Nutricion

INSIDE OUT I PERSONAL CARE

nifty
niacinamide
Uncover luminous skin with vitamin B3
By Kim Erickson

Whether t h e goal is fighting
wrinkles and age spots or eradicating
stubborn acne,cosmetic manufacturers
are turning to an old vitamin that
seems to be learning new skin care
tricks. Niacinamide, aka vitamin B3,
is popping up in moisturizers, eye
creams, antiaging serums, and
Cacne treatments, as scientists
D
:^ continue to unlock this nutrient's
= beauty benefits.
^
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What It Is
Niacinamide, also known as

o

^
s
^

nicotinamide, is the water-soluble
formof vitamin B3, which the body
uses to produce fatty adds, steroids.

and cholesterol. It's
also a critical
nutrient for normal
carbohydrate,
fat, and protein
metabolism.
In the body,niacinamide is
incorporated into
nicotinamide
adenine dinucleotide and nicotinamide adenine
dinucleotide
phosphate. These
two coenzymes are
used in a variety of
processes, such as
tissue respiration,fat metabolism,
and the breakdown
of glycogens,
carbohydrates that
play a role in
controlling blood
sugar levels. But it's niacinamide's
impact on skin that has everyone
talking.

What ItDoes
This versatile vitamin is no stranger to
dermatologists, who have known about
niacinamide's acne-fighting ability for
years. When 198 people with severe
acne were given a proprietary formulacontaining 750 mg of niacinamide,
79 percent experienced a significant
improvement in skin lesions after eight
weeks. In fact, niacinamide seemed to
work just as well as a popular antibiotic
toreduce acne.
While the study used an oral dose of

niacinamide, this nutrient also works
wonders when applied topically. A
clinical trial comparing topical niacinamide with an antibiotic gelfound that
the niacinamide reduced inflammation
equally well. Plus, the niacinamide
cream didn't promote the emergence of
drug-resistant bacteria—a drawback of
using antibiotics. Another way this...