Niacinamide, also called nicotinamide, is a form of vitamin B-3, an essential nutrient. A B-3 deficiency can lead to disorders of the skin, kidneys, and brain. Taking niacinamide can help prevent B-3 deficiency.
niacinamide
When used topically every day, niacinamide may have a positive impact on your overall skin health. The ingredient can help reduce inflammation and hyperpigmentation, smooth your overall skin texture, and brighten your skin.
In addition, niacinamide helps prevent premature signs of skin aging, including boosting collagen production to smooth wrinkles and reduce discolorations, says Nazarian. She recommends the ingredient for people with dry, sensitive, aging, or acne-prone skin.
When choosing a niacinamide product, Nazarian and Chen both suggest using a product that contains a concentration of no more than 5 percent niacinamide to minimize the risk of irritation. For most people, this amount should be tolerable; however, certain niacinamide serums contain as much as double that, so always read the label.
Nazarian advises that other great couplings for niacinamide are hyaluronic acid (both ingredients relieve dryness) and salicylic acid. Salicylic acid treats acne and keeps pores clear, while niacinamide may regulate oil production in skin and reduce inflammation.
Another study investigated the anti-aging effects of topical kinetin 0.03% in combination with niacinamide 4% versus niacinamide 4% alone in Asians. Amasino et al26 found that the combination of kinetin and niacinamide and niacinamide alone effectively improved many of the facial aging signs in Asians. This combination of ingredients reduced the number of hyperpigmented spots and red blotchiness as well as increased SC hydration status with more persistence than the formula containing niacinamide alone. The authors believe that this indicates a decisive role for kinetin in the formulation and that kinetin plus niacinamide may be used as an adjunctive therapy for anti-aging purposes of the skin.27
Niacinamide, also known as nicotinamide, is the precursor of important cofactors niacinamide adenosine dinucleotide (NAD) and its phosphate derivative, niacinamide adenosine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP). These cofactors and their reduced forms (NADH and NADPH) serve as reduction-oxidation (redox) coenzymes in more than 40 cellular biochemical reactions. Thus, niacinamide has the potential to exert multiple effects on skin and is a promising anti-aging cosmeceutical ingredient.
Feldmann et al48 highlighted the possibilities for the topical application of niacinamide because they were able to prove sufficient percutaneous penetration into human skin.48,49 In addition, several other studies have used increased levels of NAD in skin cells after the topical application of niacinamide as evidence of percutaneous penetration.50
Studies have shown that niacinamide has the potential to act as an antioxidant, can improve epidermal barrier function, decrease skin hyperpigmentation, reduce fine lines and wrinkles, decrease redness/blotchiness, decrease skin yellowness (sallowness), and improve skin elasticity.51,52 The mechanisms by which niacinamide provides this array of skin benefits is not completely understood, but the role of niacinamide as a precursor to the NADP family of coenzymes may play a significant role in all of these improvements.50
Fine lines and wrinkles. Multiple mechanisms may be involved in the ability of niacinamide to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. The first to consider is that niacinamide may have the ability to increase dermal collagen and protein production. The development of wrinkles is a result of the decrease in epidermal cell layers and dermal components from a reduction in protein and collagen synthesis. Reduced protein synthesis is reflected in the levels of keratin, fillagrin, and involucrin in the skin. Keratin deficiency has an effect on the epidermal cell structure and its water-binding capacity. Fillagrin is an antecedent of natural moisturizing factor (NMF) and hence affects skin hydration. Involucrin is seen as significant for the cell envelope and structure of the SC. In summary, the effects of reduced collagen and protein synthesis are poor skin structure and reduced skin elasticity as well as a decrease in epidermal barrier function with a reduction in SC hydration. In studies on cell cultures, Oblong et al58 found that in aging cells it was possible to prove that niacinamide, as a precursor of NAD/NADP, stimulated collagen synthesis and the epidermal proteins keratin, fillagrin, and involucrin.51,58 In addition, another study was able to show niacinamide's ability to increase dermal matrix collagen production.66
The second mechanism that may be relevant to decreasing the appearance of wrinkles is the ability of niacinamide to reduce excess dermal glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). This is a controversial theory because both the elevation and depletion of dermal GAGs are associated with photodamaged or wrinkled skin.52,69 What is known is that the presence of GAGs is required for normal structure and function of the dermal matrix and increasing the levels of GAGs can increase the moisture content of skin. Testing has indicated that niacinamide reduces excess production of GAGs in old human dermal fibroblasts, thus supporting the potential involvement of this mechanism in reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.51,70 Given the above analysis and scientific data, it seems more likely that an increase in dermal proteins (including collagen) may play a bigger role in reducing fine lines and wrinkles than decreasing the level of GAGs.
