Nicotinamide Mononucleotide is an interesting supplement. However, how does it benefit humans?
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide is a molecule that is often tested on mice. It is found in many foods, including avocados and broccoli and can be purchased as a supplement. NMN helps people produce nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), which helps increase and stabilize metabolism. It may also slow aging.
Now that you know what Nicotinamide Mononucleotide does, you are likely wondering if you should take it and what side effects you may experience after you begin taking it. More information about Nicotinamide Mononucleotide is below.
Background
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) was first discovered in 1963 by Chambon, Mandel, and Weill. And while NMN doesn’t need to be prescribed to be used, it’s highly encouraged to talk with a doctor before taking NMN or at the very least to start small with consuming it.
The majority of test subjects involving NMN have been mice. There have been a few studies performed on humans—enough where some that were hoping to produce and sell NMN supplements felt confident in actually putting their products on the market. But most of the research that has been gathered has been based on benefits or side effects seen not on humans, and even if they have, the ratio of weight to supplement amount has been less than what researchers gave mice.
Luckily, NMN isn’t some new and mysterious supplement that humans aren’t familiar with—we consume it far more than we thought. NMN can be found in many fruits and vegetables like mushrooms, cucumbers, avocados, broccoli, edamame, soybean pods, cabbage, and even raw beef and shrimp.
NMN’s main targets are aging, metabolic disorders, heart failure, neurodegeneration, and attacks on your immune system, just to name a few. The market for NMN is booming, with sales increasing dramatically in hopes that they have found an “anti-aging” supplement that will not only help you feel younger but also help your body function as if it were younger.
Mechanism of Action
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) is beneficial because it helps to stabilize and even increase your nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) levels, which is a coenzyme that you possess in higher quantities when you’re younger. But as you get older, these levels slowly decrease, along with your energy and other parts of your body. Specifically, NMN helps improve your metabolism, DNA repair, cell growth, insulin sensitivity, and age-linked changes.
The best way to administer this drug is orally in tablets of 100 to 500 mg. It is then processed fairly quickly in the stomach. Despite this, tread carefully with these supplements, as NMN is not fully tested for any side effects or other issues. There is a potential risk to several organs in the body (kidney, liver, stomach, etc.) if not consumed properly, so it’s best to proceed with caution and to build up to the right dosage.
Where Can You Buy Nicotinamide Mononucleotide?
Luckily (or unluckily, depending on your perspective), you can buy NMN wherever you would buy any dietary supplements or anti-aging pills. Whether at Costco, your local pharmacy, or Amazon, you’ll find a variety of NMN supplements, or at least supplements with some NMN included.
Just to get an idea of the options out there, these are some of the top NMN brands on Amazon:
NMN Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Supplement
This supplement comes in 250 mg servings, meaning that it hits the sweet spot of not too much, but also not too little of an amount. And if you wanted to double the serving size, you wouldn’t be hurting yourself or putting yourself in danger by taking two pills a day instead of just one. And at just $48.95, you’re getting a better deal than you would than with other NMN supplements.
MAAC10 NMN Real Nicotinamide Mononucleotide
If you’re looking for something cheaper with a lower dosage, this brand is a great option. You get half the amount of capsules for 125 mg each (half of the number of milligrams), and more than half the price as well ($19.99). If you’re just wanting to dip your toe into trying NMN, this is a great choice at playing a little safer.
Speaking of prices, it is hard to find many NMN supplements around this price range, as most capsule bottles cost over $30. When choosing a product, make sure you check the number of milligrams in a capsule or serving, as well as how many capsules are in a bottle, to make sure you’re getting the most out of what kind of product you’re looking for.
What Conditions Does It Treat?
The number one “condition” NMN treats is aging. There has been a change in research lately, and more scientists are looking to help with the disease that is aging, where your body decreases in energy and efficiency slowly over time.
Not only does NMN help with improving your metabolism and longevity, but NMN has also been said to have numerous effects in helping with diseases like age-induced type 2 diabetes, obesity, cerebral and cardiac ischemia, heart failure, Alzheimer’s disease, and other neurodegenerative disorders, and it can even help with macular degeneration and retinal degeneration.
Even if you don’t have a serious illness, you can still benefit from NMN. David Sinclair, an anti-aging researcher at Harvard, has been testing NMN on himself. He has discovered that his lipid profile has improved, as well as having blood markers similar to those he had as a 31-year-old.
Who Takes it?
Up until now, the majority of human test subjects that have taken NMN supplements have all been older, prediabetics, or obese. Since these are the main diseases researchers hope to tackle, they’ve started with this type of demographic. But, as research develops, who knows? Maybe they’ll test NMN supplements on middle-aged humans.
