NAD+ Boosters & NR Benefits: Energy, Memory & Health Research Guide

NAD+ boosters, small molecules that raise NAD+ levels, are like the secret sauce for energy in your cells. Think of your cells as little power plants called mitochondria. These mitochondria do a bunch of stuff, including making ATP, which is like their energy currency.

Increases Cellular Energy

Now, for these mitochondria to do their job and make ATP, they need a special helper called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+).

And guess what? NR is the superhero that transforms into NAD+ inside your cells, giving them that extra boost of energy. It's like the magic wand for your cellular powerhouses to replenish NAD+ to youthful levels [1].

Improves Learning and Memory

In Alzheimer's disease, there's this troublemaker called Amyloid-β (Aβ) oligomers that harm the brain. The brain's energy and oxidative stress play a role in Alzheimer's.

Now, here comes NAD boosters to the rescue! NR boosts NAD+ and ATP levels, preventing the harmful buildup of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the brain [2].

Various studies hint that NAD boosters might enhance memory in rats with Alzheimer's by keeping neurons happy, boosting energy, and reducing harmful ROS [3].

Facilitates Blood Flow and Heart Health

NAD+ boosters are also known to protect against a condition called ischemia, where parts of the body don't get enough blood.

Usually, our body defends itself with something called ischemic preconditioning (IPC), which involves a superhero enzyme called SIRT1 [4].

Now, NR activates SIRT1, acting like IPC and saving the heart from problems caused by lack of blood flow. So, NR is like a defender for your heart.

Helps Lose Body Weight

NR works perfectly against obesity-related issues. When given to mice, it makes their organs more sensitive to insulin, helps produce a good hormone called adiponectin [5], and controls the production of fat mass [6]. Imagine it as a magic water – mice that drank it didn't gain as much weight as they aged.

As we grow older, our organs might not have enough NAD+ and NAMPT. NR steps in, improving how our bodies handle sugar and fats, making it a worthy option for tackling Type 2 Diabetes linked to aging and diet.

Protects Retina

Imagine this: photoreceptors, the cells that detect light, may unfortunately die in certain eye conditions. But this is exactly where NR comes and shines!

When we lose a key enzyme called NAMPT (nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase), which is crucial for making something called NAD+ (important for our eyes), it leads to vision problems [7].

Now, here's the best part: by introducing NR, we can actually bring back clear vision in these cases. It's like giving a boost to your eyes and make them see clearly again!

Other Benefits

Sleep, physical activity, nervous system-related, diabetes, telomere.

Key Component(s)

Nicotinamide riboside chloride (NRC)

Other Components

Vegetable cellulose (capsule)

Recommended Usage

Take 2 capsules per day, 1 to 2 times daily, with or without meals.

Can be taken sublingually if desired by opening the capsules and pouring pure contents under the tongue.

To achieve an energy boost, take 3-4 capsules together.

Each bottle contains 60 capsules of 125 mg each.

Clinical trials

68 clinical studies (2024 January)

Caution

Nicotinamide riboside is safe with few — if any — side effects. Taking between 1000-2000 mg on a daily basis do not result in any adverse effects in human trials. However, higher doses can result in nausea, fatigue, headaches, diarrhoea, stomach discomfort, and indigestion

[1] Alegre, G. F. S., & Pastore, G. M. (2023). NAD+ Precursors Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) and Nicotinamide Riboside (NR): Potential Dietary Contribution to Health. Current Nutrition Reports, 12(3), 445–464. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13668-023-00475-y