Hyperpigmentation. Topical niacinamide may be effective in decreasing epidermal hyperpigmentation and reducing pigmented spots as we age.71 Hakozaki et al71 showed that the reduction of cutaneous pigmentation, surprisingly, was not due to the direct influence of niacinamide on melanin synthesis by melanocytes. Instead, they showed that niacinamide reduced melanosome transfer from melanocytes to surrounding keratinocytes in a co-culture system, although the specific mechanism remains unknown.71 This was supported by a study using 5% niacinamide moisturizer, which provided 35 to 68 percent inhibition of melanosome transfer from melanocytes to keratinocytes.71
Tanno et al56 showed a reduction in pigmentation as a result of niacinamide. Eighteen Japanese women with hyperpigmentation were treated on one side of the face with 5% niacinamide and on the other side with vehicle only. The pigmentation change was evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively using high-resolution digital images and subjective judgments. In both forms of evaluation, it was found that after eight weeks of treatment there was significant lightening of hyperpigmentation on the side treated with niacinamide when compared with the effect of the vehicle (p
In a separate study also reported by Tanno et al performed with 120 Japanese women, comparisons were made among a sun protection factor (SPF) 15 cream with and without 2% niacinamide and the relevant vehicle. As a result of niacinamide treatment, there was a lightening of the skin after four and six weeks, which was noted to be markedly better than the formula without niacinamide.56
It is theoreticized that niacinamide may improve the texture of skin by speeding up epidermal turnover hence functioning as a mild exfoliant.72 Using a multiple angle reflectance spectrophotometer in an in-vivo test of the back of the hand, Matts and Solenick73 established a beneficial effect for the topical application of niacinamide in smoothing the skin surface structure. This study demonstrates that the long-term application of 2.5% niacinamide can correct the skin surface damage that results from aging. These results were statistically significant compared with the influence of the vehicle alone (p
One of the best randomized, double-blind, split-face, placebo-controlled, clinical trials published on the anti-aging effects of topical niacinamide was done by Bissett et al.51 In this study, 50 white females with clinical signs of photodamage applied 5% niacinamide to half of the face and its vehicle control to the other half twice daily for 12 weeks. Analyses of the data revealed a variety of effects related to improvements in skin appearance for topical niacinamide including reductions in fine lines and wrinkles, hyperpigmented spots, red blotchiness, skin sallowness, and improvement in skin elasticity.51 Matts and Solenick later confirmed the results of Bissett et al with 5% and 2% niacinamide.59 The results also demonstrated that the anti-aging effects of niacinamide were dose dependent.
The above data demonstrates that topical nicotinic acid preparations can enhance epidermal differentiation and barrier function, suggesting that it may be effective in the treatment of photodamaged skin and other conditions (such as atopic dermatitis) with skin barrier impairments. However, it is hard to compare these results with the results presented above on niacinamide since not all of the same attributes were monitored (such as redness, yellowing, wrinkling, etc). Further investigation is needed to compare the efficacy of MN to niacinamide. Both niacinamide and nicotinic acid have significant numbers of published studies to answer all three major questions to date. However, there is more data available on the anti-aging effects and mechanisms of topical niacinamide.
By giving your body niacinamide, the theory is that it allows you to make more NAD+, John G. Zampella, MD, assistant professor in the Ronald O. Perelman department of dermatology at NYU Langone Health, tells SELF. NAD+ then fuels your cells to proliferate and also allows your body to absorb and neutralize more free radicals (unstable molecules that can damage cells).
Both Dr. Zampella and Laura Ferris, MD, PhD, associate professor in the department of dermatology at the University of Pittsburgh, told SELF they frequently suggest oral niacinamide to their patients with a high risk for non-melanoma skin cancers, and cited this study as the reason why. 2ff7e9595c
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