Niacin: The Energizer Powering Your Cells and Fighting Cancer
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Niacin keeps your battery charged by converting food into energy the body can use. Illustration by Fei Meng (The Epoch Times) |
But niacin does more than energize your body. It also plays a vital role in specific functions, like supporting skin health—a finding that dates back to the discovery of this remarkable vitamin.
Goldberger suspected pellagra wasn’t caused by a germ but by something missing from people’s diets. By restricting corn and adding foods like fresh milk, buttermilk, eggs, beans, and peas to the diets of pellagra patients, Goldberger showed the symptoms could be reversed. But what was the magic ingredient in these foods?
Special Talents
1. Energizer
Niacin is the star player in your body’s grand energy production team. Fats, carbohydrates, and specific proteins are broken down into energy when you eat. Turning these foods into usable energy is where niacin truly shines. In the presence of oxygen, these nutrients travel through a series of pathways to transform the food you eat into energy, known as adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which powers nearly everything you do, from thinking to moving.ATP is in constant demand but exists in only small, rapidly depleted amounts. To keep us alive, our cells must regenerate ATP continuously—and that’s where niacin steps in as a genuine “energizer.” Niacin, in the form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), acts as the critical energy carrier in the pathways that convert nutrients into ATP, ensuring that despite our limited ATP stores, we always have a fresh supply ready to fuel every heartbeat, every breath, and every thought.
2. Nerve Protector
Niacin has shown exciting potential in protecting the nervous system and combating neurological diseases. Pre-clinical trials suggest it could be beneficial for conditions like multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and glioblastoma.3. Cancer Fighter
Niacin enhances DNA repair by maintaining cellular energy levels, preventing ATP depletion, and increasing excision repair, which is essential for reducing cancer risk. In clinical trials, niacin reduced the incidence of skin cancer. In patients with cancer, higher niacin intake increased the odds of survival. Niacin may also help prevent certain cancers, as niacin deficiency can impair DNA repair, thus leading to genomic instability and increased tumor development in rat models, including a higher risk of chemically induced leukemia.Other Talents
Niacin also helps in the production of reproductive and stress-related hormones, improves circulation, regulates the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and suppresses inflammation.Fun Facts
- Niacin is not technically an essential vitamin because your liver and certain microbes in your intestine can make it from tryptophan, the amino acid famous for making you sleepy after Thanksgiving turkey.
- While some organizations discourage its use as a first-line therapy, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved niacin to treat high cholesterol and high triglycerides. Niacin was the first cholesterol-lowering drug before the discovery of statins.
- Unlike some of the other B vitamins, niacin is stable when exposed to heat and light. It survives most cooking methods, so the niacin in your food is unlikely to be destroyed during preparation.
- More than 400 enzymes depend on niacin, making it critical for proper body function.
- There’s growing interest in niacin’s role in the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood, sleep, and appetite.
Favorite Hangouts
Some of the foods rich in niacin are listed below. Their daily consumption quantities are calculated based on the Food and Nutrition Board’s Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for niacin, which is 16 milligrams per day for adult males and 14 milligrams per day for adult females.
- Pan-fried beef liver (3 ounces): 93 percent
- Grilled chicken breast (3 ounces): 64 percent
- Marinara sauce (1 cup): 64 percent
- Roasted turkey breast (3 ounces): 63 percent
- Cooked sockeye salmon (3 ounces): 54 percent
- Light canned tuna (3 ounces): 54 percent
- Roasted pork tenderloin (3 ounces): 39 percent
- Pan-browned ground beef (3 ounces): 36 percent
- Cooked brown rice (1 cup): 33 percent
- Dry-roasted peanuts (1 ounce): 26 percent
Recipe: Energizing Chicken Salad
Ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked chicken breast
- 2 cups spinach
- ½ avocado
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Handful of sunflower seeds and sliced almonds
Directions:
- Shred the cooked chicken breast and place it in a large bowl.
