Imagine your body has a special "energy currency" that powers everything from your morning jog to your ability to focus at work. That's NAD+ in a nutshell. It's like the premium gasoline your cells run on, and just like a car, your body doesn't work well when it's running low.

Here's the catch: after age 30, we lose about 1% of our NAD+ each year. That's why you might notice it's harder to bounce back from late nights or feel as sharp as you used to. But the good news? There are simple ways to keep your NAD+ levels up.

At Meto, we’re committed to helping you understand the science behind aging and how to support your well-being. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore:

• The science behind NAD+ and its role in the body
• Why NAD+ levels decline with age
• The consequences of NAD+ depletion
• Proven strategies to boost and maintain NAD+ levels
• The latest research on NAD+ and longevity

By the end, you’ll understand why NAD+ is often called the “keystone molecule” of aging—and how to support it for lifelong vitality.

What NAD+ Does in Your Body

NAD+ is a coenzyme found in every cell, existing in two interconvertible forms: NAD+ (the oxidized form) and NADH (the reduced form). This dynamic duo serves as the central shuttle bus for electrons in metabolic reactions, but its importance extends far beyond energy production.

NAD+ works behind the scenes in three important ways:

1. It keeps your energy up - NAD+ is a key player in cellular respiration, helping convert glucose, fats, and amino acids into ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the body’s energy currency. Every time you move, think, or even breathe, NAD+ helps convert your food into usable energy. When levels drop, you get that afternoon slump where coffee doesn't even help.
2. Without sufficient NAD+, cells struggle to produce energy efficiently, leading to fatigue and metabolic dysfunction.
3. It repairs daily damage - Your cells take hits every day from stress, pollution, and just normal living. NAD+ activates the repair crews that fix this damage. Less NAD+ means more wear and tear accumulates.
4. NAD+ fuels PARP enzymes (Poly ADP-ribose polymerases), which detect and repair DNA damage caused by oxidative stress, UV radiation, and toxins. Low NAD+ levels impair DNA repair, increasing mutation risks and accelerating aging.
5. It keeps your biological clock ticking right - NAD+ helps regulate your sleep cycles, metabolism, and even how quickly you show signs of aging. When it's low, these systems start getting out of sync.

Why We Lose NAD+ Over Time

Think of NAD+ like a savings account where withdrawals increase as we age, but deposits decrease. Here's what's happening:

• Your repair bills go up - More cellular damage means more NAD+ gets used up for repairs. As we age, our cells accumulate more DNA damage from oxidative stress, requiring PARP enzymes to work overtime. Each DNA repair event consumes NAD+ molecules, creating a growing demand that outstrips supply. Chronic low-grade inflammation ("inflammaging") further exacerbates this drain by activating NAD+-consuming immune responses.
• Your production slows down - The enzymes that make NAD+ become less efficient. The body synthesizes NAD+ through multiple pathways that become less efficient with age:
• The salvage pathway, responsible for recycling NAD+ from its breakdown products, depends heavily on the enzyme NAMPT (nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase). NAMPT levels decline significantly with age, creating a production bottleneck.
• The de novo pathway, which builds NAD+ from scratch using tryptophan, also becomes less efficient. This pathway is particularly important when salvage capacity is overwhelmed.
• Modern life drains it faster - Modern lifestyles accelerate NAD+ decline through multiple avenues:

- Poor dietary patterns high in processed foods and sugars increase NAD+ breakdown while providing few NAD+ precursors.

- Chronic alcohol consumption forces the liver to divert NAD+ to alcohol metabolism instead of vital cellular functions.

- Sleep deprivation disrupts circadian regulation of NAD+ metabolism, reducing production efficiency.

- Environmental toxins and pollutants create oxidative stress that depletes NAD+ reserves for detoxification.

This explains why two people can be the same age but look and feel completely different - their NAD+ levels may be worlds apart.

Signs Your NAD+ Might Be Low

You might notice:

• Needing more coffee to get through the day
• Workouts leaving you wiped out for longer
• Taking more time to recover from illness
• Not sleeping as deeply as you used to
• Finding it harder to maintain your ideal weight

The systemic impact of declining NAD+ helps explain many age-related health challenges:

1. Metabolic Dysfunction

With insufficient NAD+, mitochondria struggle to produce energy efficiently. This metabolic slowdown contributes to insulin resistance, weight gain, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Animal studies show NAD+ restoration can reverse these metabolic defects.

