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Niacin or vitamin B3 is a key nutrient for our health, mostly because our body converts it into NAD or nicotinamid adenine dinucleotide, an essential molecule for all living organisms. In fact, NAD is one of the most abundant molecules in our body and we use it for about 400 enzymatic reactions, including turning our food into ATP, which is energy for our cells.

NAD is so important for us, that a niacin deficiency can result in pellagra, with symptoms like dermatitis, dementia, diarrhea, and, eventually, death. Fortunately, we can find niacin in many plant-based and animal-based foods.

There are two forms of niacin in our food: nicotinic acid, more prevalent in plant-based foods, and nicotinamide, more prevalent in animal-based foods. These two are totally different substances, that are categorized as vitamin B3 because they are both NAD precursors that could cure pellagra. However, nicotinic acid does something else for our body that nicotinamide can’t do: it lowers our LDL cholesterol and lipoprotein levels. Nicotinamide, on the other hand, can help protect our skin from sun damage, including skin cancer. But at much higher rates than what we find in food, so topical treatments and oral supplements are needed.

Scroll down to try our personalized niacin calculator, to learn about natural plant-based sources, and to discover more fascinating facts.

Top Whole-Food, Plant-Based Sources

Hover over each food below to see how much vitamin B3 or niacin you can get with one serving. Click on each food’s picture to visit its interactive page with a personalized calculator of all the nutrition you can get from one serving, more information about how it supports our body, tips to choose and prepare it, interesting facts, and more!

Peanuts

Peanuts

1/4 cup = 28% DV

Link
Brown Rice

Brown Rice

1 cup cooked = 31% DV

Link
Portabella Mushrooms

Portabella Mushrooms

1 cup cooked = 47% DV

Link
Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes

1 cup cooked = 23% DV

Link
Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower Seeds

1/4 c dried kernels = 18% DV

Link
White Mushrooms

White Mushrooms

1 c cooked = 2.71 mg

Link
Whole Wheat

Whole Wheat

2 slices of bread = 20% DV

Link

Vitamin B3 Niacin Personalized Calculator

See how much vitamin B3 or niacin you and your family members need, according to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.

Terminology:

  • Daily Value (DV): The recommended amount of nutrients to consume each day for individuals who are 4 years old or older.
  • Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA): The recommended amount of nutrients to consume each day according to the individual’s age, gender, and whether a woman is pregnant or breastfeeding.
  • Upper Intake Level (UL): The highest amount of nutrient intake that will not pose adverse health effects on most individuals.

Important Things to Know

Hover over each of the interesting facts below to flip the tiles and learn more details.

Check out the interesting facts below! Tap on the red triangles to flip the tiles and learn more details.

Is NAD and its precursor, niacin, the key to the fountain of youth?

There are theories that claim that with time, our NAD levels decline, and that this decline is one of the main reasons we age. So, the belief is that by restoring our NAD levels we may be able to delay aging or even reverse age-related issues. While some tests on mice and other animals may seem promising, studies have not been successful in humans yet. NAD is too unstable to use as a direct supplement, and high supplementation of niacin may result in side effects that go from flushing with nicotinic acid to the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease with nicotinamide.

Topical nicotinamide helps reduce skin sun spots, wrinkles and more.

Excessive sun exposure leads to the oxidation of sugars and proteins in our skin that result in yellow-brown pigments. Nicotinamide is the precursor of strong antioxidants NADH and NADPH which can interrupt this oxidation as is proven in this study where a moisturizer with 5% niacinamide resulted in the reduction of yellowing, wrinkling, red blotchiness, and hyperpigmentated spots.

500 mg nicotinamide supplements may help reduce skin cancer.

Just as topical nicotinamide can protect the skin from sun damage, 500 mg of oral supplementation once or twice a day has proven to reduce precancerous actinic keratoses after two months. When taken twice a day for a year, a study showed 25% less cancer than placebo group. Though the dosage is high, people with normal kidney function can eliminate any excess through urine, so it is considered safe. Learn more.

Always talk to your doctor before taking any supplements to address a health concern.

Nicotinic acid was the staple cholesterol treatment in the 50s.

Nicotinic acid, which is more prevalent in plant-based foods, was the key treatment in the 50s for lowering LDL cholesterol levels and lipoproteins, before statins became popular.

A fifteen-year follow-up study in 1986 found that mortality in patients taking nicotinic acid to lower their cholesterol was 11% lower than the placebo group. The problem is that high doses of nicotinic acid have very uncomfortable side effects: intense red flushing and a prickly heat sensation. Future studies using a slow-release formulation to avoid these side effects did not render the same results.

