The BEST NAD+ Booster: NAD+ vs NR vs NMN

So we did a bunch of content on NAD+ as a therapy, a nutrient therapy, and we got a whole bunch of follow-up questions as we usually do about what forms work the best. So let's break that down here. I'm Dr. A. I've been teaching and researching in the naturopathic and integrative medical community for over 30 years now, and I've been practicing a long time, and I use this channel to answer questions. First off, what does NAD+ do for me? Well, it works in many places in your body as a cofactor. So NAD is a molecule that's got 2 nicotinamides or niacinamides and then some other chemistry to link them together. And it's used as an active cofactor to help enzymes work. And that works a lot in your brain and everywhere else in your body, your liver, et cetera. But also NAD is a donor for the electron transport chain and oxidative phosphorylation to help get electrons through to make more ATP for energy. So that's what it does. So one of the first questions is, well, if it's so wonderful, why can't I just get NAD already made and take it by mouth? Well, you could, but what's going to happen is the NAD, remember it's sort of a complicated molecule, that's going to get broken down in your digestive tract. You're not really going to absorb NAD. So there are other forms that can be used and those forms are going to be easier to get through mouth. So we're not talking here about intravenous or injectable NAD that goes around your digestive system. So certainly you can use that that So what are forms that are going to survive through the digestive tract if I take oral support for NAD? Well, one is called NMN, nicotinamide mononucleotide, and that is a supplement available in most parts of the world. In the United States, it's still available, but the FDA has said it's under drug review, so they don't want it to be sold as a supplement. So if you have a source for NMN in the US and then it goes away, it's probably because of those FDA actions. But NMN is an effective way to increase NAD in the body. It's not quite as effective as the next one I'm going to talk about, but it is an effective way to do it. The next is probably the most effective way because people will feel the effects really quickly, and that is nicotinamide riboside, NR. So nicotinamide riboside is a supplement that is available, and it's usually given orally, although there is now an intravenous form that we'll talk about elsewhere. But nicotinamide riboside is be the best absorbed oral NAD+ primer, and you generally feel it more quickly. Now, we'll talk about the downsides of feeling it more quickly in some people, but nicotinamide riboside works quite well. It is a patented product often called Niagen or TruNiagen, and pretty much if you're getting any nicotinamide riboside, it's probably all made by the same people. So nicotinamide riboside is another dose form, probably the most effective to jack up NAD+ stores. Quick plug here, if you're a healthcare practitioner working with patients with these issues. I have a CE website and I do webinars on this topic and others. So we're going to put a link in the description below to the CE website link and the particular webinar of interest. Thank you. Then there's the B vitamin niacinamide. So this is not niacin. Vitamin B3 has 2 chemical forms. There's niacin, which is very inefficient at raising NAD levels. And then there's niacinamide, which doesn't make you flush. It's safer that way. But niacinamide goes in and it's a step closer than plain niacin to making NAD+. Niacinamide will not make you feel, you know, stimulated or jacked up or anything like that because it's going to raise NAD+ levels very slowly over time. Then the other that you might see as a supplement is NADH as a sublingual, like a lozenge, and that's so that it absorbs without going in the GI tract. And that also can be used and does have clinical efficacy. So NADH as a lozenge, a sublingual. Now, why might you need more NAD, it's usually to help with energy. We also use NAD with certain neurological neurotransmitter needs because it's a big cofactor in the brain. Lots and lots of reasons why you might need it. It's used a lot for energy though, and recovery. Side effects you should be aware of: if it absorbs really quickly, like nicotinamide riboside, you have to be careful with the dose because that can cause your heart to beat quickly. Some people get dysrhythmias from it, and that's simply because the nicotinamide riboside It goes in, gets in, and creates more NAD. That creates more mitochondrial activity. More mitochondrial activity goes first to the high mitochondria organs. Your heart is one of those. So we have people where we generally start with low doses and make sure they don't feel like their heart is racing after they take it. You can always take more, but it's better to start lower and then work your dose up. Now, just for, you know, general comparisons, NR and NMN, the doses may be somewhere between 100 and 300 milligrams. Some people do more, but usually you start low and work up. Niacinamide can be 500 milligrams to 2,000 milligrams because again, it's, it's a more slow 2-step process to help raise it. And then the NADH sublingual is going to be lower doses because it's absorbing, you know, under the tongue, usually 10 to 50 milligrams in the dose range there. All right. I hope that answers those questions about the differences between the oral ways to increase NAD activity and Potential things to look out for. Thank you so much for viewing. Thanks for subscribing, liking, sharing. If you're not subscribed, please do subscribe and hit notifications, and I'll see you guys on the next video. Thanks.