Niacin also is known as vitamin B3, is a type of vitamin B complex(same as water-soluble). It is an important precursor of metabolism-related coenzymes NAD and NADP. It participates in more than 400 physiological reactions in the body, such as antioxidants, DNA manufacturing, and repair, cell message transmission, etc.
As a nutritional supplement, Niacin may have potential effects of lowering cholesterol, regulating triglycerides, preventing cardiovascular disease, arthritis, etc.
However, high-dose use of Niacin may bring side effects, the most common are hot flashes, which will be described in detail below.
Do you know the benefits of niacin supplements?
Table of Contents
- What are the types of Niacin?
- What are the benefits recommended by Niacin?
- What are the side effects of Niacin?
- Where to buy Niacin capsules recommended by most people?
What are the types of Niacin?
In health food stores, Niacin commonly has three types, nicotinic acid, Niacinamide, and Inositol hexaniacinate.
nicotinic acid: the chemical formula of Niacin, mainly used for lowering blood fat, but it has side effects of hot flushing.
Niacinamide: The Chinese name is nicotinamide, which is a Niacin derivative. It does not have hypolipidemic properties and will not cause flushing reactions.
Nicotinamide: Chinese translation is called inositol hexanicotinate or polyhexanicotinic acid. It has all the medical properties of Niacin, but it does not cause flushing and is slightly expensive.
What are the benefits recommended by Niacin?
1. Lower cholesterol
Niacin’s most prestigious pharmacological effect is to lower blood fat but to achieve this effect, very large doses are often required, and side effects are often derived. Therefore, Niacin is often used with drugs, and the dose is reduced to make up for the lack of drugs.
A double-blind controlled trial (3 years, 3,414 patients with hyperlipidemia treated with a statin), compared with placebo, the use of Niacin (slow-release dosage form, 1500 to 2000 mg daily) can further Improve HDL cholesterol (up 20%) and LDL cholesterol (down 17%), but there was no significant difference in clinical endpoints between the two groups (such as hospitalization or death).
The mechanism by which Niacin regulates cholesterol is not by increasing HDL synthesis, but by inhibiting hepatocyte beta-chain ATP synthase and preventing the liver from catabolizing HDL.
2. Reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease
Due to changes in life and diet patterns, cardiovascular disease has gradually shifted from the elderly population to the middle-aged and middle-aged population and has become the first non-communicable lethal factor for people under 70 years old, accounting for about 37%.
A systematic literature review and meta-regression (including 11 studies with 9,959 participants) pointed out that whether Niacin is used alone or with lipid-lowering drugs, it can help reduce cardiovascular disease events (but stroke events are more No significant association).
The author mentions that these changes are not related to the regulation of cholesterol, and may be related to the regulation of inflammation mediators (C-reactive protein, phospholipase A) that Niacin has, inhibiting atherosclerotic chemokines, and increasing the hormones that protect blood vessels.
3. Beneficial for osteoarthritis?
In normal joints, there is the cartilage between the bones as a cushion, which acts like a shock-absorbing pad, which allows flexible movements and reduces friction.
Osteoarthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease caused by the gradual depletion of cartilage with age or trauma. The lifetime prevalence rate is about 45% (the obese person increases to 60.5%). It often causes patients with impaired mobility and is a poor quality of life for the elderly main reason.
A preliminary double-blind controlled study pointed out (12 weeks, 72 patients with osteoarthritis), oral niacinamide (niacinamide) in addition to helping improve the total joint impact assessment score, improve joint flexibility, but also reduce resistance The number of inflammatory drugs used.
*Conclusion: Oral nicotine amide may have a positive effect on osteoarthritis, but the relevant empirical evidence is still insufficient, to be confirmed by more studies
4. Slow down skin photoaging
Skin aging refers to the premature aging phenomenon caused by long-term ultraviolet radiation (mainly sunlight) on the skin. The relevant features are wrinkles, spots, pigmentation, roughness, loss of tone, dryness, telangiectasia, relaxation, and skin cancer. And melanoma.
A double-blind controlled study pointed out (12 weeks, 50 women with facial photoaging characteristics), topical application of 5% niacinamide (Niacinamide) emulsion, in addition, to help reduce facial fine lines and wrinkles, and increase Elasticity, other indicators such as pigmentation, dark yellow complexion, and erythema also improved.
The underlying mechanism may be related to the increase in the synthesis of collagen and glycosaminoglycan by nicotinamide and the reduction of protein glycation.
What are the side effects of Niacin?
Niacin can be ingested in food without any known risks, but the ingestion of large doses in the form of health products often causes side effects (more than 50 mg or more).
Common side effects are the appearance of hot flushes (niacin flush) on the face, chest, and neck, mainly caused by vasodilation, and often accompanied by tingling and burning sensation, which will gradually subside as the body adapts.
Other minor side effects include gastrointestinal upset, exhaustion, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, etc.
When the dose is greater than a few grams per day, serious adverse reactions that may occur include serious problems such as liver damage, gout, gastrointestinal ulcers, arrhythmia, and loss of vision.
It has been clinically observed that high-dose Niacin caused abnormal glucose tolerance and caused a rise in blood glucose.
A meta-analysis of literature (including 11 cardiovascular-related studies, 3.6-year follow-up period, 26,340 participants), whether or not with lipid-lowering drugs, use Niacin therapy (daily doses between 1 g and 4 g) Will increase the risk of diabetes (up to 34%).
Safety precautions applicable to both Niacin and niacinamide
Pregnant women and nursing mothers should not exceed the recommended dose (35 mg daily)
Drinking alcohol will make Niacin’s hot flashes worse (as alcohol will dilate blood vessels)
Patients with liver and kidney dysfunction, diabetes, peptic ulcer, gout, arrhythmia, inflammatory bowel disease, migraine, alcohol abuse, etc. may have more serious adverse reactions, should avoid taking it, or consult a doctor before use
Long-term high-dose administration requires regular monitoring of liver function
Do not take Niacin two weeks before surgery
May increase the secretion of histamine, and promote allergic symptoms
Do not use if you have low blood pressure or taking antihypertensive drugs (because it may lower blood pressure)
Do not use large doses in patients with gout or hyperuricemia, it may increase the incidence of gout
Do not use large doses in patients with coronary artery disease or unstable angina, which may cause heart rhythm problems
Possible drug interaction
Do not use with bile acid sequestrants, statins, antibiotics, antiepileptic drugs, anticoagulants, blood pressure-lowering or blood glucose drugs, which may interfere with drug absorption or affect the efficacy
The use of nicotine patches may increase the incidence of Niacin flushing
Low-dose aspirin is usually used to reduce flushing, but it is best to use it under the supervision of a doctor
Where to buy Niacin capsules recommended by most people?
In recent years, food safety problems in various countries have exploded, and it is not healthy but black-hearted products that everyone spends on. Therefore, European and American products with relatively strict quality control have become popular products.
And iHerb.com is a large-scale medical cosmetics e-commerce company in the United States. It has a high satisfaction rate of 97% in the evaluation of Google customers. It provides global home delivery so that you can buy it without risking buying fakes through purchasing high-quality health products.
