Niacin Headache

stepdaughter took niacin (500 mg) and had a severe reaction, allergic to red, itchy, swollen tongue, swollen throat, severe headaches. what happened?

500mg dose is very high, why did she do? Very large doses of niacin have been shown to have adverse effects on the liver, these effects are reversible when supplementation is stopped.
Usually, an adverse reaction to the niacin flush is a temporary that makes you turn red and may be slightly irritating, so that sounds like what your daughter had.
500 mg per day is a therapeutic dose of certain conditions, but should be taken under professional supervision. If she has a medical condition that requires supplementation B3, it must be supported by a doctor anyway.
If she does not want to see a doctor, just tell him to reduce the dosage. 100-200 mg daily may be acceptable. If not, her body will tell him soon, as she has already found.

severe lack of niacin causes the deficiency disease pellagra, which impaired metabolism slows slightly decreases cold tolerance. Extremely high doses of niacin can cause niacin maculopathy, a thickening of the macula and the retina causing blurred vision and blindness. [3] The recommended daily intake of niacin is 2-12 mg per day for children, 14 mg per day for women, 16 mg per day for men and 18 mg per day for pregnant or nursing. [4] Over 20 mg per day can cause hot flushes lasting 15-30 minutes in duration.
The liver can synthesize niacin from tryptophan, an essential amino acid (see below), but the synthesis is extremely slow, 60 mg of tryptophan are required to make one milligram of niacin. [Citation needed deficit] Niacin Food tends to occur only in areas where people eat corn, the only grain low in niacin, as a staple food, and do not use lime during maize (corn) production of flour meal /. Alkali lime releases the tryptophan from the corn so it can be absorbed in the intestine and converted to niacin. [5]


[Edit] Biosynthesis
The 5-membered heterocyclic aromatic essential amino acid, tryptophan, is cleaved and rearranged with the alpha amino group of tryptophan in the six-membered aromatic heterocycle of niacin by the following reaction:


Biosynthesis: Tryptophan a†’ a†’ niacin kynurenine


[Edit] Food Sources
Animal products: Fruits and Vegetables: Seeds: Mushrooms:
liver, heart and kidneys
chicken
fish: tuna, salmon
milk
eggs
leafy
broccoli
tomatoes
carrots
dates
sweet
asparagus
Lawyers
nuts
whole grains
legumes
saltbush seed
mushrooms
Yeast



[Edit] Other Uses
Niacin plays an important role in the production of various sex and stress hormones, particularly those made by the adrenal glands. It also plays a role in eliminating toxic and harmful chemicals from the body. [5] There is evidence that doses of 500-1000 mg may end a bad trip on LSD, a synthetic indole, or enhance the experience of MDMA. [Edit]

Niacin, when taken in high doses, increases the level of high density lipoprotein (HDL) or "good" cholesterol in the blood, and is sometimes prescribed for patients with low HDL and high risk of heart attack [6 ]. Niacin (but not niacinamide) is also used in the treatment of hyperlipidemia because it reduces very low density lipoprotein (VLDL), a precursor of low density lipoprotein (LDL) or "bad" cholesterol secretion by the liver and inhibits the synthesis of cholesterol [7].

Niacin itself is not toxic, but the chemicals are converted by niacin toxic to the skin and liver in overdose, and high doses of niacin should be achieved with a gradual increase. Studies in laboratory animals have demo.