So I took 3g of Niacin and I still am not flushing. Help!

[Nightingale]

From the very beginning I was able to flush on niacin, starting at 200mg, then 350mg for a while.  Like I said, I just tried 3g of niacin because that is where I have gotten to in search for my lost flush.  I bought a pill crusher so I could take it powdered just to make sure.  I ate 2-3 hours ago.  Mild flush to be generous.  I've heard of people taking this much, but not anyone in the POIS community.

I have not been taking naicin all that much as I just found out how to get it to help my POIS symptoms.  I have tried fasting, and it helps, but I am still not getting the effect I once was (i'd say this latest attempt with 3g powdered niacin was 10% of what my flush needs to be to be effective).  I am using the same brand that was effective before.  I have been using it frequently to match my strong sex drive.  I wonder if my body is very quick to adjust to niacin flush?

I know niacin has benefits/interactions for people with high cholesterol.  But what about high triglycerides?  I'm 25 years old, but I have very high triglyceride levels as a side effect of a medication I have to be on.  Can that be contributing to my low affinity?

I was talking with a guy at my local GNC store who told me some people take lots more niacin at a time than I do (this was when I was getting a flush at 350-500mg).  I am looking to take more.

[Daveman]

From the very beginning I was able to flush on niacin, starting at 200mg, then 350mg for a while.  Like I said, I just tried 3g of niacin because that is where I have gotten to in search for my lost flush.  I bought a pill crusher so I could take it powdered just to make sure.  I ate 2-3 hours ago.  Mild flush to be generous.  I've heard of people taking this much, but not anyone in the POIS community.

I have not been taking naicin all that much as I just found out how to get it to help my POIS symptoms.  I have tried fasting, and it helps, but I am still not getting the effect I once was (i'd say this latest attempt with 3g powdered niacin was 10% of what my flush needs to be to be effective).  I am using the same brand that was effective before.  I have been using it frequently to match my strong sex drive.  I wonder if my body is very quick to adjust to niacin flush?

I know niacin has benefits/interactions for people with high cholesterol.  But what about high triglycerides?  I'm 25 years old, but I have very high triglyceride levels as a side effect of a medication I have to be on.  Can that be contributing to my low affinity?

I was talking with a guy at my local GNC store who told me some people take lots more niacin at a time than I do (this was when I was getting a flush at 350-500mg).  I am looking to take more.

Lately (the last three times) I've needed more. Usually and more or less regularly since I started I've only needed about 100mg unless I had eaten within 3 hours. But these last three times I've needed around 300mg. The last time I took it in the morning when for me it's usually the strongest, and I barely got a flush from 100mg. It still helps my POIS but not as much as when I get a good strong flush.

Because the fast also includes alcohol, I think that the amount you need must have something to do with liver "occupancy". IF that's the case, perhaps other medications can effect the strength of the flush. That is if the liver is busy, it can't handle the niacin. Just a guess. But I know that I have fasted and had nothing in the stomach but had taken a cocktail just before, and no flush.

I often take my night time blood-pressure medicine just before the niacin, but that doesn't seem to stop the flush.

I did notice that if the niacin is "stale" has been left out of the bottle by the bedside for instance, that it doesn't work nearly as well.

I have just started a high energy (mental) workload, and this change has has also involved more exercise than normal, changed eating habits, so all of that could be going into changing the metabolism... who knows.

I guess all we can do is try to isolate the differences to try to see what might have made the difference.

It's also possible that if you are having orgasms more than once per week, it might just be too much for the niacin and or the niacin taken that often might lose some of it's effect.

[b_jim]

I think it may be usefull to test niacin, cholesterol, hormones and other things.
No flush may suggest the niacin deficiency is real and then mast cells are not saturated.

[Observer]

I think my face will explode if i took 3 g of Niacin. so that it is very strange. You could try to take a hot beverage or spicy foods with the niacin to achieve the flush.

Or maybe if you are using it every day, you should rest for a few days. In one week, the flush is supposed to be very intense again with the same quantity- this works for myself.

And, as daveman says, try to not left the bottle open.

I do not know if your medications could be affecting the result, but this sounds strange for me.

Regards,

[Stef]

From the very beginning I was able to flush on niacin, starting at 200mg, then 350mg for a while.  Like I said, I just tried 3g of niacin because that is where I have gotten to in search for my lost flush.  I bought a pill crusher so I could take it powdered just to make sure.  I ate 2-3 hours ago.  Mild flush to be generous.  I've heard of people taking this much, but not anyone in the POIS community.

