find that it is the disulfide dimer of pantetheine, the derivative of which is an intermediate in the conversion of pantothenic acid to coenzyme A. As such, weight for weight, no matter if it is pantothenic acid, or pantethine that you are taking, you end up with approximately the same number of Coenzyme A molecules that they generate. Though with calcium pantothenate, you have the added calcium mo;ecule there, making the molecular weight slightly higher, which means that you have to take a slightly bigger dose of calcium pantothenate than pantethine in order to generate the same number of Coenzyme A in the body."

More info about pantethine:

Forums posts about pantethine for Acne:

What results can I expect?

This is hard to say if you haven't tried it.

B5 often gives a initial breakout (a temporary increase of acne), if correct because deeper acne or sebum is pushed/removed out of the skin or something like that. Some people see a breakout and quit without knowing how effective B5 might have been in their bodies.

If B5 is working, it lowers the amount of oil/sebum on the skin, which can also cause dry skin. In my case oil reduction happened very quickly, something like 4 days. I also noticed a change in acne. It maybe became more liquid? After that I had a breakout for something like 1 week. After the breakout, it was a matter of time before my skin became clear.

Some people don't get any results. The question is how long these people should continue until they can see results or should just quit. AcneMiracle says:

"Everyone is different and some will take longer to respond. However, it has worked for over 90% of everyone that has tried it. Skin usually becomes less oily within 3 days to 2 weeks. Acne starts diminishing within 60 days. Mild to medium acne sufferers may have clear skin within 60 days while severe acne sufferers may need to wait at least 6 months for clear skin. So, worst case scenario while on B5 alone, you may need to wait up to 6 months for flawless skin although a high percentage see desired results much sooner."

B5Supplements says:

"It generally takes up to 3 months to see B5's full effects."

"Keep in mind that B5's effects are delayed roughly 2 weeks after consumption"

What are the side effects?

Although some websites report that B5 is safe, side effects might be possible. That B5 is a water-soluble vitamin, is not a guarantee that side-effect won't appear.

Unfortunately there aren't a lot of studies done on mega doses of B5. So it's impossible to say if a mega dose of B5 might or might not cause serious long term side effects. Although Dr. Leung (the one who found the treatment of a mega dose of b5 for acne) is treating acne patients since something like 1997 with B5.

Keep in mind that there are always a percentage of people who get problems, whether it is caused by B5 or by something else. Some will blame B5 for it without knowing the real cause. Maybe the real cause was something that would have happened even when they would live healthy without B5.

Side effects can roughly be divided into 2 groups:

The cause of serious side effects are often unknown. One way of causes might be vitamin deficiency. (More about the cause of vitamin deficiency, see "vitamin deficiency" in the menu.) Vitamin/mineral deficiency can be decreased by using a B-complex supplement. (More about this in the section "What do I also have to take with B5?".)

A B5 supplement contains some calcium. 10gr of B5 contains about 850mg calcium. The Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) for calcium is 2500mg/day. A high dose of calcium can cause side effects. So the total intake of calcium (including diet) can be high when taking 10gr B5 per day. For more info about calcium, see http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/calcium/index.html.

According to some websites, it's not recommended to take B5 when pregnant or breast feeding, probably because there isn't much documented when pregnant and using B5.

For more info and studies about B5 and side effects, see http://www.foodstandards.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/panto.pdf

Case report 1: vitamin deficiency

There's a case report of someone who has used a mega dose of 10gr Time-Released B5 for 2 years without taking a B-complex and without side-effects in these 2 years. This person basically made 3 mistakes:

After these 2 years, this person experienced heavy side effects. According to he/she: a lot lighter hair; brittle, fine, falling out hair; strong tingling/buzzing sensation in the left foot; constant tiny muscle twitches in the calves; bloating/stomach discomfort after lunch; intense restless legs at night; some fatigue; sore and swollen tongue; mouth ulcers; tooth impressions down the sides; intermittent diarrhea; a rash of dermatitis round the nose; occasional panic attacks; acne also came back.

For the complete report, see http://www.cyclingforums.com/t47099.html and http://acne.org/messageboard/viewtopic.php?t=17024.

To me it sounds like heavy vitamin deficiency.

Keep in mind that this person made 3 mistakes and that it's hard to be for sure that it's caused by his/her B5 regimen.

