The Niacin Heart Attack Study: A Primer on Scientific Hysteria

Episode Summary:
Does Niacin really increase your risk of a heart attack? In this episode, Aimee goes all out breaking apart the recent study on niacin and heart attack risk. She critiques the study's methodology and highlights the misleading conclusions drawn by the authors. She emphasizes the importance of considering the study population, which consisted of individuals with existing cardiovascular disease, and the lack of examination of niacin intake in the participants. Aimee also questions the researchers' failure to address other factors that could contribute to elevated levels of niacin metabolites, such as impaired metabolic function. She concludes that the study's suggestions to eliminate niacin fortification are unwarranted and irresponsible. In this episode, Aimee summarizes the pros and cons of this research so you can decide whether you should be concerned.

Key Takeaways:

• The study suggesting that niacin may increase the risk of heart disease is based on flawed methodology and misleading conclusions.
• Niacin has long been used and respected as a lipid-lowering agent, and its efficacy is still a topic of debate in comparison to statins.
• The study population consisted of individuals with existing cardiovascular disease, which is an important factor to consider when interpreting the results.
• The researchers failed to examine the niacin intake of the participants, making it unclear whether supplemental niacin was a contributing factor.
• Other factors, such as impaired metabolic function, could lead to elevated levels of niacin metabolites and should have been considered in the study.

Notable Quotes:

• "To point a finger at niacin fortification is irresponsible and unwarranted at this stage." - Aimee
• "These researchers did not consider the impact that an impaired metabolic system might have on cellular stress and production of these metabolites." - Aimee
• "This paper is a fantastic example of research authors spinning the data and the media taking it even further to create clickbait." - Aimee

Resources:

Photography by: Dai Ross Photography
Podcast Cover Art: Lilly Kate Creative
Work with Aimee
Ferrell, M., Wang, Z., Anderson, J.T. et al. A terminal metabolite of niacin promotes vascular inflammation and contributes to cardiovascular disease risk. Nat Med 30, 424–434 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02793-8

Additional Research citations and resources are at  Blasphemous Nutrition on Substack

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