I have not been taking naicin all that much as I just found out how to get it to help my POIS symptoms.  I have tried fasting, and it helps, but I am still not getting the effect I once was (i'd say this latest attempt with 3g powdered niacin was 10% of what my flush needs to be to be effective).  I am using the same brand that was effective before.  I have been using it frequently to match my strong sex drive.  I wonder if my body is very quick to adjust to niacin flush?

I know niacin has benefits/interactions for people with high cholesterol.  But what about high triglycerides?  I'm 25 years old, but I have very high triglyceride levels as a side effect of a medication I have to be on.  Can that be contributing to my low affinity?

I was talking with a guy at my local GNC store who told me some people take lots more niacin at a time than I do (this was when I was getting a flush at 350-500mg).  I am looking to take more.

Hi Nightingale!

Re:  high triglycerides -- niacin is recommended by cardiologists specifically to lower triglyceride levels and LDL levels, not to improve cholesterol levels, ("Niaspan" -- a prescription, long-acting, minimal flush form is by prescription only, and I doubt that it would help with POIS -- it's slow release). It isn't the first-line drug that's recommended for elevated triglycerides, and is usually recommended to people who don't respond to prescription meds (statins) to decrease these levels. 

One of the men in my office -- 36 y/o -- had a very high triglyceride level (1500!!) but the rest of his lipid profile was normal. He is on meds for a neurological disorder, narcolepsy, and in his case it was most likely related to the combination of his meds, his particular metabolism, and his diet (triglycerides get elevated from ingesting too much sugary foods (including alcohol, fruit, white flour breads/cakes, and of course, plain old sugar). But certain meds also definitely cause these elevations, even with a great diet. He happens to be very slim -- but was eating a lot of sweetened yogurt -- a quart/day!!!

So, his primary care doc advised trying 500mgs of the OTC flush-type niacin (he says he likes the flush!!). His triglyceride levels are down to 500 now after at least three months of daily dosing -- and he still gets the flush. He takes it daily (in the evening) and has his liver enzymes monitored carefully, per his doc's recommendations.  Not taking it for POIS, however.

(I will ask him which brand he uses.)

If you're taking a tablet (not a capsule), perhaps crushing the tablet isn't the best way to absorb it in your case. Maybe taking the pill whole, with at least one cup (8oz) of water -- or even two cups -- on an empty stomach, would improve the absorption and produces the flush.

There are so many variables with medications/vitamins/supplements -- including each person's unique metabolism and other meds that are being taken.  This is why you  might benefit by talking this over with the doc who's prescribing the meds that are elevating the triglycerides.  He/she might suggest lowering the dose on some of those other meds on a temporary trial basis, for example -- that could make a difference. Or, he/she might recommend taking the niacin at a different time of day, away from the time that the other meds reach their peak level in your blood.

Of course, don't lower your other meds or change the times of dosages on your own!! Be upfront with your physician and get some input on this.

Nightingale, if the niacin worked so well for you, it will work again. so please pursue it, but with your doc's input.  Have a heart-to-heart with your doc. Taking higher and higher doses could be harmful -- so please don't do it without discussing it with your doc.

It could be that with POIS, for it to be effective it just can't be taken daily -- or very frequently.

Stef


 

[Stef]

Nightingale,

FYI, the man from my office is taking the GNC brand of niacin, 500mgs.  It's in tablet (not capsule) form.

Stef

[Nightingale]

Thanks Stef,

I will try taking the tablets whole with a good deal of water.  I am already on a low dose of the med causing my triglycerides to be high, and it is Seroquel, an anti-psychotic.  I realllly need to stay on that!  I have good fortune though: my father is a cardiologist.  He looked at my latest fasting lipid profile and noted Im not too much in danger (just over 200, non fasting was 450+).  He recommended I take fish oil daily, and that after 6 months it can reduce triglyceride levels by up to 50%.

I have a fair amount of stomach fat, gained from heavy amounts of Seroquel in my recent past.  I've lost 25 lbs in the past 6-8 months and I wonder if I continue if my flush will be stronger.

