# Niacinamide (Vitamin B3)

Category: Vitamins & Minerals

Also known as: niacinamide, nicotinamide, vitamin B3

Niacinamide is the specific form of vitamin B3 that Ray Peat identified as a safe and effective metabolic therapy, in contrast to the inflammatory flush-inducing form, niacin. Peat argued that niacinamide, taken in divided doses of 50–100 mg up to a total of 300 mg daily, can…

10 passages · 2 authors · 2014–2026 · Most-cited: [Georgi Dinkov](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/voices/georgi-dinkov/index.md)

Canonical page: https://bioenergeticoracle.com/concepts/niacinamide-vitamin-b3

## Synthesis

**Niacinamide** is the specific form of vitamin B3 that Ray Peat identified as a safe and effective metabolic therapy, in contrast to the inflammatory flush-inducing form, niacin. [Source 1, 6] Peat argued that niacinamide, taken in divided doses of 50–100 mg up to a total of 300 mg daily, can control symptoms of major degenerative problems including diabetes and arthritis by reducing inflammation, protecting nerves, and accelerating *glucose oxidation*. [Source 1] He emphasized that the flushing caused by nicotinic acid is not a benign side effect but a sign of damage, as it releases **serotonin**, **histamine**, and toxic prostaglandins. [Source 1, 3] This mechanistic distinction is critical: the "no-flush" niacin sold as inositol hexanicotinate merely slows the release of the same damaging nicotinic acid, making niacinamide the only safe, widely available form. [Source 1]

The fundamental mechanism of niacinamide's protective effect is its role as a precursor to **NAD+**, a crucial cofactor for mitochondrial energy production. [Source 2, 4] Peat explained that by supporting efficient energy production, niacinamide lowers lactic acid and increases carbon dioxide, shifting the organism away from an inflammatory state. [Source 1] Georgi Dinkov has extended this framework, detailing a dual mechanism where niacinamide not only boosts NAD+ to directly activate the metabolic regulator **SIRT1**, but also inhibits pathological signaling pathways, such as lowering the microRNA miR-93 which otherwise suppresses SIRT1 activity. [Source 2] This energetic model explains niacinamide's ability to protect against a wide range of conditions rooted in energetic deficiency, from *fatty liver disease* to the prevention of miscarriages and birth defects, which Dinkov notes are driven by an energetic deficit in the mother rather than solely genetic factors. [Source 2, 4]

A primary systemic effect of niacinamide is the potent inhibition of *lipolysis*, the release of free fatty acids into the bloodstream. [Source 5, 10] Dinkov has highlighted that a single dose of a niacinamide analog can cause a dramatic 75% drop in triglycerides, an effect mainstream medicine incorrectly attributes exclusively to the flush-inducing niacin via a specific receptor. [Source 5, 10] By suppressing the chronic release of free fatty acids, niacinamide improves insulin sensitivity and protects against the metabolic damage caused by circulating fats, a benefit Dinkov recommends supporting with vitamin E and aspirin during any fasting period. [Source 3] This anti-lipolytic action is central to its role in improving biomarkers of cardiovascular disease and treating metabolic syndrome. [Source 5]

For therapeutic application, a daily dose of 300–500 mg of niacinamide is considered a safe and effective range for general health improvement, with Peat noting he has seen individuals cure terminal brain diseases with just 150–200 mg per day. [Source 3, 6, 8] Dinkov has specified that 500 mg daily is likely the "sweet spot" for most people, as higher doses up to 1,200 mg may not provide additional benefit for general health and doses in the 750–1,000 mg range carry a risk of inducing anemia. [Source 8, 9] In severe conditions like ischemic heart disease, cancer, or Alzheimer's, higher doses may be justified due to the direct inhibition of fatty acid oxidation, but for general use, lower doses are preferable. [Source 8] Dinkov has also suggested that combining a low dose of 200–300 mg of niacinamide with 1–2 mg of **methylene blue** can achieve similar or greater elevations in NAD+ while avoiding the risks of high-dose vitamin B3. [Source 9] The curative potential of niacinamide is further underscored by a case study where 500 mg twice daily, combined with antiretroviral drugs, led to an HIV patient remaining virus-free for over five years, strongly suggesting niacinamide was the curative agent by forcing infected cells to shed their viral load. [Source 7]

## People also ask

### How does niacinamide differ from regular niacin?

Peat argued that niacinamide is the safe form of vitamin B3, while niacin causes a damaging flush by releasing serotonin, histamine, and toxic prostaglandins. The entry describes niacinamide as the only safe, widely available form for metabolic therapy.

