Healthy aging has become a severe problem in the modern era. The “silver tsunami” refers to the expected increase in individuals aged 60 and older by 2050. Increasing cell energy generation using NAD+ precursors, such as NMN and nicotinamide riboside (NR), has been shown to counteract the decline in organ and tissue function that comes with age to research that has accumulated in the last ten years or so. NAD+ is a vital component, and scientists are trying to determine if these precursors may raise NAD+ levels in the blood.
A new human clinical study has revealed some fascinating facts about NMN’s effects on human blood.
Clinical Study on Human Revealed NAD+ Effects on Blood.
Published on April 2022, in Frontiers in Nutrition, Nakagawa and colleagues recently revealed in a clinical study that in healthy people between 22 and 64 years old, NMN dramatically boosted blood NAD+ levels with oral administration of 250 mg daily. The research was stated as, Oral Administration of Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Is Safe and Efficiently Increases Blood Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Levels in Healthy Subjects
NMN doubles blood NAD+ levels.
During the 12-week duration of NMN treatment, Nakagawa and colleagues examined the levels of NAD+ and NMN in whole blood measures. After only four weeks, NAD+ levels in the blood had risen dramatically from over 20 µM to over 45 µM. After four weeks of discontinuing NMN administration, these blood NAD+ levels returned to baseline levels around week 12. NMN levels in the blood did not vary from non-NMN patients, showing that cells nearly fully metabolize NMN from the blood. These results indicate that 250 mg of NMN is quickly digested, resulting in approximately doubled blood NAD+ levels, which tend to decrease after four weeks.
(Okabe et al., 2022 | Frontiers in Nutrition) Supplementing with NMN for 12 weeks stimulates nearly double-fold levels of blood NAD+ without increasing whole blood NMN levels.
Humans Experience No Adverse Side Effects From NMN
NAD+ is involved in hundreds of cell metabolic events and helps generate ATP, our cells’ fundamental energy currency. In mice models, boosting NAD+ protects against age-related organ and tissue deterioration associated with CVD, Alzheimer’s, and liver disease. PARPs utilize NAD+ to repair damaged DNA to increase physiological function. Sirtuins control gene function, metabolism, and stress response via NAD+. According to these studies, increasing the cellular abundance of NAD+ may promote healthy aging in humans. Safety is key while raising NAD+ in people.
(Okabe et al., 2022 | Frontiers in Nutriton)
In the Japan-based clinical study, the team analyzed a few critical physiological markers to see if consuming 250 mg/day of NMN had any adverse side effects. The study team discovered no significant increases in body mass index, a measure of body fat nor any increase or decrease in weight. Also, during supplementation, blood pressure was steady. This clinical study shows consuming 250 mg per day of NMN for 12 weeks has no harmful physiological consequences.
The Pulse Rate and NAD+ Levels.
Nakagawa and colleagues wanted to know if pulse rate increased NAD+ levels. Blood NAD+ and pulse rates correlated well. A greater heart rate has been shown to lead to the breakdown of NMN into NAD+. According to these findings, NAD+ levels in humans can be boosted by oral administration of NMN.
This clinical study has significant limitations that demand an additional investigation. There were only 15 healthy participants in the current study, therefore, more research with a larger sample size would be required to corroborate the findings. Even though Nakagawa and colleagues demonstrate that NMN raises blood NAD+ levels, this does not necessarily indicate that NAD+ levels are elevated in any particular organ or tissue. This clinical study did not investigate the long-term implications of raising NAD+ levels.
The correlation between higher pulse rates and increased levels of NAD+ in the blood is one of the most intriguing findings of this study. This discovery, if accurate, might indicate that activities that increase heart rate, such as exercise, increase blood NAD+ levels.
