Drug companies have taken Niacin off the market.

[louis-t]

You may have noticed that real niacin is no longer available in stores. Industry-wide, all of a sudden, it has been replaced with "flush-free niacin" which claims to be a "niacin product" if you read the label. Actually, it is Inositol Hexaniacinate. The price has doubled, and from what I have read, it may not (read: does not) provide the same benefits as real niacin. The drug industry seems to have been able to get niacin classified as a drug (see first link). It is referred to as "medication" with a laundry list of "side effects". You will noi longer be able to buy real niacin for $3 a bottle.

What is the reason for this? I believe the drug industry has finally realized (as I did 25 years ago) that niacin is just as effective, if not more effective, at keeping plaque from collecting on arteries than their crappy drugs. They can't have us paying $3 a bottle when they can charge $100 a bottle. It will only be available when combined with other cholesterol lowering drugs such as Niaspan.

I started taking Niacin 35 years ago for circulation issues. I read later that it may help keep plaque from collecting in arteries. I am 54, have a long fanily history of heart disease (my father and all of his uncles on his mother's side died in their mid-50s), I have high bad cholesterol, low good cholesterol, yet when a scan of the arteries around my heart was done several years ago, there was no sign of plaque. Zero. Not a trace.

I am so screwed.

Yikes. Here they are:
http://www.drugs.com/niacin.html
Second link, third paragraph under 'Nicotinic acid'
http://cholesterol.about.com/od/nicotinicacid/a/noflushniacin.htm

[laconicsax]

1. Your post mentions links...I think you forgot to include them.

[louis-t]

2. Fixed.

[laconicsax]

4. Thanks. n/t

[Roselma]

3. check this out...you can buy niacin from Canada

http://www.canamericaglobal.com/products/Niacin/500/

https://www.77canadapharmacy.com/Niacin.php

You can google "niacin" and get lots of hits to canadian pharmacies.

[louis-t]

6. Ah, thank you!

I hope it's as cheap as Kroger brand was.

[Liberal Veteran]

8. Or you can just buy it from Puritan's Pride in the US.

They sell all kinds of niacin: flush free, nicotinic acid, niacinamide, or plain old niacin.

[louis-t]

15. Niacinamide is the other form that has no effect on plaque.

Or so I've read. I wonder if Puritan's Pride will be "allowed" to continue selling the real stuff.

[louis-t]

21. Go back and read the site . It says you have to have

a prescription!

[Mz Pip]

5. I've been taking it

but my doctor said I have to ge the dosage way up before I notice any drop in cholesterol. I've been combining the no-flush and the regular niacin for a while now to get the dosage up. Was going to go in this week to see if it made any difference. i don't handle the regular niacin well. I look and feel like I've been rolled in poison oak from the niacin "flushes."

so this really sucks, especially if it works.

[louis-t]

10. The flushes never bother me, I only take 100 mg. with a meal.

Keep in mind, the benefit of Niacin is not so much the cholesterol lowering as it is the keeping plaque from collecting. Yes, mega doses seem to lower cholesterol, but I don't think it's worth the risk. Diet will help get it down. I kind of like the flushing. Let's me know it's working. I only feel it once in awhile for a few minutes. I hate the fact that drug companies have this kind of power over us. I'm thinking of contacting (corporate shill) Sanjay Gupta. Maybe he can shed some light.

[Angry Dragon]

13. I take Niaspan and the first time I took it, it felt like my head was

on fire. i was told to take an aspirin about a half hour before
I usually just take an aspirin with it and seems to work okay

Might work the same way with niacin

edit: spelling

[3waygeek]

26. I've been on Niaspan about 3 years now...

and get flushing only once or twice a year. When I do, it's really bad, with dizziness, shortness of breath, and profuse sweating. I usually find myself crawling from my bed to the shower to cool down.

Taking aspirin or ibuprofen before helps, as one might expect, since Niaspan is nothing but niacin in time-release form. IIRC, its patent protection expires in 2012, so it will then be available as a generic.

[Uben]

7. I've been taking it daily for a year or so.....

...on the advice of a pharmacist friend. I am on a lipid for cholesterol, but use the niacin as a supplement to prevent plaque. I just looked at it and it is the flush niacin and not the real deal! That's one less I'll be taking in the mornings. I'll check out that canadian deal, thanks

[notadmblnd]

9. Try Canada

I go there for the pain reliever.

[louis-t]

11. Again, thanks for the info. Take that, big pharma.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

12. Bioflavonoids, namely pycnogenol can have a positive effect on lipid profiles.

Lipids. 2002 Oct;37(10):931-4.
Supplementation with a pine bark extract rich in polyphenols increases plasma antioxidant capacity and alters the plasma lipoprotein profile.

Devaraj S, Vega-López S, Kaul N, Schönlau F, Rohdewald P, Jialal I.

Laboratory for Atherosclerosis and Metabolic Research, University of California, Davis, Medical Center, Sacramento, California 95817, USA.
Abstract

Pycnogenol (PYC), an extract of French maritime pine bark (Pinus pinaster), is a potent antioxidant with potential health benefits. Its bioavailabilty has previously been shown by urinary excretion studies of constituents and metabolites of PYC. The aim of this study was to test the effect of PYC supplementation on measures of oxidative stress and the lipid profile in humans.