Corn tortillas, not corn, are a fantastic source of vitamin B3.

Corn is rich in niacin, but it is bound to carbohydrates that make it hard for us to absorb. When corn is treated with calcium hydroxide to make tortillas, the niacin becomes easier to absorb.

Our body converts tryptophan into nicotinamide and NAD.

Our body converts some of the protein amino acid, Tryptophan, into Niacin. 60 mg of Tryptophan turn into 1 mg of nicotinamide. Plus, our body can make NAD straight from tryptophan, but it takes more steps than converting it from niacin.

Is NAD and its precursor, niacin, the key to the fountain of youth?

There are theories that claim that with time, our NAD levels decline, and that this decline is one of the main reasons we age. So, the belief is that by restoring our NAD levels we may be able to delay aging or even reverse age-related issues. While some tests on mice and other animals may seem promising, studies have not been successful in humans yet. NAD is too unstable to use as a direct supplement, and high supplementation of niacin may result in side effects that go from flushing with nicotinic acid to the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease with nicotinamide.

Topical nicotinamide helps reduce skin sun spots, wrinkles and more.

Excessive sun exposure leads to the oxidation of sugars and proteins in our skin that result in yellow-brown pigments. Nicotinamide is the precursor of strong antioxidants NADH and NADPH which can interrupt this oxidation as is proven in this study where a moisturizer with 5% niacinamide resulted in the reduction of yellowing, wrinkling, red blotchiness, and hyperpigmentated spots.

500 mg nicotinamide supplements may help reduce skin cancer.

Just as topical nicotinamide can protect the skin from sun damage, 500 mg of oral supplementation once or twice a day has proven to reduce precancerous actinic keratoses after two months. When taken twice a day for a year, a study showed 25% less cancer than placebo group. Though the dosage is high, people with normal kidney function can eliminate any excess through urine, so it is considered safe. Learn more.

Always talk to your doctor before taking any supplements to address a health concern.

Nicotinic acid was the staple cholesterol treatment in the 50s.

Nicotinic acid, which is more prevalent in plant-based foods, was the key treatment in the 50s for lowering LDL cholesterol levels and lipoproteins, before statins became popular.

A fifteen-year follow-up study in 1986 found that mortality in patients taking nicotinic acid to lower their cholesterol was 11% lower than the placebo group. The problem is that high doses of nicotinic acid have very uncomfortable side effects: intense red flushing and a prickly heat sensation. Future studies using a slow-release formulation to avoid these side effects did not render the same results.

Corn tortillas, not corn, are a fantastic source of vitamin B3.

Corn is rich in niacin, but it is bound to carbohydrates that make it hard for us to absorb. When corn is treated with calcium hydroxide to make tortillas, the niacin becomes easier to absorb.

Our body converts tryptophan into nicotinamide and NAD.

Our body converts some of the protein amino acid, Tryptophan, into Niacin. 60 mg of Tryptophan turn into 1 mg of nicotinamide. Plus, our body can make NAD straight from tryptophan, but it takes more steps than converting it from niacin.

Comparison of Vitamin B3 (Niacin) Sources

You may be wondering about other potential sources of vitamin b3, such as supplements and meat. Below we make a quick and simple comparison between the three options.

Best source!
Plant-Based
87% of the niacin found in plant-foods is in the form of nicotinic acid, and only 13% is in the form of nicotinamide. A diet that includes a variety of whole-plant foods will be rich in niacin, as nicotinic acid, the niacin form that can lower LDL cholesterol levels (bad cholesterol).
Supplements
Regular supplementation is rarely needed because niacin is highly available in various foods.
Many multi-vitamins contain about 50 mg of niacin, which is higher than the ULs. The typical side-effect of nicotinic acid is flushing.
Niacin can be used to reduce cholesterol levels by 15-20%, cut triglycerides by 20-50%, and increase HDL cholesterol by 15-20%. Most people are treated with doses of 1,000 to 3,000 mg. It’s very important to do this under medical supervision to prevent toxicity that could lead to hypotension and liver damage.
500 mg of nicotinamide supplementation may help reduce skin cancer development.
Animal-based
There are many animal-based foods high in niacin, however, not all niacin is the same. 70% of the niacin intake from animal-based foods is nicotinamide, which does not lower cholesterol, and 30% is nicotinic acid, which does. Therefor, a diet rich in animal-based foods will be high in cholesterol and the niacin intake through this diet will not help lower it much.

References