You can purchase slow-release niacin both with and without a prescription, but consult a physician before buying niacin, or vitamin B-3, at a health food or drug store. Niacin, prescribed for more than 50 years to treat cholesterol, can cause serious side effects. A doctor can help monitor your dose, determine how well niacin works to treat your condition and keep you informed about the latest research concerning niacin.
Government Niacin Study
The National Institutes of Health announced in May 2011 the premature end to a multi-year study about the use of slow-release niacin to treat cholesterol. The study involved 3,414 participants, about half of whom took 2,000 mg daily of niacin along with statins, another cholesterol-lowering drug. The other half took only statins. The persons who took the combination therapy enjoyed greater improvements in their overall cholesterol levels than participants who took only statins. But persons in the niacin-statins group suffered as many heart attacks -- and twice as many strokes -- as persons who took statins without niacin.
Flushes
Niacin taken in doses of more than 100 mg a day may produce an uncomfortable side effect called skin flushes, which cause the skin on your face and chest to redden, burn and tingle. The risk of skin flushes increases with your dose; doctors may prescribe niacin in amounts of 500 to 2,000 mg or more. Slow-release niacin helps prevent flushes because the niacin is delivered into your bloodstream in small increments over an extended period of time. If you take regular niacin and experience flushing, switching to a slow-release formula may alleviate this symptom.
Liver Damage
All types of niacin, if taken in large amounts for a long time, may cause liver damage. Taking slow-release niacin increases the risk of sustaining liver damage. If you want to avoid this additional risk, try taking an aspirin 30 minutes before taking regular niacin. Another option is to increase your dose of niacin gradually or to take more low-dose pills throughout the day rather than fewer, higher-strength pills. If you take niacin for cholesterol -- in regular or slow-release formula -- get your liver checked periodically.
Considerations
Your diet naturally includes small amounts of niacin -- about 14 to 16 mg. Niacin from food sources may help improve liver function, as well as help keep your eyes, skin and hair healthy. Niacin, found in foods such as beets, beef, peanuts, poultry and tuna, also helps you convert carbohydrates to energy and metabolize proteins and fats. Slow-release niacin in large doses may improve all three of the lipids that make up your cholesterol score -- low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein and triglycerides.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center; Vitamin B 3 (Niacin); Steven D. Ehrlich, NMD; June 18, 2009
- MedlinePlus; Niacin and Niacinamide (Vitamin B3); Feb. 9, 2011
- CBC News; Niacin Trial For Heart Disease Stopped Early; May 27, 2011
- National Institutes of Health; NIH Halts Clinical Trial on Combination Cholesterol Treatment; May 26, 2011