Twenty-five healthy subjects received PYC (150 mg/d) for 6 wk. Fasting blood was collected at baseline, after 3 and 6 wk of supplementation, and again after a 4-wk washout period. After 6 wk of supplementation with PYC, a significant increase in plasma polyphenol levels was detectable, which was reversed after the 4-wk washout phase. The antioxidant effect of PYC was demonstrated by a significant increase in oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) in plasma throughout the supplementation period (P < 0.05).

The ORAC value returned to baseline after the 4-wk washout period. Moreover, in addition to its antioxidant effects, PYC significantly reduced LDL-cholesterol levels and increased HDL-cholesterol levels in plasma of two-thirds of the subjects. While the LDL changes reversed during washout, the HDL increase did not. There was no significant difference in LDL oxidizability or plasma lipid peroxides following PYC supplementation.

Hence, following oral supplementation in humans, PYC significantly increases antioxidant capacity of plasma, as determined by ORAC, and exerts favorable effects on the lipid profile.

PMID: 12530550

[Kurovski]

14. I've been searching for real niacin, and now I know why I can't find it!

Fuck corporate medicine and corporate drug jagoffs. I'm so sick of this shit.

[louis-t]

17. Very suspicious that it happened industry-wide

all at the same time.

[Kurovski]

18. There was a to-do about Armour thyroid.

It's back on the market, but for a while you had to get it from canada.

Armour is a big Corp too, able to fight the drug bastards, I guess.

If they got niacin classified as a drug, they would have to change all-across the board, No?

[louis-t]

20. I would think if they wanted to, they could just classify

the pure form.

[spotbird]

39. Vitacost.com still has it

I've liked them for some time, it's words better than retail.

[Liberal Veteran]

16. Um. No it hasn't been taken off the market.

I can find a dozen different places in the US in under a minute that sell all various forms of niacin (except of course the prescription product Niaspan).

[louis-t]

19. Hmmm, I've checked every major outlet

except for the vitamin chains. I'll check them next. Give me examples, I've checked grocery stores, Meijer, Kmart, drug stores, etc. Nothing. Only "flush-free" fake stuff.

[Liberal Veteran]

22. Puritan's Pride, GNC, Walgreens, Super Supplements, Vitamin Shoppe, even Medco's Online Store.

[louis-t]

23. I just looked at the Canadian sites.

They say you have to have a prescription!

[Liberal Veteran]

24. Well, then, it's a good thing you don't live in Canada.

N'est-ce pas?

All the places I just gave you are in the UNITED STATES.

Local chains stop selling certain items for all kinds of reasons (usually because the product in question is a slow mover for them).

But your initial point is incorrect. You can still buy plain old niacin in the US and there is no conspiracy.

[louis-t]

28. I hope you're right, but apparently I'm not the only one

having trouble finding it.

[dipsydoodle]

25. Have it shipped from the UK

see here for example : http://www.bargainplace.co.uk/shop-window/product.php?p=20808088

Hope that helps.

:hi:

edit to add : Amazon.com sell it too : http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=niacin&x=15&y=17

[louis-t]

29. Thanks, 1 pound still equal about $2.50?

It's still a lot more than I've been paying.

[eppur_se_muova]

37. Currently $1.58 -- just Google"pounds to dollars"

If you have inline auto-complete on, you don't even have to do the actual search. :)

[handmade34]

27. oh no

I buy everything online and here are just a couple of my sources...

http://www.luckyvitamin.com/c-1128-niacin-formulas

http://www.nowfoods.com/Products/ProductsAlphabetically/M003405.htm
I do not take niacin on a regular basis, but occasionally.

I do drink a tablespoon of cayenne pepper in tomato juice every morning... excellent for blood flow. I studied with Dr. Christopher years ago before he passed awway.

http://www.herballegacy.com/Cayenne.html

I have a niacin story from 30 years ago that involves Thom Hartmann if you ever want to hear it...

[louis-t]

30. Yikes, cayenne pepper.

Love it in cooking. More great links, thanks.

[louis-t]

32. Looks like Lucky will be the one.

I am greatful. Oops, I mean grateful.

[Krakowiak]

36. + 1 on the cayenne - taken just as you say (nt)

[right2bfree]

31. They have been trying to make Vitamin C a prescription too.

Its true that only real Niacin will control cholesterol and plaque.

[trotsky]

33. It's almost like clockwork.

"They're taking our herbs and supplements! Evil big pharma!"

And everyone shrieks and decries the jack-booted FDA thugs.

Except that it's not really true. But it sure SEEMS like it could be true! And that's good enough for me! Stupid big pharma and FDA! Screw the facts, they want to take my herbs and supplements!

:eyes:

[pnwmom]

34. Niacin, like the statins, can damage the liver.

One of my relatives developed elevated liver enzymes and had to stop taking it.

Maybe it's better to take it, as he did, under a doctor's supervision.

[handmade34]

35. true that vitamins and herbs can be dangerous

and it is wise to be smart with them... I studied herbology years ago and have used herbs extensively in the past. Pennyroyal for abortion (when abortion was illegal)for example.

I realize the FDA has a big role to play in keeping us safe and the problem is not when something is restricted because it truly is unsafe, but when Pharma plays with accessibility because they want to control the substance for money... often it is difficult to tell which is the case.

[mzmolly]

38. I've heard the same thing. My dh has issues with statins and niacin.

:shrug: