High-Dose Niacin: A Cautionary Tale

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Guided_by_Voices

Well-Known Member
High-dose Niacin was generally considered very beneficial before about 2010 but then fell into a bit of disfavor without much credible change in the science. I have been watching the evidence for a long time and it seems incomplete but generally positive. I have tried niacin on and off without conclusive results in terms of overall well-being or lipid numbers, but when a doctor recommended it to reduce very slightly elevated triglyceride numbers I gave it a more determined try. I went through a period of feeling less than great (unusual tiredness, lower libido) but I didn’t associate it with the niacin until I saw the timely (for me) link below about niacin and methylation issues. In all the reading I had done about niacin I had never seen mention of his, but when I searched for “niacin and methylation” a lot of confirming detail came up, so this seems like a credible concern. I stopped the niacin and started TMG per the video, and I now feel spectacular.

https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/2018/07/26/careful-niacin-nicotinamide-riboside/

Different people have different methylation patterns, so this may not apply to everyone or even most people, but it is a good concern to be aware of. I may try to restart the niacin in concert with TMG per the video, however I will be on the look-out for any signs of negative symptoms. I am very interested in any studies that actually show an improvement in actual cardiovascular events due to niacin as opposed to studies looking at lipid markers. There seems to be conflicting evidence as to whether niacin actually has a conclusive benefit or whether it (like statins) move blood panel numbers around with no significant benefit and the potential for harm, and credible doctors who once used it (specifically Dr. Davis) seem to have backed away from it.
 
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Guided_by_Voices

Well-Known Member
Yes, HDL seems to be full of conflicting evidence. The drugs that increased it failed rather spectacularly and it seems to be a marker for some other things like exercise and a fat-burning metabolism. I haven’t been able to find good evidence as to whether a rise in HDL due to niacin is actually a marker of some other good thing or whether it is just raising HDL as a marker without actually providing benefit. Hopefully the brain-trust here has some quality data. For me, the negative symptoms were just too great and my trigs and HDL are by no means bad without it, even with TRT. I may eventually see if TMG makes it tolerable.
 

Vince

Super Moderator
Yes, HDL seems to be full of conflicting evidence. The drugs that increased it failed rather spectacularly and it seems to be a marker for some other things like exercise and a fat-burning metabolism. I haven’t been able to find good evidence as to whether a rise in HDL due to niacin is actually a marker of some other good thing or whether it is just raising HDL as a marker without actually providing benefit. Hopefully the brain-trust here has some quality data. For me, the negative symptoms were just too great and my trigs and HDL are by no means bad without it, even with TRT. I may eventually see if TMG makes it tolerable.
Cleveland Heart Clinic labs will soon be testing for HDL particle numbers much like they do for the LDL cholesterol separating a good HDL from the bad. When that does happen we will be able to know how supplementing effects are good HDL particles.
 

ratbag

Member
My MD told me to take large doses of Niacin and to thwart the flushing symptoms he said to take a baby aspirin with it.. it helped reduce the flushing for sure. This is some years back. I no longer take it.
 

Guided_by_Voices

Well-Known Member
The flushing was not really an issue for me. It went away after a few days. Most people think the flushing is the main issue since that's why most people report stopping it, but the other energy/libido issues were problems for me, and I had not heard of this before so it would have taken me a while to figure out what was going on if I hadn't seen Chris's video.
 

Vince

Super Moderator
The flushing was not really an issue for me. It went away after a few days. Most people think the flushing is the main issue since that's why most people report stopping it, but the other energy/libido issues were problems for me, and I had not heard of this before so it would have taken me a while to figure out what was going on if I hadn't seen Chris's video.
People I know that use niacin and stopped. Told me the reason they stopped was because of the Flushing. I'm sure there are other reason why people stop but that was only reason I was ever given.
 
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