Niacinamide sounds like something made in a beauty company’s chemistry lab, but it is a form of vitamin B3. On the other hand, what’s good about niacinamide? Unlike the rest: They can help with a wide range of skin problems, such as acne, hyperpigmentation, and signs of aging.
You might see niacinamide as a topical product or as a supplement and wonder which one to choose. We’ll explain the differences and any possible side effects below. You may have already bought a product with niacinamide from Sephora without knowing for sure what benefits it could have. You’re not the only one who doesn’t know what niacinamide is or what it does in your moisturizer. Here are some of the benefits of niacinamide and how to use it before you add it to your skin-care routine.
What does niacinamide do for your skin?
If niacinamide is involved in most of the important things cells do, it should cure anything. Well, no. If vitamins could improve every cellular process in our bodies, we wouldn’t need antibiotics or radiation therapy. Still, taking niacinamide by mouth or putting it on the skin may have some real benefits for skin health.
Avoid Skin Cancer:
If you ask a dermatologist what niacinamide does best, “preventing skin cancer” is likely to be the first thing they say. In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2015, researchers gave 500 mg of oral niacinamide or a placebo to 386 patients twice a day for a year. All the people who participated in the study had at least two non-melanoma skin cancers in the last five years, so they were all at high risk of getting another one. During the study, the group that got niacinamide had 23% fewer new cases of skin cancer.
This doesn’t mean that taking two niacinamide capsules daily will keep skin cancer away forever, as the study participants did. People who had had skin cancer before were the focus of the study, not people in general. And it doesn’t mention using niacinamide to help prevent melanoma skin cancers. The research suggests that it’s more helpful for preventing squamous cell carcinoma. 4 But if you’ve had more than one skin cancer that wasn’t melanoma, you should talk to your dermatologist about taking niacinamide by mouth.
Skin conditions that make the skin inflamed:
Niacinamide’s ability to stop inflammation makes it a good choice for treating skin conditions like acne that cause inflammation. A study published in 2013 in the International Journal of Dermatology found that using a topical preparation with 4% niacinamide twice a day for eight weeks helped moderate acne a lot.
Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy research from 2006 suggests that 2% niacinamide applied to the skin may also stop the skin from making oil, which could help some people with acne. Also, dermatologists we spoke with said that niacinamide is less likely to irritate the skin than other acne treatments like retinoids or salicylic acid.
Niacinamide supplements have been shown to reduce the inflammation caused by mild to moderate rosacea and acne, especially when antibiotics can’t be taken by mouth. There is also evidence that putting niacinamide on the skin can help repair the stratum corneum, the skin’s protective outer layer, which adds to its anti-inflammatory effects.
Pigmentation Issues:
There are few clinical studies on how ordinary niacinamide affects fine lines and wrinkles, so we only have a little proof that it slows down aging. There are some studies, though. In one study published in 2004 in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science, white women between the ages of 40 and 60 used a moisturizer with 5% niacinamide on one half of their face and a moisturizer with no active ingredients on the other half for 12 weeks. The results showed that the hyperpigmentation spots, fine lines, and wrinkles on the half of their faces that got niacinamide were much less noticeable than on the control side. Even though there isn’t any specific research on how well niacinamide works on melanin-rich skin to reduce sun damage and dark spots, it can stop melanin from being produced.
Another split-face study, done in 2011 and published in Dermatology Research and Practice, found that a topical 4% niacinamide treatment helped treat melasma in 27 people for eight weeks. 44% of patients who took niacinamide saw good-to-excellent results, and 55% of those who took 4% hydroquinone saw the same.
Conclusion
Niacinamide is a very effective ingredient that can be added to skincare products to make the user’s skin look and feel better. You will get the best results if you look for products with the right amount of niacinamide, use those products correctly, use them often, and think about mixing them with other active ingredients. The product can be found in select beauty stores and online shopping platforms in Pakistan, and it is priced affordably compared to other niacinamide serums on the market. It’s important to note that, as with any skincare product, individual results may vary, and it’s best to patch-test a small area before applying the product all over your face.