### What is the mechanism behind niacinamide's anti-inflammatory effects?

The corpus describes niacinamide acting as a precursor to NAD+, which supports mitochondrial energy production, lowers lactic acid, and increases carbon dioxide. This shifts the organism away from an inflammatory state, and it also inhibits pathological signaling like the microRNA miR-93.

### What is the recommended daily dose of niacinamide for general health?

The entry states that 300–500 mg daily is a safe and effective range, with Dinkov specifying 500 mg as a likely "sweet spot." Higher doses up to 1,200 mg may not provide additional benefit and doses of 750–1,000 mg carry a risk of inducing anemia.

## Related concepts

- [Allopregnanolone](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/allopregnanolone/index.md)
- [Biotin](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/biotin/index.md)
- [Chronic Fatigue Syndrome](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/chronic-fatigue-syndrome/index.md)
- [Estrogen-serotonin axis](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/estrogen-serotonin-axis/index.md)
- [Fatty Liver Disease](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/fatty-liver-disease/index.md)
- [Insulin resistance](https://bioenergeticoracle.com/md/concepts/insulin-resistance/index.md)

## Cited passages

Passage numbers match the `[Source N]` markers in the synthesis above.

### Source 1 — Longevity

Ray Peat · Interview · Apr 12, 2014 · https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEgfGJ4BAGk

> **Ray Peat:** No, that was thiamine, B1. And B3, for major problems, including diabetes, probably arthritis and a lot of degenerative problems, taking 50 or 100mg several times a day of niacinamide can control the symptoms, reduce inflammation, protect the nerves and accelerate glucose oxidation and so on. And I should mention that, for some reason, I think Doctors like nicotinic acid, because it has such visible effects of making you turn red, but people generally don't like the feeling of flushing and it isn't good for your health because it releases serotonin, histamine and toxic prostaglandins, so it's actually causing damage when it flushes you. And in recent years, the market has been flooded by something they call 'no flush' niacin, but if you look at the label, you will see it is inositol hexanicotinate and that means that each molecule has six nicotinic acids and it's a little slower to release - that's why it doesn't cause the sudden, intense, flushing, but it's the same substance that's releasing those inflammatory, toxic substances. So it has to be niacinamide or the new niacinamide or nicotinamide 'riboside', which is just a variation on niacinamide. It's a lot more expensive, but if you have an allergic reaction to one, you can try the other.

### Source 2 — Vitamin B3 can prevent/treat fatty liver (MASLD/NAFLD/NASH)

Georgi Dinkov · Article · May 23, 2026 · https://haidut.me/?p=3044

> Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MASLD) affects roughly 30% of the global population — billions of people. Mainstream medicine has no effective targeted therapies, offering only lifestyle advice (weight loss, exercise) that most patients cannot sustain. I have written extensively about niacinamide (vitamin B3) as a metabolic therapy, primarily focusing on its role as an NAD+ precursor that supports mitochondrial electron flow, oxidative phosphorylation, and overall energy metabolism. Now, researchers have discovered that niacin (another form of vitamin B3) directly inhibits a specific genetic driver of fatty liver disease — microRNA-93 (miR-93) — which then restores SIRT1 activity. This is a perfect example of the dual mechanism I have always emphasized: B3 works both by boosting NAD+/energy metabolism and by directly inhibiting pathological signaling pathways.
>
> As the study below demonstrates, researchers from UNIST and other institutions identified microRNA-93 (miR-93) as a central regulator of MASLD. Levels of miR-93 are unusually high in both human patients and animal models with fatty liver disease. MiR-93 drives fat buildup, inflammation, and scarring in the liver by suppressing SIRT1 — a gene that plays a key role in fat metabolism. When the researchers used gene editing to stop miR-93 production, mice showed significantly less fat accumulation, improved insulin sensitivity, and better liver function.
>
> The team then screened 150 FDA-approved drugs to see if any could reduce miR-93 levels. Niacin (vitamin B3) stood out as the most effective option. In mice treated with niacin, miR-93 levels dropped sharply, SIRT1 activity increased, and normal fat-processing pathways were restored.
>
> This finding is significant for two reasons that align perfectly with what I have been saying for years:
>
> - NAD+ and SIRT1: Niacin (like niacinamide) is converted to NAD+. SIRT1 is a NAD+-dependent deacetylase that regulates metabolism, inflammation, and aging. By increasing NAD+, vitamin B3 directly activates SIRT1. The study shows that B3 also works by lowering miR-93, which then derepresses SIRT1.