2. Neurological Decline

The brain's high energy demands make it particularly vulnerable to NAD+ deficiency. Reduced NAD+ impairs neuronal function, increases oxidative damage, and may contribute to neurodegenerative diseases. Promising research suggests NAD+ boosters may support cognitive health.

3. Muscle Weakness and Frailty

Skeletal muscle requires constant NAD+-dependent energy production. Declining NAD+ contributes to sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss) by reducing mitochondrial function and impairing muscle stem cell activity.

4. Cardiovascular Aging

NAD+ supports vascular endothelial function and arterial flexibility. Deficiency contributes to arterial stiffness and reduced blood flow, key factors in cardiovascular disease.

5. Immune System Dysregulation

NAD+ helps regulate inflammatory responses and immune cell function. The age-related NAD+ decline may explain why older adults experience both weakened immunity and increased chronic inflammation.

How to Boost and Protect Your NAD+

While NAD+ decline is inevitable, we now have multiple evidence-based approaches to slow and potentially reverse this process:

1. Eat Like Your Cells Matter

Certain foods give your body the raw materials to make NAD+:

• Dairy products contain a direct precursor called NR
• Fish like salmon and tuna provide niacin
• Mushrooms and whole grains offer supporting nutrients

Try adding one NAD+-friendly food to each meal. A breakfast of eggs with mushrooms, a lunch salad with tuna, and a yogurt snack can make a real difference.

2. Move With Purpose

Exercise is like sending a wake-up call to your NAD+ production system:

• Short bursts of intense activity (like sprinting up stairs) work best
• Strength training helps maintain NAD+-dependent muscle repair
• Even a daily walk is better than sitting all day

You don't need marathon training - just 20 minutes of focused movement most days.

3. Time Your Eating

Giving your digestive system a break helps recycle NAD+ more efficiently. Try:

• Eating all meals within a 10-hour window (like 8am-6pm)
• Avoiding late-night snacks that disrupt your cellular cleanup

Many people find they have more energy when they try this approach.

4. Consider Smart Supplementation

When diet and lifestyle aren't enough, these supplements can help:

• NMN - A direct NAD+ precursor that's shown promise in aging research
• NR - Another effective option available in supplement form

At Meto, we've seen great results with NMN, especially when combined with the other strategies above.

Simple Daily NAD+ Boosters

1. Protect your sleep - Aim for 7-8 hours in a completely dark room. Your body does most of its NAD+ recycling at night.
2. Manage stress - Try the "5-5-5" breathing method (inhale for 5, hold for 5, exhale for 5) when you feel overwhelmed.
3. Stay hydrated - Your cells need water to maintain NAD+ levels properly.
4. Wear sunscreen - Sun damage forces your body to waste NAD+ on repairs.

The Cutting Edge of NAD+ Research

The scientific community continues to make exciting discoveries about NAD+'s therapeutic potential:

• Neurodegenerative Diseases: Early research suggests NAD+ boosters may help maintain neuronal health in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
• Cardiometabolic Health: NAD+ restoration shows promise for improving vascular function and metabolic flexibility.
• Senescence Reversal: Combining NAD+ precursors with senolytics (compounds that clear aged cells) may have synergistic anti-aging effects.
• Delivery Innovations: New technologies aim to improve NAD+ precursor bioavailability and tissue targeting.

At Meto, we continuously monitor this evolving research landscape to bring you the most effective, science-supported strategies for healthy aging.

Your Action Plan

While the science of NAD+ is complex, the path to maintaining healthy levels can be straightforward:

1. Assess your potential risk factors for NAD+ deficiency (age, lifestyle, health status).
2. Implement foundational supports like exercise, good nutrition, and quality sleep.
3. Consider targeted NAD+ precursor supplementation if needed.
4. Monitor how your body responds and adjust accordingly.

Remember that NAD+ is just one piece of the longevity puzzle - but it's a critically important one. By understanding its role and taking proactive steps to maintain optimal levels, you're investing in your cellular health for years to come.

Want personalized advice on boosting your NAD+? Our team at Meto can help create a plan tailored to your lifestyle and goals.