Niacinamide+

Description

Niacinamide+ contains 100% USP-grade niacinamide, which is an important nutrient that plays key roles in supporting and maintaining a robust and resilient metabolism. Technically speaking, niacinamide (niacin-amide); also known as nicotinamide, is derivative of the commonly known b vitamin, niacin, or vitamin b3.

Niacinamide provides energy to the mitochondria, and like many other mitochondrial nutrients, stress and excitation will cause the cells to waste niacinamide NADH, making it more necessary in the stressed individual. When in good supply, niacinamide offers an anti-excitatory or inhibitory effect, and even acts similarly to that of the hormone progestesterone. Progesterone is known to offer inhibitory, relaxing, anti-stress effects, and directly opposes the excitatory, stress hormone, estrogen. Estrogen is known to interfere with the formation of niacin from tryptophan. Niacin can be derived from tryptophan, but tryptophan, rather than forming the protective, inhibitory form of niacin (pyridine carboxylic acid), under the influence of estrogen and PUFAs, can be directed to form the excitatory form, quinolinic acid (pyridine dicarboxylic acid).

Keeping a balance of stress and excitation and cellular energy in the body is key to resistance and good health. Niacinamide can help keep this balance by increasing mitochondrial energy production while decreasing stress and excitation, which are two of the most crucial factors in governing cell function, structure and survival.

Within the complex metabolic system, niacinamide controls the transcription of DNA, cytokine production and cell survival. But in its simplest function, niacinamide is necessary for cellular energy production. Downstream of this key mechanism, niacinamide offers many protective effects in the body, including:

• Lowering Stress
• Central Nervous System Regulation
• Regeneration and Restoration
• Inhibiting the Release Harmful Free Fatty Acids
• Protection Against Scars
• Protection Against Brain Injuries
• Immune Support (protects against autoimmunity)
• Optimal Metabolic Function
• Supports Glucose Metabolism
• Tissue Function/Regeneration
• Nerve Protection
• Tissue and Cell Repair
• Pancreatic Support
• Enhanced Mitochondrial Respiration
• Better Serotonin Metabolism (reduced production/enhanced elimination)
• Inhibits Lipolysis
• Protection Against Inflammatory/Fibrogenic Prostaglandins
• Regulation of the Redox System
• Inhibits Pro-flammatory Nitric Oxide

Tips on taking Niacinamide

The amount of niacinamide needed varies based on a number of things, including liver and thyroid function, glycogen availability/storage (dependant on liver/thyroid function), exposure to PUFA (polyunsaturated fats), and stress. Larger doses of niacinamide (500 mg.) are less tolerable in hypothyroidism, which typically results in poor storage of glycogen in the liver. This is a key reason Niacinamide+ contains a more moderate dose of 350 mg., which will be better tolerated in more people.

However, larger doses of niacinamide can be therapeutic in people who have a high exposure to the unsaturated fatty acids (omega 3-6), linoleic and oleic acid, etc. They key for tolerating higher doses would be improving glucose metabolism via thyroid support. Glucose and niacinamide work closely with each other, both which are related strongly to the thyroid hormone. Together, glucose, thyroid and niacinamide are key regulators of the production of cellular energy, which drives the regeneration and maintenance of our cells and tissues. If one of these energy-producing elements is lacking, then they all suffer, and signs of inflammation and stress become more apparent. This makes niacinamide an important and necessary component to a “pro-thyroid” and “pro-metabolic” regime.

Ray Peat Quotes on Niacinamide

“Although this is an ecological problem, it is possible to decrease the damage by avoiding the polyunsaturated fats and the many toxins that synergize with them, while increasing glucose, niacinamide, carbon dioxide, and other factors that support high energy metabolism, including adequate exposure to long wavelength light and avoidance of harmful radiation. As long as the protective factors are present, increased amounts of protective factors such as progesterone, thyroid, sugar, niacinamide, and carbon dioxide can be used therapeutically and preventatively.” – Ray Peat

“Niacinamide, by reducing lipolysis, would be another antiinflammatory agent that could help to interrupt the degenerative processes initiated by exposure to radiation.” – Ray Peat

“The “treatment” for intracellular fatigue consists of normalizing thyroid and steroid metabolism, and eating a diet including fruit juice, milk, some eggs, liver, and gelatin, assuring adequate calcium, potassium, sodium, and magnesium, and using supplements of niacinamide, aspirin, and carbon dioxide when necessary.” – Ray Peat

“Niacinamide, by lowering free fatty acids and regulating the redox system, supporting sugar oxidation, is useful in the whole spectrum of metabolic degenerative diseases.” – Ray Peat

“The same simple metabolic therapies, such as thyroid, progesterone, magnesium, and carbon dioxide, are appropriate for a great range of seemingly different diseases. Other biochemicals, such as adenosine and niacinamide, have more specific protective effects, farther downstream in the “cascade” effects of stress.” – Ray Peat

“Thyroid hormone, vitamins A and E, niacinamide (to inhibit systemic lipolysis), magnesium, calcium, progesterone, sugar, saturated fats, and gelatin all contribute in basic ways to prevention of the inflammatory states that eventually lead to the amyloid diseases. The scarcity of degenerative brain disease in high altitude populations is consistent with a protective role for carbon dioxide.” – Ray Peat

“Eliminating polyunsaturated fats from the diet is essential if the bystander effect is eventually to be restrained. Aspirin and salicylic acid can block many of the carcinogenic effects of the PUFA. Saturated fats have a variety of antiinflammatory and anticancer actions. Some of those effects are direct, others are the result of blocking the toxic effects of the PUFA. Keeping the stored unsaturated fats from circulating in the blood is helpful, since it takes years to eliminate them from the tissues after the diet has changed. Niacinamide inhibits lipolysis. Avoiding overproduction of lipolytic adrenaline requires adequate thyroid hormone, and the adjustment of the diet to minimize fluctuations of blood sugar.” – Ray Peat

