Posted by Melanie-00 on December 8, 2010, at 17:09:04
In reply to Re: Niacinamide -not helping- how long to take effect?, posted by Christ_empowered on December 8, 2010, at 15:42:30
This is really interesting since you are the first person I've ever heard from who says it (niacinamide) actually works. Everything else I've heard about niacinamide has been 2nd party testimonials (like someone saying that s/he heard it worked for some other person, or that it should work due to some biological processes).
However, truth be told, I did already stop taking the niacinamide yesterday. I could start again, but I was actually feeling a bit anxious about the potential long-term health consequences of taking such a large does (some sources say no more than 1g/day, others say you can go up to 3g/day)-- I was doing 2g/day. During the few days I took it, I felt worse than ever.
The fact is that I never would have even tried such a thing except that it had been described as acting like a benzo. Since I know benzos work, I went for it. I was convinced by "hype" (well, maybe it's not hype, but it might be). There's really no research on niacinamide. I found one study from 1977 (!) on 6 subjects that said it helped with REM sleep. Not a robust study at all! Then there are all the articles by Jonathan Prousky, but those articles are really just case studies and don't amount to anything much more than anecdotal evidence. (I'm not even sure that those articles are published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. Prousky is the editor of the journal, so he may be able to publish anything he wants in it and have the appearance of having published a "real" journal article. I should try to see if I can find out anything about the review process for articles published in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine.)
So I'm wondering why no one has bothered to do a real study (double blind, randomized, placebo controlled) on the anxiolytic effects of niacinamide, if it's so great. I mean it's really weird -- there are tons of positive robust studies about kava, but nothing on niacinamide. And now the "experts" say kava is dangerous for the liver and should be totally avoided but niacinamide is still thought to be safe. I just don't get it. Why so much attention to kava and total lack of interest in niacinamide?
I think I'm going to try kava before I go back to niacinamide. After doing a lot of research, I think I'm pretty comfortable with the risks, and it just seems better understood. And I come from a place (personally) where I feel a whole lot more comfortable if what I'm taking has some research backing it up.
I don't know .. Now that I've heard from you, I think maybe I made a mistake. But on the other hand, while I totally respect and am grateful for your personal testimonial, you, too, are just one person. Maybe your response to the niacinamide is idiosyncratic, or maybe it's a placebo, or something else you are taking is what's really having the effect you are experiencing. But, again, thank you! I really appreciate hearing from someone who's actually used niacinamide with good experience.
Just out of curiosity, how did you decide to take niacinamide? Did you know someone else who had taken it, or did you find out about it on the web? What convinced you to give it a go?
Thanks!
poster:Melanie-00
thread:972710
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20101202/msgs/972946.html