### Source 3 — Episode 244 - Interview with Georgi Dinkov: Causes of Insulin Resistance, Obesity is an Endocrine Problem, and Problems with Excess Cortisol

Georgi Dinkov · Interview · Apr 14, 2023

> **Brian Gryn:** Is niacinamide, is that vitamin B3?
>
> **Georgi Dinkov:** Yes, but there's several forms, right? There's niacin, which is the flush version. I don't recommend that because the flushing is caused by histamine and serotonin. You don't want those released into the bloodstream because it can cause an inflammatory reaction. Niacin gets these things out of the platelets, so it makes the platelets release the histamine and serotonin, and that's not a good thing. In fact, some very beneficial drugs are doing the exact opposite, stimulating the uptake of serotonin and histamine into the platelets. by this actually curing depression. So not niacin, but niacinamide. And there's another one recently over the last couple of years. It's a commercial product. One company is pushing. It's called nicotinamide riboside. There's a company called Chromadex that's running clinical trials with it. And up until last week, there was also another version called nicotinamide mononucleotide. However, a company just like Chromadex... petitioned the FDA to ban nicotinamide mononucleotide because they claim it's a new investigatory drug. And FDA concurred. And as of yesterday, Amazon has basically yanked all nicotinamide mononucleotide products from its website. And I think the FDA started to send letters to people saying, you can't sell this anymore over the counter. I know it's a vitamin, but we think it's a drug. So we're stuck now with niacinamide or nicotinamide ribosome. So 300 to 500 milligrams daily, I think, is plenty. Or niacinamide.

### Source 4 — Georgi's Background, and Prenatal, Neonatal Development with Georgi Dinkov

Georgi Dinkov · Interview · Oct 27, 2019

> **David Butterworth:** Awesome. Okay, this one here, niacinamide may fully prevent miscarriages and or birth defects.
>
> **Georgi Dinkov:** Yes, and this is a great one because they actually explain fully the mechanism of action of niacinamide. Niacinamide is a type of vitamin B3. You can buy it from pretty much any grocery store or vitamin store. Target, Walmart, Amazon, you name it. And this is a great study because it explained that most miscarriages and or birth defects are not due to some kind of a trauma or genetic issue, which is what mainstream medicine tries to tell you it is, but actually due to an energetic deficiency in the mother's organism. So in other words, the health of the fetus is fully, and whether the fetus will be carried to term, is fully determined by how well the mother produces energy from food. And vitamin B3 happens to be a crucial co-factor. Vitamin niacinamide converts into the body after you ingest it, converts it to something called NAD. And you can see NAD in some of the underlying quotes there from the study, where they say that NAD, which is a crucial... cofactor for synthesizing energy is low in women that basically are suffering frequent miscarriages and or delivering babies with birth defects. And fully preventing the miscarriages and the birth defects was possible with something as simple as giving the mother a relatively low dosage of this vitamin B3. You can achieve the same thing in a human being with a single capsule of 500 milligrams daily. And most products on the market that sell niacinamide do come in 500 milligram capsules daily. The cost will be a fraction of a cent a day. And yet again, if you go to your doctor and say, how can I prevent miscarriages? How can I prevent birth defects? The doctor will just throw his or her arms up in the air and say, there is nothing we can do about it. It's all in God's hands. It's in your genes. Maybe you have bad genes. We don't know why it's happening. We can't prevent it. You just sit there and take it. Well, guess what? You can. And it costs almost nothing. Next to nothing.

