Niacin therapy Bill W.

[hopefulspirit]

This probably doesn't belong on the meds board but I always post here:
DoctorYourself.com - Niacin Therapy Details

I've always felt better on Niacin but have had difficulty following routines (in part, my bumpy road with Bac) but, I'm currently AF and in an effort to get my act together, am researching my supplements regime.

Anyway, I know many of you are aware of the benefits for "us" but I thought it was worth recirculating.

Have a great day!
Jen

[Bruunhilde]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

Hi Hopeful,

Thanks for the link - I'm very interested in Niacin because I take it for cholesterol lowering purposes. I'm very challenged with the facial flushing and was off it for a while (due to AL and slipping up more and more on supplements therapy) but back to working up to a therapeutic dose. }

I am very eager to see if this helps - it will be hard to distinguish between my healing AL brain and the niacin effect, and reading the excerpt below will have me drawing conclusions no doubt~ this claim does seem rather high in success rates, (to say the least, 90%). I didn't check out the site or article's cred, so I'll just take it with a grain of salt like I do all internet stuff.


5) Alcoholism. Bill W. conducted the first clinical trial of the use of nicotinic for treating members of Alcoholics Anonymous. [11] He found that 20 out of thirty subjects were relieved of their anxiety, tension and fatigue in two months of taking this vitamin, 1 G tid. I found it very useful in treating patients who were both alcoholic and schizophrenic. The first large trial was conducted by David Hawkins who reported a better than 90% recovery rate on about 90 patients. Since then it has been used by many physicians who treat alcoholics. Dr. Russell Smith in Detroit has reported the largest series of patients. [12]

[bleep]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

That's an interesting article Jen, thanks. Longer life always appeals. My wife takes niacin, and it's hilarious watching her flush! She goes bright pink.

[Isolde]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

There is a no flush version called Niacinamide. I took it for awhile to help with sugar cravings years ago and it really helped.

[bleep]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

I don't think I'll tell Mrs Bleep - it really is hilarious!

[Otter]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

What I find interesting about vitamin therapy is this:

What is the cause of the lack of GHB which causes aloholic craving? If you can repair the brain by natural means, can you get back to a position where you don't need Baclofen because the body produces enough of its own GHB. That is the theory behind vitamin therapy.

I think you need to stop drinking for that therapy to work though but I do wonder what the origin of the problem is, at least in severe alcoholism. Is it a brain disorder or is it damage caused through alcohol comsumption? If it is the former then one would need to take a maintenance dose of Baclofen for life. Otherwise, one might not need to continue past the point that one recovers ones brain equilibrium by stopping drinking and regaining a healthy brain.

Just my ponderings.

[redhead77]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

Niacinamide does work without flushing. It does not work to reduce cholestrol, as far as I know. I know that's not the point, but I took niacin for both. If one wants to reduce flushing, then taking it on a full stomach with lots of water. Plus, it's good to start in small doses and increase slowly. One can also take an aspirin prior to the dose (30 min), this will reduce flushing by inhibiting prostaglandins. I don't do this, I believe aspirin is safe, but I don't mind the flush too much.

It is thought by some that the niacin flush is beneficial. I know after mine, I feel calm. Some state the blood vessel dilation on the surface is also occuring internally. Fats are being flushed out of cardiac arteries and such.

[redhead77]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

Otter, it's an adjunct therapy really. B vitamins are lacking in alcoholics whether by drinking or before hand. No one knows for sure (chicken and egg). It is just another tool.

[Bruunhilde]

Niacin therapy Bill W.

Hi Red,

I use Endur-Acin, which is real nicotinic acid. If I only take one 250mg pill at a time, I don't flush. It's manufactured specifically for lowering cholesterol without the flush. Some of us can't tolerate the flush - I took three pills at once a few days ago without thinking, and my face was bright red and it actually hurt - and it didn't go away for hours. It broke some veins by my nose and now I have all these veins there, red. I have rosacea and I'm pink anyways. Even a B-multi can make me flush a little.

I've heard about that flushing may be a sign of veins "flushing" out fats, I was comforting myself with the thought that all the crap would be washed out of my veins and this would be worth the awful flushing. But then I saw the broken veins. ...

Thanks for the aspririn tip, that's really good to know.