Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide, or NAD+, is an essential coenzyme that boosts the mitochondria in the cells and is involved in metabolism, neurologic and muscular function, cardiometabolic health, cellular repair.
Considering NAD+ counteracts the effects of aging and stress, it is safe to say that almost everyone can benefit from an NAD+ treatment to some degree. NAD+ is administered via intravenous infusion. It takes about two to four hours depending on each patient’s tolerance of the drip. To speed things along, we give patients oral supplementation to take prior to treatment to increase absorption rates.
NAD+ stores naturally decrease in the body as we age which result in many of the common symptoms of aging (cognitive decline, slowing metabolism, heart health issues, etc.). Therefore, replenishing NAD+ stores can lead to slowing this process of aging and revitalizing our hard working organs. Many patients report feeling noticeably different for months following NAD+ treatments, as it can be an effective solution for lessening feelings of fatigue, brain fog, slowing metabolism, anxiety, and inflammation.
NAD+ is present in the mitochondria of each cell and has been shown to decline steadily over time, reaching about 50% decline by ages 40-60. The mitochondria are known as the powerhouse of the cell and make ATP or energy within the cell. Without sufficient NAD+ our mitochondria struggle to make sufficient energy, which can be very taxing to our vital organs and causes many of the symptoms of aging.
With NAD+ modulation, we are able to stimulate a group of anti-aging genes called sirtuins, which activate mitophagy and mitochondrial biogenesis, enhancing the quality of the mitochondria and creating an age reversal effect. Because of this, NAD+ stores can lead to improved performance, slow the process of aging, and revitalize our hard working organs.
NAD+ plays a key role in metabolism and DNA repair, which is very important in the prevention of chronic illnesses and even cancer. The organs with the highest concentrations of NAD+ are the heart and brain, so the lack of NAD+ can put these organs at risk for degenerative conditions (ie. Alzheimers). For this reason, NAD+ can potentially be very effective in preventing dementia, Parkinsons, and even multiple sclerosis.
For many, the early signs of aging include periods of brain fog, forgetfulness, reduced athletic performance, fatigue, and changes of the skin. Supplementation of NAD+ has been shown to revitalize the body from the inside out, which results in reducing each of these symptoms and much more.
There continues to be increasing evidence that suggests NAD+ and NADH play an important role in multiple biological processes in the brain such as neurotransmission, learning, and memory. It may also mediate brain aging and the tissue damage in various brain illnesses. This means that NAD+ may be able to signal the growth, repair and development of brain/nerve tissue. In other words, NAD+ may be able to virtually help the brain regenerate and reverse aging to some degree, allowing patients to feel like they did before the brain tissue was damaged either from injury, stressful events, brain disease or the regular aging process.
It has been shown that reduced NAD+ levels play a pivotal role in brain aging and neurodegenerative disorders. Therefore, NAD+ replenishment improves mitochondrial function and mitochondrial biogenesis and reduces accumulation of damaged mitochondria in both premature aging and Alzheimer’s disease.
Lautrup S, Sinclair DA, Mattson MP, Fang EF. NAD+ in Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative Disorders. Cell Metab. 2019;30(4):630-655. doi:10.1016/j.cmet.2019.09.001
Ying W. NAD+ and NADH in brain functions, brain diseases and brain aging. Front Biosci. 2007 Jan 1;12:1863-88. doi: 10.2741/2194. PMID: 17127427.
NAD+ is administered via intravenous infusion and takes about two to four hours depending on each patient’s tolerance of the drip. During the drip, most patients experience some symptoms of chest tightness and/or butterflies in their stomach, but everyone is different. These symptoms are completely benign, and will go away within 20 seconds of slowing the drip. We like to think of the sensation of these symptoms as our cells getting the boost of energy that they’d been working so hard for! Typically, our areas of issue or disease are the areas of the body in which NAD+ is lacking, thus we typically feel the symptoms in those areas. In short, you’ll feel it where you need it!
Most patients report increased mental clarity as well as feeling energized, happier, more focused, and relaxed for the following days, weeks and months following NAD+ treatments.
As with all treatments, everybody is different and has different needs based on their health status and lifestyle. We highly recommend booking a consultation to get one of our providers’ professional recommendations based on your condition.
With that said, for those generally healthy individuals who are starting to see early signs of aging, degeneration, or just feeling like they could use a boost, our recommendation is to start with a “loading dose”, 3-4 consecutive days of 500mg of NAD+. After this, we typically recommend coming in for one treatment every 4 weeks. In our experience, this is how our patients receive optimal results with NAD+ therapy.
However, if you are interested in just trying one treatment, we encourage you to do so as you will likely still feel a difference.
As stated in “How should I expect to feel during an NAD+ treatment?”, some patients feel temporary symptoms of chest tightness and/or stomach discomfort during treatment. These symptoms are completely benign, and will go away within 20 seconds of slowing the drip.
After the treatment, there have been no negative side effects reported.
The supplements we provide and instruct patients to take before, during and after infusion are to increase the absorption rate and effectiveness of the NAD+ IV. All documentation with nutritional information will be provided to you upon receiving the supplementation for transparency.
NAD+, is the oxidized form of the coenzyme. When a molecule is in an oxidized state, it means it can accept the tiny negatively charged particles, called electrons, from another molecule. After it receives the electrons, it has a negative charge, so it also picks up a hydrogen atom from the surrounding environment, because hydrogen atoms are positively charged. Now, it is turned into the reduced form, also known as NADH.
The molecule acts as a carrier for electrons during cellular respiration. At various chemical reactions, the NAD+ picks up an electron from glucose, at which point it becomes NADH. Then NADH, along with another molecule known as flavin adenine dinucleotide (FADH2) will transport the electrons to the mitochondria, where the cell can harvest energy stored in the electrons. One can think of the NADH as a cargo truck, transporting electrons like trucks transport goods to a factory. Once at the factory, the workers, or in our case proteins in the mitochondria, take the raw goods and make something useful, in our case, ATP. For this reason, many biologists refer to ATP as the ‘energy currency of life.’
By providing more ATP to the cells as they differentiate, we are able to increase the efficiency of regenerative cells in the body.