“The features of the stress metabolism include increases of stress hormones, lactate, ammonia, free fatty acids, and fat synthesis, and a decrease in carbon dioxide. Factors that lower the stress hormones, increase carbon dioxide, and help to lower the circulating free fatty acids, lactate, and ammonia, include vitamin B1 (to increase CO2 and reduce lactate), niacinamide (to reduce free fatty acids), sugar (to reduce cortisol, adrenaline, and free fatty acids), salt (to lower adrenaline), thyroid hormone (to increase CO2). Vitamins D, K, B6 and biotin are also closely involved with carbon dioxide metabolism. Biotin deficiency can cause aerobic glycolysis with increased fat synthesis (Marshall, et al., 1976).”

“It’s the stored PUFA, released by stress or hunger, that slow metabolism. Niacinamide helps to lower free fatty acids, and good nutrition will allow the liver to slowly detoxify the PUFA, if it isn’t being flooded with large amounts of them. A small amount of coconut oil with each meal will increase the ability to oxidize fat, by momentarily stopping the antithyroid effect of the PUFA. Aspirin is another thing that reduces the stress-related increase of free fatty acids, stimulating metabolism. Taking a thyroid supplement is reasonable until the ratio of saturated fats to PUFA is about 2 to 1.” – Ray Peat

“The competition between fatty acids and glucose, which has been called the “Randle cycle” for about 50 years, can be applied to the treatment of diabetes and other degenerative/stress problems by adjusting the diet, or by using supplements such as niacinamide and aspirin, which improve glucose oxidation by lowering the free fatty acids in the serum.” – Ray Peat

“Niacinamide, progesterone, sugar, carbon dioxide, and red light protect against both free fatty acids and prostaglandins.” – Ray Peat

“Many women with abnormal Pap smears, even with a biopsy showing the so·called “carcinoma in situ,” have returned to normal in just two months with a diet including the following: 90 grams of protein, 500 mg. of magnesium as chloride, 100,000 units of vitamin A, 400 units of vitamin E. 5 mg. folic acid, 100 mg. pantothenic acid, 100 mg. of B6 and niacinamide, and SOD mg. of vitamin C, with progesterone and thyroid as needed. Liver should be eaten once a week, because of its high B-vitamin content. Some of the women apply vitamin A (not carotene) directly to the cervix.” – Ray Peat

“The amino acid theanine, found in tea, has been reported to decrease the amount of serotonin in the brain, probably by decreasing its synthesis and increasing its degradation. This seems to be the opposite of the processes in hibernation. Progesterone, thyroid, and niacinamide (not nicotinic acid or inositol hexanicotinate) are other safe substances that help to reduce serotonin formation, and/or accelerate its elimination. (Niacinamide seems to increase serotonin uptake.)” – Ray Peat

“The inflammatory factors that can promote cell growth can, with just slight variation, deplete cellular energy to the extent that the cells die from the energetic cost of the repair process, or mutate from defective repairs. Niacinamide can have an “anti-inflammatory” function, preventing death from multiple organ failure, by interrupting the reactions to nitric oxide and peroxynitrile (Cuzzocrea, et al., 1999). The cells’ type, environment, and history determine the different outcomes.” – Ray Peat

“Since the blood becomes more concentrated, viscous, and clottable during the night (especially during long winter nights), the risk of a heart attack or stroke would probably be reduced by drinking orange juice before getting out of bed (and at bed-time), to dilute the blood and decrease adrenaline and the free fatty acids, which contribute to the increased tendency to form clots in the morning. (Assanelli, et al., discuss the importance of adrenaline in morning/winter sudden death; Antoniades and Westmoreland show that the availability of glucose can override major promoters of clotting and bleeding.) Things to reduce the stress-related coagulopathies: Sugar and niacin to minimize the liberation of fatty acids, progesterone and thyroid to protect against estrogen and to avoid hypoglycemia (which increases adrenaline and free fatty acids and accelerates clotting), magnesium and gelatin (or glycine), to protect against intracellular calcium overload and hypoxia, and vitamin E and salicylic acid for antiinflammatory effects, are major nutrients that protect the circulatory system against clotting, bleeding, edema, and tumefaction.” – Ray Peat

“Niacinamide, like progesterone, inhibits the production of nitric oxide, and also like progesterone, it improves recovery from brain injury (Hoane, et al., 2008).” – Ray Peat

“The foods that nourish the patient well enough to support healing while permitting energy reserves to be built up are also the foods that don’t interfere with the hormones, that don’t cause spurious excitation of the tissues. The polyunsaturated fats directly stimulate the stress hormones, activate the excitatory amino acid signals, and directly excite cells, while the saturated fats have opposite effects, and are anti-inflammatory, and also don’t interfere with mitochondrial function. When we eat more carbohydrate than can be oxidized, some of it will be turned into saturated fats and omega-9 fats, and these will support mitochondrial energy production. Carbohydrates in the diet also help to decrease the mobilization of fatty acids from storage; niacinamide and aspirin support that effect.” – Ray Peat

“The same better-late-than-never philosophy can be applied to Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other degenerative nerve diseases. Aspirin protects against several kinds of toxicity, including excitotoxicity (glutamate), dopamine toxicity, and oxidative free radical toxicity. Since its effects on the mitochondria are similar to those of thyroid (T3), using both of them might improve brain energy production more than just thyroid. (By activating T3, aspirin can sometimes increase the temperature and pulse rate.) Magnesium, niacinamide, and other nerve protective substances work together.” – Ray Peat