Beauty  

Niacinamide: What Does It Do For You?

By Oreoritse Tariemi

20 June 2021   |   1:00 pm

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The skincare world is always evolving and once in a while, there comes a new “it” ingredient that everyone can’t stop raving about. This time around it is Niacinamide. This amazing ingredient stands alongside other notable ingredients like vitamin C and retinol. So you can be certain it’s something your skin would love. Niacinamide is…

Niacinamide is great for treating acne | Image: Getty

The skincare world is always evolving and once in a while, there comes a new “it” ingredient that everyone can’t stop raving about.

This time around it is Niacinamide. This amazing ingredient stands alongside other notable ingredients like vitamin C and retinol. So you can be certain it’s something your skin would love.

Niacinamide is also known as Vitamin B3. It’s a water-soluble vitamin that serves as one of the major multi-purpose vitamins.

One of the major works of niacinamide is brightening of the skin and it takes about 4 weeks for noticeable improvement. This vitamin does it like no other, especially when mixed with alpha arbutin.

Vitamin B3 | Image: Royalty

Another reason why this vitamin is loved by almost everyone is its effective action towards protecting your skin barriers. It works towards reducing any damage on your skin which may have been caused due to environment or damaged skincare product while repairing your skin barrier (which is your skin first line of defence).

This vitamin works together with various natural substances in your skin to ensure your skin looks vibrant, young and full of life. It also helps in minimising large pores, improving skin tone, wrinkles, and fine lines.

It has also been observed that niacinamide is very effective in reducing oil production in the skin making it a killer secret weapon for oily skin.

Benefits Of Niacinamide
● It helps reduce inflammation: Niacinamide helps reduce inflammation this is why it can also be considered as an effective treatment when dealing with acne.
● It treats hyperpigmentation: Niacinamide helps increase collagen production and this, in turn, helps in lightening dark spots. Although it takes about 4 weeks to notice an improvement.
● It improves skin texture: Niacinamide helps reduce fine line, wrinkles and pores, hence improving the skin texture.
● It protects skin from environmental damage: Niacinamide works along with skin cells to boost and improve your skin while protecting it from environmental damages such as sunlight, and pollution.
● It helps your skin grow a ceramide barrier: Niacinamide helps your skin grow a ceramide barrier which is very effective in the retention of moisture. This helps the skin in dealing with eczema and also prevents overproduction of oily as the skin is well moisturised.

Are Niacinamide and Niacin the same thing?
Do not mistake Niacinamide for Niacin.
Niacinamide is a form of Vitamin B3 (which is Niacin). Niacin is mainly taken into the body through the mouth as supplements or as one of the benefits obtained from various foods such as milk, egg, cereal, yeast, meat, fish, green vegetables.

Although when you have an excessive amount of Niacin in your body, it can turn to Niacinamide. There can also be side effects from the intake of Niacin.

How To Use Niacinamide
There are various dietary sources of Niacinamide that you can take. However, this ingredient works just fine when it’s applied topically. It is effective in concentrations between the range of 2% – 5% but there are various topical products that have as high as 10% concentration of Niacinamide.

When does Niacinamide start to work?
Various people notice the effects of Niacinamide from the very first week of usage but it can take as long as four weeks for any improvement to be noticed. This depends majorly on the type of skin it’s being used on, how often it’s being used and the ingredients used alongside.

Should I use Niacinamide in the morning or night?
Unlike other skin ingredients that work better at night. Niacinamide is just as effective in the daytime as it is at night. Depending on your skin, it’s even advisable that you use Niacinamide twice as a day for maximum effect.

Can I use Niacinamide with retinol?
Niacinamide can be used side by side with Retinol. It’s very effective in reducing the side effects that come from using Retinol. Not only retinol, you can use Niacinamide with various active ingredients such as AHA’s and BHA’s also Vitamin C, Alpha arbutin, Zinc, Hyaluronic acid and so on.

Side Effects of Niacinamide
Niacinamide is generally considered safe to use for all skin types. Although those with existing allergic reactions may suffer allergies from usage. It is recommended to perform a patch test before using.

Conclusion
Niacinamide is definitely a must get for skincare lovers. While there are a lot of benefits that arrive with the usage of Niacinamide, patience is important, as this is not a fast working ingredient.