Because this supplement helps your body function as if it were younger, there’s no point in young people taking this supplement. There’s no point in risking the potential side effects if their bodies still produce numerous amounts of NAD+ without the help of extra NMN.
Younger volunteer test subjects participating in the trials of the NMN drug might help the research and understanding of what it does in the long term, since supplements are usually a trial for longer periods of time, as they are supposed to help over a longer period of time as well. It will be difficult to see those benefits without a longer trial period to prove them.
Who May Want to Take Nicotinamide Mononucleotide?
Since Nicotinamide Mononucleotide supplements are geared towards those of older age and demographic, this goes to reason that the people who may want to take NMN are among the older generation. People should take this supplement when they are of thirty years of age or older. Preferably older, as it is geared to support the immune systems and mitigate the problems that are associated with the process of aging.
The recommended age to take Nicotinamide Mononucleotide supplements is thirty years and older, and the recommended dosage for those between thirty and sixty years of age is 500 milligrams a day. Over sixty-five years of age, it is recommended and considered safe to consume around 700 milligrams a day.
Who Shouldn’t Take It?
Those younger than thirty years shouldn’t take Nicotinamide Mononucleotide supplements. They shouldn’t because it hasn’t been tested on people thirty years old or younger. It’s safer to make sure any unknown side effects aren’t brought on by improper use of the supplement.
In addition to this, infants should never be fed supplements unless they are directly prescribed by an accredited pediatrician. It wasn’t made for infants—it was made for elderly and older generations in the hopes that it would help to not only boost their ability to cope with the problems that come with aging but also overcome them and mitigate those symptoms easier.
Common Side Effects
There have been no side effects documented in humans at this time for NMN. It is still being tested and improved upon with numerous clinical studies. Trials are being performed at a variety of different locations with different demographics to continue to ensure that there are no new side effects that could negatively impact those taking NMN as an anti-aging supplement.
There were no side effects reported in the mice that were included in the clinical trials of NMN, and as none have been yet reported by any human partakers, it is received positively as not having any prominent side effects.
However, it is important to remember that any form of dietary supplement taken in the wrong dosage could and will have negative impacts on whoever has taken it. Read and follow label instructions carefully to limit these types of mishaps.
Most Important Research Paper
The most cited research paper surrounding the effects and development of the anti-aging dietary supplement of Nicotinamide Mononucleotide is a paper titled “Long-Term Administration of Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Mitigates Age-Associated Physiological Decline in Mice.” It goes into depth about the process of the clinical testing used when testing the dietary supplement orally on groups of mice.
This article has over three hundred citations.
The highlights of this research paper talked about how the benefits found in the mice from the clinical study included NMN suppressing age-related weight gain in mice and enhanced energy output. It improves insulin and eye sensitivity in mice, as well as a few other key features that are all age-related and can be impacted by the natural aging process. The most prevalent finding is that NMN effectively is an anti-aging intervention for the breakdown of molecules that translates over to the human body and composition.
Does Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Prevent Cancer?
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide does not prevent cancer in mice, so it likely won’t prevent cancer in humans. This has not been explored in the clinical trials of humans at this point and is incredibly hard to track or determine in regular clinical studies that may focus on preventing cancer. As such, it is not a drug that can or will prevent cancer. However, it has many other age-related illnesses and breakdowns of genetics that it does a good job of mitigating and preventing as people age, giving them not only longer, but healthier lives in the long run.
The cause of cancer and the variety of the types of cancer make it very difficult to predict what can help in eliminating and preventing cancer. NMN is not among any type of mitigation that will help with this battle, unfortunately, although it might be able to help in the uphill battle after a fight with cancer in helping the survivors to live longer and healthier where the medications and cancer treatments might’ve broken down what NMN helps boost. This is not clinically proven and will continue to be researched in the years to come.
Do Diabetics Who Take Nicotinamide Mononucleotide Live Longer than Non-Diabetics?
There is no concrete evidence that diabetics that take Nicotinamide Mononucleotide live longer than people who are not diabetic. However, a long study done on mice that involved induced diabetes and the effects thereof was conducted. The findings seem to be promising for the end goal of not only prolonging life but also elevating life for the older generations as time goes on.
Diabetes breaks down and creates a deficit of the molecules NAD+, which our bodies will die without. It is the most common molecule in the body besides water, and this molecule helps the mitochondria. Without the proper levels of this molecule, the body breaks down faster and the side effects of aging get worse. In diabetics, we often see a worse breakdown of the body as things cease to function as well.
It goes to say that NMN may help those who are diabetic to mitigate and neutralize the symptoms of diabetes that break down and create a deficit of NAD+ in the body. This lack of NAD+ negatively impacts them as they age. With some luck, this may be proven scientifically within a few clinical studies as scientists work to improve the anti-aging supplement.