A few years ago, almost nobody outside of biochemistry labs had heard of NAD. Now it is everywhere: longevity podcasts, IV drip clinics, supplement companies, biohackers, influencers, and women trying to improve energy, fertility, aging and metabolic health.
Suddenly, everyone seems to be talking about “boosting NAD levels” as though it is the missing key to staying young. And honestly, the conversation has become incredibly hard to follow.
Some people claim NAD supplements can improve energy, slow aging, sharpen cognition and even support fertility. Others say it is overhyped wellness marketing built on mouse studies and billion-dollar supplement branding. Then there are the IV clinics charging hundreds of dollars for NAD drips promising “cellular rejuvenation.”
So what is actually going on here?
To understand why this molecule has exploded into the mainstream, first we need to understand what NAD actually is. At its simplest, NAD is a molecule found in every cell of the body. It helps convert nutrients into usable cellular energy.
Not very glamorous…… but VERY important.
But over the last decade, researchers have become increasingly interested in NAD for another reason: NAD levels appear to decline with age.
Now I’m interested!
That matters because NAD is involved in much more than energy production. It also plays a role in:
mitochondrial function
DNA repair
inflammation
metabolic regulation
cellular stress responses
All of that is scientific talk for “making me look old.”
Basically, NAD is involved in a lot of the cellular housekeeping we only start caring about once we feel tired, inflamed, hormonally chaotic, or suddenly aware of our neck. Which means declining NAD levels may be connected to some of the biological changes we associate with aging itself.
That is where my current fascination began. Researchers started asking a very tempting question: if NAD declines with age, could boosting it help slow aspects of biological aging?
That question helped launch an entire longevity industry. Today, there are oral supplements like NMN and NR, powders dissolved under the tongue, supplements designed to improve absorption, prescription research compounds, premium IV infusion clinics and celebrity-backed longevity stacks.
All promising some version of better aging through cellular optimisation.
But the science is far more complicated than social media makes it sound.
The short version? NAD is genuinely important. The biology is fascinating. But the leap from “NAD matters inside cells” to “this expensive supplement or IV drip will meaningfully slow aging in humans” is where things get murky.
One of the more interesting twists in the NAD story is that these supplements may not be taking the clean, direct route into our cells that the marketing suggests.
Newer human research has raised an interesting possibility: the gut microbiome may play a bigger role in processing NMN and NR, two supplements often sold as NAD boosters, than many people originally assumed.
In other words, you may not be swallowing a neat little package of “cellular energy” and sending it straight to your cells.
The body, as usual, has other plans.
Over the next week, I’m diving deep into:
what NAD actually is and does
why NAD declines with age
the difference between NMN, NR and NAD IV therapy
what the human studies currently show, not just the mice
where the hype outruns the evidence
and whether any of this is actually worth paying attention to
Because right now, longevity science is moving faster than most people can realistically keep up with. Every week, there is a new supplement, new molecule, new protocol or new clinic promising to help us age better.
Some of it is genuinely fascinating. Some of it is wildly over-marketed. And a lot of it sits somewhere in between.
That is where Claritti comes in.
To slow the conversation down, separate what is interesting from what is proven, and ask the questions that get lost when science becomes a sales pitch.
Next up: the deep dive. What NAD actually does, why it appears to decline with age, and where the supplement story starts to get complicated.
Until then, curiosity is useful. Confusion is expensive. And clarity is the point.