Human Nutrition 3(3+0)

Lesson 3 : Recommended Dietary Allowances for Nutrients

Nicotinic acid

Nicotinic acid and nicotinamide are generally termed as niacin. Niacin, however, has a special relationship with the essential amino acid tryptophan in that it can act as a precursor of the vitamin in mammalian tissues. Both energy and protein intakes regulate the efficiency of conversion of tryptophan to niacin and it is generally accepted that in well nourished normal individuals 60 mg of tryptophan should be considered as equivalent to 1 mg of niacin. The allowances (mg/day) for various age groups are as follows:

Table 9: RDA for Nicotinic acid

Group	Nicotinic acid ( mg/d)
Adult man Sedentary work Moderate work Heavy work Adult woman Sedentary work Moderate work Heavy work	16 18 21 12 14 16
Pregnant woman Lactating woman	+2 +3
Infants: 0 -6 months 6- 12 months	710 ?g/kg 650?g/kg
Children: 1-3 years 4- 6 years 7-9 years	8 11 13
Adolescents: 10-12 years Boys Girls 13-15 years Boys Girls 16-18 years Boys Girls	15 13 16 14 17 14

Ref: Nutrition Expert group, ICMR(2010)