I needed to disable self sign-ups because I’ve been getting too many spam-type accounts. Thanks.
Niacin
I'm a bit nervous about posting this as I'm not sure how relevant it is or if I'm making something out of nothing and displaying my lack of understanding. But here goes anyway:
I have been taking small periodic amounts of Niacin to help with anger explosions and emotional issues. Due to a recent mega-meltdown I have revisited Niacin and read up on it a bit. I have been reading “Niacin the Real Story” by Abram Hoffer
On taking larger amounts of niacin my anger and emotional lability is greatly improved. I am much calmer and feel more normal. It is really improving my stress levels.
Niacin has piqued my interest because I kept reading things in the book that reminded me of the benefits of treating VA toxicity. It seemed that the same things linked to VA toxicity were improved by taking niacin. There was a part about Niacin’s role in detoxification that seemed particularly relevant. A Niacin researcher stated that niacin is a powerful detoxifying agent. He spoke about the expression of “certain P450 enzymes” explaining that when exposed to a toxin that this pathway detoxifies you get an increase in these enzymes. There is an important cofactor NADPH which is niacin dependant. If you are niacin deficient (which the authors believe a large proportion of the population is) then lack of niacin can become the limiting factor in the detoxification pathway. In his words you get a situation where you have “boatloads of substrate and enzyme, but not necessarily a needed cofactor.”
Garrett Smith talks about the role of the cytochrome p450 system in breaking down retinol. https://nutritionrestored.com/blog-forum/topic/work-in-progress-cytochrome-p450-cyp-systems-involved-in-breakdown-of-poison-vitamin-a/
and https://nutritionrestored.com/blog-forum/topic/one-of-the-most-important-papers-on-retinoic-acid-detox-ever/
I don’t know if all of the cytochrome P450 enzymes need NADPH as a cofactor and are therefore niacin dependent but if the P450 enzymes needed to break down retinol do use NADPH as a cofactor then this could explain some of the benefits of niacin that seemed to mirror the benefits of going low VA. If this is the case then might having VA toxicity and then detoxifying it increase our need for niacin? Might supplementing niacin increase the rate at which we can remove VA from our bodies?
Niacin lowers cholesterol and also is helpful in reducing the toxic effects of chemotherapy. I wondered if both of those things were related to detoxifying VA.
Dr Hoffer experienced improvements in tissue healing when supplementing with niacin. Since VA causes tissue damage, this could be a useful tool when recovering from VA induced damage.
I struggle with understanding scientific papers and have little knowledge of biochemistry so I could be completely mistaken in connecting niacin and retinol together. At the moment this is just me linking things that may not be linked at all. I could be completely off base. However, if there is any connection it may well be worth looking into.
That is interesting! I wonder if it could be one of the many reasons protein seems to be so important during the detox; many of us seem to really crave meat off and on throughout the detox. Thanks for sharing!
Quote from Curious Observer on April 1, 2019, 7:52 amThat is interesting! I wonder if it could be one of the many reasons protein seems to be so important during the detox; many of us seem to really crave meat off and on throughout the detox. Thanks for sharing!
True and beef should supply B3 with all the other Bs in balance.
Interesting. Niacin in high doses (grams) is said to cure arthritis. I tried Niacin in the past but half a gram gave me a headache and elevated liver enzymes. 100mg /day is the maximum I can stand. Will check the theory in the book so see if I need to give it another try. Beef has not such high amount of niacin. For the long run I prefer no supplements and will stick to normal food like beef.
Very interesting.. What about niacinamide (B3 flush) which supposedly has great benefits on acne and rosacea?
Thanks for the heads-up Rachel. I just went over to PubMed for a half-hour and did some combinational searches and there's a gold-mine of activity covering niacin's effects on CKD, UC, Atherosclerosis, and other inflammatory conditions. The P450's are mentioned in many of the abstracts.
Quote from Liz on April 1, 2019, 8:03 pmVery interesting.. What about niacinamide (B3 flush) which supposedly has great benefits on acne and rosacea?
The author prefers basic niacin (nicotinic acid) which does cause flushing, though by gradually titrating the dose up you can minimise this. The flush itself does seem to confer some benefits. It's also the cheapest. Take after meals to minimise flushing.
Niacinamide is generally no flush and is often marketed as such. Dr Hoffer stated that occasionally people do flush on it and if so then it is generally unpleasant. Niacinamide also doesn't benefit blood lipids.
Inositol Hexaniacinate is another form which is no flush (usually) and is Dr Hoffers fall back option if the patient can't tolerate flushing or has a particularly sensitive gut. This is the one I am currently taking as my gut is highly sensitive. I'm hoping to swap to regular niacin (nicotinic acid) once my gut has improved.
Avoid other forms sold as sustained / timed release. They are not good and can be liver toxic.
Dr Hoffer used nicotinic acid with good results on acne. He often pairs it with ascorbic acid.
I have been taking Niacinamide for the past 3 weeks. In the Andy Cutler Chelation protocol he talks about Multiple Chemical Sensitivities as a symptom of Liver phase 1 breaking things down too fast and Phase 2 not being able to keep up with wrapping things up. Niacinamide is said to slow down phase 1 along with other things than can help the phases like oregano oil and anything grapfruit.
I have been avoiding grapfruit because of A and have not yet implimented the oregano oil with is suppose to slow phase1 and speed up phase 2 at the same time. I had severe MCS sypmtoms ramping up for the past 8 months. It's seems to have calmed down although I still feel my lungs itching and burning a little but not like the pain I was feelilng months prior. Likely due to VA toxicity.
Quote from Rachel on April 2, 2019, 1:07 amQuote from Liz on April 1, 2019, 8:03 pmVery interesting.. What about niacinamide (B3 flush) which supposedly has great benefits on acne and rosacea?
The author prefers basic niacin (nicotinic acid) which does cause flushing, though by gradually titrating the dose up you can minimise this. The flush itself does seem to confer some benefits. It's also the cheapest. Take after meals to minimise flushing.
Niacinamide is generally no flush and is often marketed as such. Dr Hoffer stated that occasionally people do flush on it and if so then it is generally unpleasant. Niacinamide also doesn't benefit blood lipids.
Inositol Hexaniacinate is another form which is no flush (usually) and is Dr Hoffers fall back option if the patient can't tolerate flushing or has a particularly sensitive gut. This is the one I am currently taking as my gut is highly sensitive. I'm hoping to swap to regular niacin (nicotinic acid) once my gut has improved.
Avoid other forms sold as sustained / timed release. They are not good and can be liver toxic.
Dr Hoffer used nicotinic acid with good results on acne. He often pairs it with ascorbic acid.
Yes of course you are right. I mixed them up. Nicotinic acid is the flush one. I have a bottle (100mg)at home already from previois use, might start taking it again 🙂
Preferably at night in case of flushing 😂
What is up with Dr.Smith having niacin flush on every stream. What changed that he now thinks it is good idea to take niacin for the flush?