A post from someone with less side effects: http://acne.org/messageboard/viewtopic.php?t=21403

Case report 2: increased blood pressure.

http://acne.org/messageboard/viewtopic.php?t=16186

The person "XGamerX" experienced increase of blood pressure while on B5. He has used 10gr B5 for about 7 weeks with a B-complex and Omega 3 Fish Oils. The high blood pressure was probably caused by kidney problems. Which were according to him caused indirectly by a mega dose of B5.

Although that this is probably rare, it's probably recommended to test the blood pressure regularly.

Case reports 3: thinning hair.

Like the heavy medicine (Ro)Accutane for acne, some people on B5 get thinner hair. The cause of this is as far as I known unknown. Here are some reports and theories about the cause: http://pub106.ezboard.com/fabsoluteacneinfofrm1.showMessage?topicID=12232.topic

These theories might also be the cause of other side effects.

What do I also have to use with B5?

Keep in mind that some B5 supplements already have some vitamins and minerals in a good dose in it, so that you don't need extra of those vitamins/minerals. (Like B5Supplements.)

It's usually recommended to use a B-complex supplement with B5 to decrease vitamin deficiency. For example a B50-complex or  B100-complex on a normal dose. Somehow a lot of people forget to do this. The more B5 you are taking, the higher the B-complex dose should be. A B100-complex has a higher dose of vitamin B's than a B50-complex. If possible, try to take a B-complex with not much B6 (pyridoxine)(for example less than 50mg), because according to some, it might increase acne when taking alone.

I also take a normal vitamin supplement to get some extra minerals and other vitamins.

A lot of B-complex supplements somehow don’t contain much biotin (which is also a member of the vitamin B complex). Taking a mega dose of B5 also decreases biotin intake according to some studies. People on (Ro)Accutane who experience hairthinning, are often recommended to take extra biotin. A study showed that taking 2.4mg biotin, increased hair quality. Some B5 for acne products have extra biotin. Because of this, it's probably recommended to take extra biotin when on B5. How much you need depends on the dose of B5. I don't know how much you really need. Personally I think something like 1mg biotin per 2.5gr B5 would be a good guideline.

Zinc is maybe also recommended to take when using B5. OptiZinc would be a good choice because it decreases copper deficiency. I think recommended would be something between 10mg and 30mg of OptiZinc. Some B5 supplements like AcneMiracle and B5Supplements have OptiZinc in it.

In http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=163163 some recommended to take Cysteine (which is a bit different from Cystine) and Methionine, because according to them B5 might cause deficiency in it.

Drinking a lot of water is also recommended.

Should I also use topical B5?

Dr. Leung in "Stone that Kills Two Birds: Pantothenic Acid in the Treatment of Acne Vulgaris and Obesity":

To enhance the effect, the patients were also asked to apply a cream consisting of 20% by weight of pantothenic acid to the affected area, four to six times a day.

From the FAQ from AcneMiracle:

Q. I've read user posts online stating that B5 didn't work for them, can this be true for me?

A. There is no way to know until you go on the treatment and follow the recommended protocol, however, it does work for over 90% of all users. The majority of the people who have claimed this did not follow the recommended protocol. Usually it was because he/she didn't take in enough B5 on a daily basis or it was because they didn't stay on the program long enough. They, most likely, were not using a topical B5 cream either.

Most people don't use topical B5. As far as I know, only AcneMiracle sells topical B5 with extra supporting ingredients.

Topical B5 is probably seen as less effective than oral/internal/systemic B5 and probably gives less or no side effects.

I'm using 20 % of B5 powder solved in normal tap water since a 3 and a half weeks and dropped my dose of internal B5 from 2-3gr to 0.6gr. The results at the moment are very good, better than expected. Maybe it's still too early to tell because of "Keep in mind that B5's effects are delayed roughly 2 weeks after consumption". But I recommended to try it when you have B5 powder.

How I use topical B5

I put 20ml tap water in a glass and solve 5gr of B5 powder in it. This gives a 20% or 25% B5 solution. I apply it about 4 to 5 times a day on my face, spread over the day. I think spreading it over the day is very important. It's enough for about 3 days. Keep the glass closed when not using it.

Keep in mind that B5 solved in tap water probably has a much earlier expiration date than dry B5 powder.