Side Effects and Conditions Caused By Lack Of Vitamin B3 Niacin (Coursework Sample)

Vitamin B3 Niacin
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Vitamin B3 Niacin
Vitamin B3 is an important nutrient for the good health of the body. The nutrient is among the eight B-complex water soluble vitamins. Because of its inability to get stored by the body, humans are required to consume the nutrient regularly. Nonetheless, vitamin B3 is destroyed by heating. Niacin is derived from the name nicotine acid vitamin and it can be in the form of inositol hex nicotinate and niacinamide, which also have several uses. The sources of food that contain niacin include cereals, enriches breads, beans, green vegetables, nuts, milk, eggs, fish, ilk and yeast. The body partly synthesis the niacin through its metabolism from tryptophan—commonly found in meat— and vitamin B6.
Uses of Niacin
Niacin has a wide variety of use including assisting several functions of the digestive system, nervous system and the skin. Similarly to other vitamin B’s, niacin is essential for breaking down fats, carbohydrates and proteins into energy. The nutrient is also important in the functioning of the liver and the gland. The role of niacin in the liver is to help remove harmful chemicals by producing hormones in the adrenal glands. Niacin is also important in improving the health of individuals. The nutrient can be useful in treating dizziness, reducing cholera related diarrhea, reducing headaches and migraines and in enhancing blood flow. Research has also proven the benefits of niacin in stroke patients. According to research, the nutrient can help patients with ischemic stroke which is caused by the obstruction of a blood vessel which supplies blood to the brain, by growing new blood vessels.
Niacin is also useful to patients with cancer. Nicotinamide is essential is reducing the occurrence of nonmelanoma skin cancers in individuals who are have a history of squamous cell carcinoma or basal cell carcinoma. Besides that, niacin is also useful in healing other skin infections such as acne through the application of a 4 percent niacinamide gel twice a day as compared to applying 1 percent clindamycin gel (Bradford, 2018). For men who have erectile dysfunction, niacin has also been proved to help improve the ability to maintain an erection. Aside from that, the nutrient has also been proved to prevent colitis and inflammatory bowels. According to an experiment by Scientific Reports, rats that were given niacin and injected with colitis showed less colonic damage as compared to those who did not receive niacin (Salem & Wadie, 2016).
Niacin is also essential for lowering LDL cholesterol and lowering triglycerides. However, niacin is not regarded as the main nutrient for treating cholesterol since when the vitamin is taken in large quantities, it has potential side effects. According to a publication in the New England Journal of Medicine, patients aged between 50 and 80 years old and who had cardiovascular diseases were provided with extended-release niacin and laropiprant to help reduce face flush, for a period of four years. The two inclusions were added to their normal prescription of satin medicine for a period of four years. The results showed that niacin was associated with serious side effects such as liver problems, loss of blood sugar control, and development of diabetes and infections which all resulted in a higher risk of death. Despite other contradictory research that prove niacin is useful in treating cardiovascular disease when combined with satin, niacin should be prescribed cautiously. More so, niacin is also reported to be able to raise HDL cholesterol on a level higher than 30 percent. The nutrient has been used to treat cholesterol for over fifty years however, recent studies have cautioned its use.
Side Effects
A common side effect of taking niacin supplements is mild flushing. This can be described as a feeling of itching, redness, warmth and a tingly feeling under the skin. This feeling is common during the first few days of taking the supplement however the flushing subsides in about one to two hours (). Depending on the type of drug the patient is consuming, the supplements can deliver doses in short periods of time which can result in a flushing that is more intense for some individuals. Other side effects include diarrhea, pain in the mouth, dizziness, internal gas and stomach upsets.
Risks
There are several health problems that might be experienced with patients who take niacin. As earlier stated, individuals...