I did start using the naicin daily, as I wanted to sacrifice as little of my life style as I could.  Having depression can make it tough to abstain, and one POIS event for me starts a cycle that is hard to break.  I really hope that I can find a way to achieve the flush enough to keep up with my libido 

[Stef]

Hi again, Nightingale,

You know -- being a 25 y/o doesn't exactly help decrease the libido. As the mother of a 27 y/o son -- I can vouch for it -- testosterone rules -- seemingly forever!  You're 100% NORMAL in that department!!!!

I'm relieved to hear that your dad is a cardiologist and can weigh in on the niacin dose, the triglycerides, etc.

Also, it's good to hear that you were able to lower the Seroquel and drop 25 lbs -- that's a lot of weight!  Drugs like Seroquel are infamous for causing weight gain -- good for you!

It really may just be the sad reality that taking the niacin daily -- or very frequently -- renders it ineffective in POIS. No one really understands why or how it works for some with POIS, but it does seem that taking it every day makes it ineffective (for POIS).

Victor Kons probably has the most extensive experience with it -- perhaps he can provide some input on this issue.

The fact that it worked so well for you at first is a good omen that it could work again.  It may not be "The Treatment", but it can be a temporary treatment until a really good one comes along.

Depression is awful. It's such a  strength-sapper! 

Try to remember that you've got a ton of support here, and that your feeling better is almost as important to the men on this forum as it is to you!

If the niacin worked so well at first, it can work again.  It will probably take nerves of steel to exert some control for a few days at a stretch. I know that it's easier said than done, especially  when there's a major depression. But you probably can do it -- just to get out of this miserable POIS cycle.

Please post again when you feel up to it.  Rooting for you all the way!!

Stef

[Ccconfucius]

Thanks Stef,

I will try taking the tablets whole with a good deal of water.  I am already on a low dose of the med causing my triglycerides to be high, and it is Seroquel, an anti-psychotic.  I realllly need to stay on that!  I have good fortune though: my father is a cardiologist.  He looked at my latest fasting lipid profile and noted Im not too much in danger (just over 200, non fasting was 450+).  He recommended I take fish oil daily, and that after 6 months it can reduce triglyceride levels by up to 50%.

I have a fair amount of stomach fat, gained from heavy amounts of Seroquel in my recent past.  I've lost 25 lbs in the past 6-8 months and I wonder if I continue if my flush will be stronger.

I did start using the naicin daily, as I wanted to sacrifice as little of my life style as I could.  Having depression can make it tough to abstain, and one POIS event for me starts a cycle that is hard to break.  I really hope that I can find a way to achieve the flush enough to keep up with my libido 

you can switch to injections and reduce frequency so you dont get used to that. or try niancimide which worked for someone.

[victor.kons]

Hi again, Nightingale,

You know -- being a 25 y/o doesn't exactly help decrease the libido. As the mother of a 27 y/o son -- I can vouch for it -- testosterone rules -- seemingly forever!  You're 100% NORMAL in that department!!!!

I'm relieved to hear that your dad is a cardiologist and can weigh in on the niacin dose, the triglycerides, etc.

Also, it's good to hear that you were able to lower the Seroquel and drop 25 lbs -- that's a lot of weight!  Drugs like Seroquel are infamous for causing weight gain -- good for you!

It really may just be the sad reality that taking the niacin daily -- or very frequently -- renders it ineffective in POIS. No one really understands why or how it works for some with POIS, but it does seem that taking it every day makes it ineffective (for POIS).

Victor Kons probably has the most extensive experience with it -- perhaps he can provide some input on this issue.

I have started to take Niacin at February 6th, 2010, as anti-POIS measure. After that time I didn't stop using it and anti-POIS effect is always the same, I need not increase my dose. My rate of orgasms is 1-2 orgasmic days per week, where orgasms are going in the batch of 2-3 O's per day, so I have 5-6 O's a week usually. Approximately half of the time I use injection and half of the time I take Niacin in oral form. I'm using XN form of Niacin, because pure Niacin of the provider I used in my experiments published at this forum is currently not available in drug stores. The flush is sometimes stronger with the same doze and sometimes almost unnoticeable, but the dose and delay after taking and before O need not to be increased for me. The delay after injection should be at least 10 mins, and after taking oral form, depending on the time of the day and fasting should be at least between 20 minutes to 1 hour, the bigger the delay the less are the POIS symptoms.

Victor

[Nightingale]

Much appreciated.  I will be waiting a few days before I "O" to ensure that I do not have too much in my system at a time.  I will probably use 500mg and wait 1 hour before O.