### Source 5 — A single, low dose niacinamide drops triglycerides by 75%

Georgi Dinkov · Article · Sep 20, 2022 · https://haidut.me/?p=1978

> Among the vitamin B3 analogs, niacin is perhaps the most famous for its ability to both raise “good” cholesterol (HDL) and also lower triglycerides. However, niacinamide, nicotinamide riboside (NR) and nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) are all effective precursors to NAD (as niacin is) and raising NAD levels is known to inhibit lipolysis and as such should result in lowering of blood lipids. Yet, mainstream medicine continues to claim that only the flush-inducing niacin has those effects and that other vitamin B3 analogs are ineffective in beneficially modifying these biomarkers of CVD. In reality, niacin has never been shown to beneficially affect the course of CVD in humans, and this is probably due to its pro-inflammatory effects of raising histamine and serotonin (hence the flush). In contrast, several studies have demonstrated improved biomarkers of CVD as a result of niacinamide and, more recently, NR (studies sponsored by the NR peddler ChromaDex), but so far a convincing mechanism of action for the beneficial effects of those vitamin B3 analogs has not been proposed. The study below is probably the first to confirm the anti-lipolysis effects of the non-flush vitamin B3 analogs in humans, which would be a plausible mechanism of action for the non-flush vitamin B3 analogs in CVD. It demonstrates that a single administration of just 300mg NMN resulted in a whopping 75%+ drop in triglycerides in the human volunteers, that drop was maintained for at least 3 hours, and the triglyceride levels were still below baseline at 5 hours post-administration (see Figure 2 in the link below).
>
> [references]

### Source 6 — Ask the Herb Doctor: Progesterone vs Estrogen, Listener Questions (Part 2)

Ray Peat · Interview · May 18, 2018

> ## B-Vitamins: Dosage and Safety
>
> **Caller:** What about B3?
>
> **Ray Peat:** It is important to get the **niacinamide** form. Niacin releases inflammatory mediators. Niacinamide is safe up to at least a couple hundred milligrams. I've seen people with terminal brain diseases cure themselves taking just 150 or 200 mg of niacinamide per day.
>
> **Caller:** What about Biotin (B7)? I hear it regulates glucose, but is there a negative?
>
> **Ray Peat:** I've seen good results from big doses, but 50 years ago animal studies showed moderate overdose could cause liver cancer. I've always been leery about it. I would stick to around 1 milligram of biotin per day.
>
> **Caller:** And folic acid? I read you think it's dangerous.
>
> **Ray Peat:** I think it's safe at a dose of around 1 mg, maybe as high as 5 mg. However, you have to be cautious with Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) and folic acid. Something in the synthetic process makes a lot of people get migraine headaches, hemorrhoids, and bowel inflammation from them. They are yellow molecules, and I think their sensitivity to light and oxidation makes the pure chemical allergenic for many people.

### Source 7 — Niacinamide (vitamin B3) may cure HIV (human study)

Georgi Dinkov · Article · Jul 10, 2020 · https://haidut.me/?p=1119

> The title of the post sounds a bit too good to be true but this is basically what the case study claims and is also reported by the mouthpiece of Big Pharma – the Science Magazine. So, little by little the truth comes out, which is always good news. The only bad news in this case is that the patient was treated not only with niacinamide but also with anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs. This is an insidious but common trick used by Big Pharma when it wants to conceal the true cure and instead claim that it was the “unique, proprietary, patented combination” of a drug cocktail that was the silver bullet. Since monotherapy with niacinamide is considered unethical and will likely never be done (at least officially) Big Pharma gets to both claim to have found an HIV cure and continue to sell its toxic and expensive drugs. However, we do have prior evidence from more than 20 years ago that aspirin and niacinamide monotherapies worked quite well even though they were never ran to completion (for obvious political reasons). Subsequent in-vitro work confirmed viable mechanisms of action, but of course none of that got any traction…until now.
>
> The one HIV patient who got both ARV and niacinamide for 48 weeks has now been HIV-free for more than 5 years while the other four patients in the study who got only ARV therapy had their HIV return. To me, this strongly suggests it was niacinamide that cured the infection. Even more interestingly, while being on the B3 + ARV therapy, that patient was the only one who tested positive a few times during the treatment period. I think this is a good indication that niacinamide is actually somehow forcing the infected cells (especially in lymphatic system and gut) to “shed” their viral load and over time the organism becomes truly HIV-free. The study authors also think this is a plausible explanation. And of course, the million dollar question – what was the curative dose of niacinamide? A (relatively) puny 500mg twice a day! At that dose niacinamide is not really known to have any serious side effects and even Wikipedia admits doses of up to 3g daily are likely safe for most people.

