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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by fido on January 23, 2015, at 17:53:42
I have a book by Saul about vitamins.
He makes it all appear so simple. For example he claims nobody ever died from vitamins and so on.
This simplicity directly made me a bit sceptical.
Anyway, I read what he writes about niacin. He writes in one of his books that 3000mg niacin per day are absolutely safe.
So I considered taking niacin against depression.
But guess what, at the Linus Pauling Institute it sounds totally different. They mention cases where already 500mg were enough to cause liver damage!
I feel absolutely fooled by Saul. How can he make such claims? I think this is absolutely irresponsible! Now where I know that niacin is not "absolutely safe" I also can't believe anything else he wrote. His books are now totally useless to me. I am really angry about this.http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins/niacin/
"Nicotinamide
Nicotinamide is generally better tolerated than niacin. It does not generally cause flushing. However, nausea, vomiting, and signs of liver toxicity (elevated liver enzymes, jaundice) have been observed at doses of 3 grams/day (84). Nicotinamide has resulted in decreased insulin sensitivity at doses of 2 grams/day in adults at high risk for insulin-dependent diabetes (49)."
"Niacin
Common side effects of niacin include flushing, itching, and gastrointestinal disturbances, such as nausea and vomiting. Hepatotoxicity (liver cell damage), including elevated liver enzymes and jaundice, has been observed at intakes as low as 750 mg of niacin per day for less than three months (84, 85). Hepatitis has been observed with timed-release niacin at dosages as little as 500 mg/day for two months, although almost all reports of severe hepatitis have been associated with the timed-release form of niacin at doses of 3 to 9 grams per day used to treat high cholesterol for months or years (24)"
Posted by Christ_empowered on January 23, 2015, at 18:24:57
In reply to What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by fido on January 23, 2015, at 17:53:42
I take 6 grams/niacinamide per day. I take 12 grams vitamin C per day, too. I haven't had any liver issues yet...and I've been doing this for 5 years. I also take high doses of taurine, which helps the liver.
Posted by Tomatheus on January 23, 2015, at 20:17:03
In reply to What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by fido on January 23, 2015, at 17:53:42
Fido,
I think that the following statement of Dr. Bob's would apply well to your situation: "Don't necessarily believe everything you hear [or read]." If certain statements (such as Saul's claim that niacin is "absolutely safe") sound like they're probably too good to be true, I think it's a good idea to do some more research as you did here before believing such statements. In this case, I think that your skepticism served you well.
Tomatheus
Posted by fido on January 24, 2015, at 21:30:06
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by Christ_empowered on January 23, 2015, at 18:24:57
Hello,
and does the niacin help you? If yes, what does it do?To me this experience was pretty unsettling. I mean with my anxiety and insecurity it's almost impossible to settle on an opinion. I thought Saul is legit and knows what he says and simply relied on him being right. Now finding out that everything is waaaaay more complicated makes me even more insecure.
I wanted to try niacin as add-on against depression but now I dont know if this makes sense.
Posted by Christ_empowered on January 25, 2015, at 8:50:26
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by fido on January 24, 2015, at 21:30:06
I take 6 gram/day niacinamide. Helps me, but I'm not you, lol. No liver problems to report, but...I'm just a sample n=1, right?
I'm not a health professional. Orthomolecular has been around for a nice, long time. I think its a good option when meds alone don't "cut it," or there are significant side effects.
Posted by fido on January 29, 2015, at 19:09:07
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by Christ_empowered on January 25, 2015, at 8:50:26
What exactly does it do for you? Can you notice a clear difference?
And what else do you take? I am not against vitamins. I am simply scared of causing harm.
Posted by Christ_empowered on January 30, 2015, at 7:46:37
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by fido on January 29, 2015, at 19:09:07
I do old school Orthomolecular, plus I added a few supplements for other stuff.
Its weird. I'm just now re-connecting to reality (we don't really use the state mental hospital where I live, lol), and now I'm questioning the vitamin line up, but...
...I"m calm, no twitches or anything from the Abilify, my skin problems have resolved, my allergies are better, I sleep well, my depressive episodes aren't as intense or as frequent, etc.
I take: 12 grams time release C (2 doses, AM and PM); 6 grams time release niacinamide (2 doses, AM and PM), 1000 IU natural form E w/ mixed tocopherols in there, 75,000 IU natural form beta carotene, 5,000 IU D3, 12mgs astaxanthin, 3 grams green tea extract (2 equal doses of a standardized extract, AM and PM), 800 mgs grape seed extract (400mgs AM and 400 mgs PM), 2+ grams taurine (2 grams at a time, 1-3 times daily), 200-400 micrograms selenium, 30mgs OptiZinc, 2-4 b-100 caps, 20,000 mcg Biotin (1 10,000mgs tab AM, 1 PM).
I think that's it.
Posted by ed_uk2010 on January 30, 2015, at 9:07:36
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by Christ_empowered on January 30, 2015, at 7:46:37
Hi CE,
What does the biotin do for you?
Posted by Christ_empowered on January 30, 2015, at 11:22:59
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul? » Christ_empowered, posted by ed_uk2010 on January 30, 2015, at 9:07:36
seems to help my flaky scalp. For a while, I was on Diprolene, then maintained on regular use of salicylic acid shampoo+head and shoulders shampoo. First the salicylic, then the head and shoulders. Worked well, but there was some remaining flaking and redness, plus the combo kinda caused scalp irritation in its own.
So..yeah...10,000mcg biotin tablet, 1 am and 1 pm. I still do the dandruff shampoo thing, but there's no more scalp irritation, and there doesn't seem to be any remaining redness, irritation, flaking, etc.
Posted by ed_uk2010 on January 30, 2015, at 12:25:15
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by Christ_empowered on January 30, 2015, at 7:46:37
So, that's the secret to shiny hair! :)
Interesting regimen you're on. What does the grapeseed extract do?
Posted by Christ_empowered on February 7, 2015, at 15:24:35
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul? » Christ_empowered, posted by ed_uk2010 on January 30, 2015, at 12:25:15
just saw that question ed, sorry...I wasn't intentionally ignoring you.
I take grapeseed as an antihistamine and...well...honestly, just because, lol. I have some OCD-ish traits that come and go w/ mood and agitation issues, so...yeah...I think you can see that in my OM routine.
But the grapeseed extract has definitely helped my allergies and the related eczema, so that's a plus--no need for an antihistamine Rx and no need for an Elidel Rx, so...awesome.
Posted by ed_uk2010 on February 11, 2015, at 20:15:54
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul?, posted by Christ_empowered on February 7, 2015, at 15:24:35
Thanks for the reply! And don't worry, I didn't think you were ignoring me.
Does grapeseed extract for eczema have an advantage over say evening primrose oil?
Posted by Christ_empowered on February 12, 2015, at 8:46:40
In reply to Re: What's your take on niacin and Andrew Saul? » Christ_empowered, posted by ed_uk2010 on February 11, 2015, at 20:15:54
Ummm....well, I added the grape seed extract so maybe I wouldn't have to get an Rx antihistamine. I take a high dose (400mgs x 2 daily). The results have been a reduction in my allergies and also my (minor, mild) eczema is under control.
I've never taken evening primrose. I briefly took borage oil, but...I kinda lost interest. I can't compare the two.
This is the end of the thread.
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