My antiaging obsession continues. NAD+ seems to be an up and coming player in this world. I have other blogs on it HERE. Mice studies show good effects. The question is what do we do for humans. Oral? How much? IV? What is the unintended consequence? How can we measure effectiveness?
NAD+ is unstable and may not be bioavailable. How is it given?
- ORAL. This is a systemic application. It gives whole body improvement and is thought to improve healthspan, energy, cognition, well being, and sleep. You see “NAD” given with precursors like nicotinamide, nicotinamide with riboside, or nicotinaminde monomucleotide. These are precursors to NAD+, and when you take them, they are thought to convert to NAD+ in the cell. ISSUES: Not addressing the reason for the decline in NAD+. Also dosing? is one better? how much is bioavailable?
- IV. This is systemic. Possible role pre procedures to prime cells for optimal healing after cosmetic treatments. This is putting it directly into you, so you don’t need to worry about absorption. But I read a study HERE which showed that there was no plasma rise in NAD+ levels for a NAD+ infusion for 2 hours. When I go on PubMed to try to find more IV NAD+ human studies, I can’t find them.
- TOPICAL. This is putting it on the skin after a problem to help heal/ post surgery
- TOPICAL INJECTION. Think microneedling.
My thoughts?
This is an exploding area of plastic surgery and antiaging. There are lots of mice and rat studies. Not so much for humans yet. The questions above still stand.
- What is the best route?
- What form is best processed/utilized?
- What is the underbelly (unintended side effects/consequences)
- How often?
- How do we document effectiveness?
It is super exciting. I love these whole body fixes, as they aren’t just for making your skin look pretty. They are for improving heart, brain, muscles. But more isn’t always better. The idea of priming the bod before doing a surgery so you heal better is also exciting. There are studies starting to emerge looking at plasma levels and urinary levels (is it in the bloodstream? what is the concentration? are you just peeing it out?)
I have seen many of the mice studies. The results are amazing. The one which will stick with me is these old decrepit mice with wrinkles and thinning hair, which when mitochondrial health was restored, looked vibrant with hair like Fabio.
So I know there is *something* here.