### Source 8 — Niacinamide increases aerobic capacity, muscle endurance in humans

Georgi Dinkov · Article · Jul 28, 2021 · https://haidut.me/?p=1586

> There has been a steady increase in human studies with vitamin B3 analogs over the last 3-5 years. Most of that human research is sponsored by the company ChromaDex, which sells a proprietary formulation of nicotinamide riboside (NR), despite its own studies demonstrating that niacinamide / nicotinamide (NAM) is just as effective at raising NAD/NADH ratio and as such ameliorating a host of pathologies. Due to the largely positive results in such human trials, rival companies have started to sponsor trials with other B3 analogs such as nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) despite, again, human studies demonstrating that NAM and NMN also work equally well. The good news is that by doing such human studies, having demonstrated the equivalence of NAM / NR / NMN, those companies are indirectly building a case for the usage of NAM, considering its much lower price, worldwide availability, and lack of patents and other legal restrictions on its usage. The study below is another such example. It demonstrated that in doses of 600mg-1,200mg daily taken for 6 weeks NMN (and, as such, NAM) increases oxygen uptake and power output. Also, the VO2-max almost doubled in the 1,200mg group compared to placebo and the effect was dose-dependent across all three intervention groups, yet somehow that change did not reach statistical significance. Interestingly, only the medium dose (600mg daily) improved the single leg stance results, which matches with other recent human studies demonstrating little additional benefit for issues like infertility, or endotoxin protection from doses above 500mg daily. That being said, higher doses of NAM do have another benefit related to direct reduction in fatty acid oxidation due to SIRT inhibition, but such effects are relevant mostly for severe conditions such as ischemic heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer, etc. For general improvement of health, it seems that 500mg NAM is probably the sweet spot for most people.
>
> [references]

### Source 9 — Vitamin B3 may treat “incurable” muscle disease

Georgi Dinkov · Article · Jun 6, 2020 · https://haidut.me/?p=1108

> This protocol can be further improved by using an even lower dose niacinamide (say 200mg-300mg daily) in combination with a little bit of methylene blue (MB) at a dose of 1mg-2mg daily. Why try to use lower doses of vitamin B3? Well, as the study found, doses of vitamin B3 in the 750mg – 1,000mg range may cause a tendency for anemia and this is definitely something to be avoided. High doses niacinamide have also been shown to potentially have this side effect. Considering the effectiveness of MB in oxidizing NADH back to NAD, this provides us with an alternative to achieve the same (or even higher) elevations of NAD while avoiding the risks of higher dose vitamin B3. The only “drawback” of this study is that it raises serious questions about the claims and viability of companies like ChromaDex. That company promotes the expensive NAD precursor nicotinamide riboside (NR), despite ChromDex’ own studies showing niacinamide to be just as effective as NR when used at the same doses. According to the study below, plain niacin can also elevate blood NAD levels more than 8-fold with a daily dose that is only a fraction of the NR dose planned for upcoming human trials. I really like studies with such “drawbacks” 🙂
>
> [references]

### Source 10 — #88: Escalation to World War 3? | Low-Carb Diets | Thyroid, Stress, and Digestive Disease with Georgi Dinkov

Georgi Dinkov · Interview · Oct 3, 2022 · https://open.spotify.com/episode/24XtyoHpDqxVzgCgRnLhP4

> **Georgi Dinkov:** Anyways, so this study is about an effect that was thought that only niacin could cause, could bring about. And most doctors that you talk to about vitamin B3, if they've even heard of it, they'll tell you niacin is the one you want to take because niacin is the one that raises your HDL and lowers your triglycerides. And there is a special receptor, which I thought I mentioned here. I don't know why it's not there. But if you type in Google niacin lipolysis receptor... You will get like a Wikipedia page or at least studies that mention it. And basically, the theory is that the hypothesis is that – yeah, that's the one, the first link. Mass inmediates, hypothesis inmediates. Let me see. This one? Oh, yeah. Scroll down. Scroll down. It says inhibits lipolysis. Yeah. So HM74A adipocytes effectively mediate inhibition of lipolysis by niacin. Anyways, there's a specific receptor. Medicine claims that it's only niacin-activated receptor. That study talks about it. But there are other studies as well. And then no other vitamin B3 analog. such as niacinamide, nicotinamide riboside, or nicotinamide mononucleotide, are capable of lower intraglycerides because none of those other analogs are actually activating that receptor. And I don't know if you noticed, but on the forum, there were some back and forth saying that basically people were saying, well, I cannot find any studies that niacinamide lowers lipolysis, right? Because if you look at the studies, I don't think there are any direct ones with niacinamide lowering lipolysis. Now, this study showed that nicotinamide mononucleotide, which is a direct metabolite of nicotinamide slash niacinamide, just a dosage of 300 milligrams produced a 75% drop in triglycerides. Now, triglycerides can come either from the food, right? When the fatty acids in the food get it, they're either already in the triglyceride, but they get broken down, they get re-esterified, right?

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