Journal · Longevity
If longevity has a celebrity molecule, it is NAD+. Patients ask about it, wellness clinics offer it, and it sits at the heart of some of the most cited ageing research of the last twenty years. Here is what clinics need to know to talk about it credibly.
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is a coenzyme found in every living cell. It is essential for turning food into cellular energy in the mitochondria, and it is also used by enzymes involved in DNA repair and cellular stress responses, including the sirtuins and PARPs.
In short, NAD+ sits at the crossroads of energy, repair and resilience, three things that decline as we age.
Studies in animals and human tissue have found that NAD+ levels tend to fall with age, possibly because of increased consumption by repair enzymes and inflammatory processes. Researchers including David Sinclair have argued that restoring NAD+ could support healthier ageing, and in mice, raising NAD+ has improved several markers of age-related decline.
This is where honesty builds trust. Human trials have shown that NR and NMN can raise blood NAD+ levels and are generally well tolerated in the short term. Evidence that this translates into meaningful clinical benefits, such as longer life, better metabolic health or visibly younger skin, is still limited and mixed. Large, long-term trials are needed.
NAD+ is a compelling hypothesis with strong biology behind it. It is not yet a proven anti-ageing treatment, and patients respect clinicians who say so.
For aesthetic clinics, NAD+ offers a bridge between how patients look and how they feel. Patients interested in NAD+ are often already thinking long-term, making them ideal candidates for regenerative skin programmes using polynucleotides, skin boosters and biostimulators.
Explore our NAD+ & cellular energy range, including NAD Medica and Longevha, and the wider Regenerative & Longevity collection.
Add longevity to your treatment menu.
There is no human evidence yet that NAD+ supplementation extends lifespan. Research is ongoing.
Both raise NAD+ levels in human studies. There is not enough head-to-head evidence to say one is clearly superior.
Short-term human studies of precursors suggest they are generally well tolerated. Injectable and IV NAD+ should only be given under appropriate clinical supervision.
Sources: Rajman, Chwalek & Sinclair, “Therapeutic potential of NAD-boosting molecules”, Cell Metabolism (2018); published randomised trials of NR and NMN supplementation (2016–2025); further reading in Will we live forever?
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