A note on high dose niacinimide

[BingDing]

Want to post my n=1 experience. Up until last summer I was taking 500mg/day of niacinimide, that had gone on for 6 months to a year, not really sure. Mostly because I bought 500mg capsules and had read a lot of good things about using it.

I'm pretty sure that the breakdown of both niacin and niacinimide consumes SAMe, the main methyl donor in the body. People who are concerned about histamine and methylation talk about niacin/niacinimide as being a "methyl sponge", and a response for people who describe themselves as over-methylators is to use niacin/niacinimide to reduce methyl groups.

So lab work last summer showed high homocysteine and low CoQ10, Lipoic Acid, and maybe creatinine. All of that is consistent with low SAMe. But the lab work also showed both mutations of MTHFR. The consequence of the MTHFR mutation(s) is also low SAMe.

I was influenced by RP's opinion that the MTHFR mutation is a fad, and I studied about it quite a bit. I had used methylfolate and methylcobalimin during that time, which is the recommended response to the MTHFR mutation(s).

Assuming the low SAMe idea is right, I concluded that my long term use of high dose niacinimide was the issue. I think RP has recommended 100mg/day of niacinimide, I suspect that more than that for a long time may not be a good idea.

 

[johns74]

I suspect that more than that for a long time may not be a good idea.

Do you have any symptoms? Low CoQ10 is also associated with hyperthyroidism.

 

[BingDing]

That's a very provocative question, johns74. I was inspired by a magnificent sunrise over the Great Smoky Mountains recently. I think that's a symptom of something, LOL.

I've never been hypothyroid and no symptoms of hyperthyroidism. I supplement various forms of thyroid in various doses, on the theory that high thyroid/low estrogen is what make life good.

How does low CoQ10 relate to hyperthyroidism?

 

[johns74]

They just looked at CoQ10 levels of hypo and hyper people, and found they were inversely correlated.

I would guess because CoQ10 is an antioxidant, it's in higher demand when more energy is generated.