- Add spinach and diced avocado.
- Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.
- Sprinkle almonds on top.
- Toss well and serve chilled for a refreshing, niacin-packed meal.
How to Optimize Absorption
For coffee lovers, roasting is key; the more robust the roast, the more niacin available, while decaf contains less.
- Germinate (or sprout) raw grains.
- If whole-food forms of corn are a staple in your diet, consider preparing them in lime water.
- When making bread, use yeast or baking soda to help it rise.
- Combine three days of sprouting with an eight-hour sourdough fermentation.
Supporting Cast of Nutrients
However, the conversion process is inefficient, requiring about 60 parts tryptophan to make just one part niacin. This ratio is why niacin intakes are expressed as niacin equivalents (NE), with 1 milligram of NE equal to 1 milligram of niacin or 60 milligrams of tryptophan.
Therefore, niacin should be consumed with foods containing vitamin B6, riboflavin, vitamin B1, and iron. These nutrients help convert tryptophan into niacin.
Deficiency
Recommended Dietary Allowance
The current RDA (16 milligrams daily for men, 14 milligrams daily for women) is based on preventing deficiency. Still, some experts suggest higher amounts may benefit those dealing with high levels of oxidative stress, such as athletes or people with chronic conditions.Symptoms and Signs
Common niacin deficiency symptoms include the following:- Depression
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Memory loss
- Hallucinations
- Indigestion
- Canker sores
- Vomiting
- Poor circulation
- Pellagra-related symptoms
- Weakness and fatigue (often the earliest symptom)
- Exercise intolerance
- Hair loss
- Tongue inflammation and mouth sores (vitamins B2 and B6 and iron deficiencies can all lead to this)
- Anxiety, depression, mood swings
- Gas, bloating, indigestion (these precede diarrhea)
- Neuropathy, or numbness and tingling in hands and feet (vitamins B1, B2, B6, and B12 and folate deficiencies can all cause neuropathy)
- Migraine-like headaches and light sensitivity
Who Is at Risk?
The risk factors that raise a person’s likelihood of niacin deficiency in the United States include the following:- Alcoholism (chronic alcohol consumption interferes with niacin absorption)
- Limited diets (e.g., eating disorders or food insecurity)
- Carcinoid syndrome
- Liver cirrhosis
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Hartnup disease
- Inadequate riboflavin, pyridoxine, or iron intake
- Certain medications
Toxicity
Niacin at 50 or more milligrams per dose can cause a “flush,” which increases blood flow to the skin. It typically starts at the top of your head, turning your face bright red before spreading down your body, and is often accompanied by a warm, tingling sensation. If you want to avoid the flush, niacinamide is an alternative form of niacin. While it is not as effective, it does not cause the flushing effect.
Timing also matters. To reduce the chance of niacin flushing, take supplements with food and start with a lower dose before working your way up.
Even higher doses of niacin (3,000 milligrams a day) may lead to jaundice, abdominal discomfort, blurred vision, worsening of hyperglycemia (high blood sugar), and triggering of preexisting gout. Other risks are the formation of stomach ulcers and increased uric acid levels, which may increase the risk of gout.
Interactions
Niacin supplements may increase the levels of carbamazepine and mysoline in the body. Niacin can also strengthen the effects of blood thinners and alpha-blockers (one type of blood pressure drug), thus increasing the risk of bleeding and low blood pressure, respectively.
Combining niacin with statins may slow down heart disease progression while increasing the risk of muscle inflammation or liver damage. Therefore, if you are taking any of the medications mentioned above or regularly consuming alcohol, it’s essential to consult your health care provider before starting niacin supplements. Additionally, using nicotine patches alongside niacin may increase the risk or severity of niacin flush.
Reposted from: https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/niacin-the-energizer-powering-your-cells-and-fighting-cancer-5736825
Related: Niacin vs nicotinamide riboside
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