Niacin and HDL cholesterol
Niacin or otherwise known as vitamin B3 is a vital vitamin for the human body, one of the 5vitamins that will create a pandemic deficiency disease if you have a chronic shortage of, the other 4 are vitamin C, Vitamin D, Vitamin A and Thiamin. Niacin has been used to control HDL cholesterol and raise HDL cholesterol for many decades and is up to this point the safest and most effective supplement that is available for the public to improve HDL cholesterol levels.
However to improve your HDL cholesterol you will require a fairly significant amount of Niacin, which would create a few side effects, while normal side effects should not be dangerous, niacin can have a possible interactions when used with other medications. More info on this can be found on this page from the University of Maryland, medical center.
Note that while mainly used for HDL cholesterol, niacin will also improve your LDL cholesterol levels.
A few potential side effects of supplementation :
Flushed Skin
Itching
Rapid heartbeat
Vomiting and nausea
Liver Damage
Note : some of them can be avoided by starting with a low dose and gradually increasing the dose.
However some benefit may be gained from adding food with a high amount of niacin content to your diet, research shows that people with a high niacin intake trough their diet have a few potential benefits such as:
Reduced change at Alzheimer’s disease, supplements where not tested for this but studies indicate that people with high niacin intake may have a lower risk at developing this disease.
Less change at developing cataracts: one study has shown a reduced change at developing cataracts with high dietary niacin intake.
Niacin is a vitamin that the body uses to effectively use Carbohydrates as energy and will also keep your skin, hair, eyes, nervous system and a few other systems healthy along the way. Used as a treatment for HDL cholesterol and to reduce LDL cholesterol it is a more effective supplement than most medicine with less side effects. This little vitamin can be purchased easily and cheap in most countries around the world as over the counter supplements. However before you take this do consult your doctor first due to the potential side effects of a high dose which is required to improve HDL cholesterol.
While HDL cholesterol improvement is always a good thing, some of the side effects or effects with other medication may be a issue for you. Despite all this it’s worth noting that it’s a cheaper, more effective supplementation then statin medication and in all regards safer to.
While HDL cholesterol improvement is always a good thing, some of the side effects or effects with other medication may be a issue for you. Despite all this it’s worth noting that it’s a cheaper, more effective supplementation then statin medication and in all regards safer to.
Symptoms of a mild Niacin deficiency are
Reduced tolerance to cold due to a slower metabolism
Fatigue
Vomiting
Depression
Indigestion
Severe deficiency can cause :
High sensitivity to sunlight
Agression
Headache
insomnia
Apathy
Fatigue
Despression
And a ton of others nasty effects
And a ton of others nasty effects
here is a intresting study on the effect of Niacin on HDL cholesterol.
in this study they tested the effect of Niacin on HDL cholesterol levels on cultured human hepatocytes(hepG2). Hepatocytes are a cell in the main tissue of the liver and make up the majority of the livers mass.
The results was that Niacin increased the lipidation of apolipoprotein A-I (the main protein component of HDL cholesterol)by phospholipids and cholesterol.
At the dose of 0.5 and 1.0 mmo/L increased the apoA-I associated 3H-phospholipids by 10% and 46% respectibely and apoA-I associated 3H-cholesterol by 5% and 23% (hdl cholesterol)