Vitamin B3, also known as niacin, is a not stored vitamin. And any nutritional extras is urine flushed.
This B vitamin is essential, and has a role in your:
- skin
- nerves
- digestive system
- food conversion to energy
Vitamin B3 can be found in many foods, here are a few niacin rich dietary morsels:
- fish
- nuts
- milk
- eggs
- meat
- yeast
- poultry
- legumes
- wheat germ
- dairy products
- green vegetables
In addition, your body has the ability to convert tryptophan, an essential amino acid, to niacin as well.
The recommended daily allowance (RDA) of niacin:
- men ~ 16mg/day
- women ~ 14mg/day
Niacin’s most notable health benefit is its use for treating heart disease. It is often prescribed to those who have had a heart attack to lower cholesterol and triglycerides in their blood.
There are some negatives to this story. So taking niacin supplements for the cholesterol benefit should only be done per a doctor’s orders.
Some other not yet fully substantiated health benefits of niacin are
- headaches
- skin condtions
- treat osteoarthritis
- speed up wound healing
- reduce liver cancer deaths
- age related macular degeneration
- dementia, Alzheimer’s prevention
- assist immune system to ward off viral infections
Again, nothing conclusive here. Therefore, don’t run out and buy up the store. Besides, it comes with side effects.
Speaking of side effects. Whenever you begin taking supplemental niacin, or up your dose, you’ll likely experience skin flushing. Or its vasodilatory effects. This is a warm sensation, especially noticed in your face, neck and ear areas.
A couple of tricks to help lessen this flushing side effect is by taking:
- aspirin
- antihistamine 15 minutes prior
- NSAIDs ~ ibuprofen, naproxen, indomethacin
- slow release niacin ~ may lessen or delay skin flushing
Your vasodilating flushing response to niacin should decrease in a couple of weeks.
Other side effects you might experience upon kick-off of a supplemental niacin regime include:
- nausea
- diarrhea
- vomiting
- skin rashes
- dry itchy skin
- mild stomach upset
These symptoms usually resolve as your body adapts.
Here is a long list of niacin’s side effects, and a great reason why taking beyond diet doses of niacin should only be done at the direction of your health care provider:
- jaundice
- myopathy
- dyspepsia
- liver failure
- peptic ulcer
- arrhythmias
- lactic acidosis
- hyperglycemia
- heart palpitations
- low blood pressure
- altered blood sugar
- altered insulin levels
- liver toxicity, damage
- blood clotting problems
- low white blood cell count
- worsening of stomach ulcers
- altered uric acid concentrations
- increased creatine kinase blood levels~ marker of muscle damage
- increase blood homocysteine levels ~ increased risk of heart disease
Ah, what the heck. Why not see some rarely reported side effects:
- lazy eye
- headache
- dizziness
- panic attacks
- blurred vision
- hypothyroidism
- teeth, gum pain
- macular swelling
- increased anxiety
- breathing difficulty
These side effects tend to resolve when you stop taking niacin.
Pellagra is a disease that occurs when your body has a severe niacin deficiency. This may happen if:
- not enough dietary niacin
- not enough tryptophan in diet
- body fails to absorb these nutrients
A mild niacin deficiency slows your metabolism, causing an intolerance to cold.
Pellagra is common where a lot of corn is in the diet. Symptoms for pellagra consist of:
- fatigue
- diarrhea
- vomiting
- headache
- delusions
- depression
- constipation
- loss of memory
- pigmented rash
- scaly skin sores
- bright red tongue
- mental confusion
- inflamed mucous membranes
Likewise, pellagra can develop if you are suffering from a gastrointestinal disease, i.e. Crohn’s disease, or alcoholism.
Finally, to those of you who have heard that a benefit of high dosage niacin “flushes out” traces of illegal drug use (marijuana) for drug test screening, know that science does not support this idea.
However, what this practice might do for you is cause you to experience the aforementioned side effects of a niacin overdose.
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