What is NMN Supplement?
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) dietary supplements raise the body’s levels of NAD+, which is a precursor to NAD+ and a step in its production. A bioactive nucleotide called NMN is created when a nucleoside made of nicotinamide and ribose reacts with a phosphate group. (1)(2)
Anti-aging is one the main benefits of NMN supplement, however numerous pharmacological effects other than NMN’s anti-aging potential have been discovered. Alzheimer’s disease prevalence, obesity and its effects, brain and heart ischemia, and type 2 diabetes brought on by ageing and diet. (3)
In the human body, NAD+ participates in two main sets of reactions: it aids in the conversion of foods into energy as a crucial component of metabolism and works as a support molecule for proteins that control other cellular processes. These procedures are quite significant.
How can we restore our NAD+ levels?
NAD+ occurs naturally; all that is required for our cells to create it are the appropriate metabolic building blocks. Like an assembly line in a factory, our cells create molecules, with each part serving as a precursor to the next. Nicotinamide mononucleotide is the name of the biological precursor to NAD+ (NMN). NMN can be taken orally, unlike NAD+ itself, and can therefore be used as a supplement to increase NAD+ levels. (4)
Foods Contain NMN
NMN is mostly found in the nucleus, mitochondria, and cytoplasm of cells, but it can also be detected in placenta tissue and bodily fluids including blood and urine. It can be found naturally in a number of fruits and vegetables such as immature soybean pods, cabbage, cucumber, broccoli, tomato, mushroom, and avocado, as well as raw beef and shrimp. (5)
These fruits and vegetables have NMN contents of 0.25-1.88 mg/100 g and 0.26-1.60 mg/100 g, respectively, while raw beef and shrimp have NMN contents that are considerably lower (0.06–0.42 mg/100 g) than those of those plant-based foods. (6)
6 Benefits of NMN Supplement
NMN feeds into the production of NAD+, providing our cells with the energy needed to function. There are several factors thought to underlie the aging process, a lack of cellular energy being one of them. Genetic instability resulting from DNA damage is also one of these factors. NAD+ plays a key role in activating enzymes that maintain DNA integrity, thus promoting genetic stability. Given its central role in these cellular processes, the potential benefits of boosting NAD+ with NMN extend to nearly all body systems. Below are some of the better-known examples. (7)
- Enhances Brain Function
Alzheimer’s disease, which causes sufferers to lose their memory, is arguably one of the most severe age-related disorders. It has been demonstrated that NMN reduces brain plaques and neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s and enhances cognition with the disease. Alzheimer’s is an advanced disease, but many older persons also experience cognitive deficits, which include problems with learning, remembering, and thinking clearly. (8)
As we age, our blood arteries become faulty, which impairs blood flow to the brain and causes cognitive problems. NMN has been demonstrated to improve cognitive function by increasing blood flow to the brain. We can experience a stroke, which causes damage to the brain tissue, when the blood veins in our brain become blocked. In rodents, NMN has been found to not only postpone the start of strokes but also to prevent stroke-related damage, enhance cognition, and maintain healthy mitochondria. - Revives the health of blood vessels
Each of our cells receives essential nutrients from our blood arteries. Our blood vessels stiffen and grow more prone to obstruction as we age, which might result in heart attack or stroke. NMN has been demonstrated to restore blood vessel flexibility, reversing vascular ageing. Senescent cells, or cells with growth arrest that build up with age, play a role in the vascular system’s ageing as well as the ageing of many other organ systems. By decreasing senescent cells, NMN prevents blood vessel ageing and lowers blood pressure. Senescent cells promote inflammation, which is the root cause of almost every age-related disease, which is one of the ways they contribute to ageing. By lowering blood vessel inflammation, NMN has been demonstrated to reverse blood vessel malfunction. (9) - Enhances Muscle Performance
Our skeletal muscles are necessary for strength, stability, and mobility. Sarcopenia, a condition characterized by a deterioration in muscular size and strength as we age, results from our muscles’ loss of the capacity to repair and expand. We lose physical stamina and experience muscle weakening at the same time. Given that one of its transporters has been demonstrated to improve physical strength and stamina, these conditions appear to be reversed by NMN. Additionally, NMN boosts middle-aged runners’ exercise endurance and oxygen consumption, as well as older men’s muscle strength and performance. However, nicotinamide riboside (NR), another NAD+ precursor, does appear to enhance muscular performance. (10) - Defends Against Diabetes and Obesity
Obesity is associated with a variety of metabolic disorders, such as insulin resistance, which can result in diabetes because cells are unable to use glucose due to decreased insulin signalling. As the ultimate cellular location where our food is transformed into energy, mitochondria play a crucial role in metabolism and disorders associated with it. It has been demonstrated that NMN increases the number of mitochondria in the livers, which may help to prevent obesity. NMN stimulation of fat breakdown may also aid in fat loss in obese people. (11)
Obesity and excessive eating mess with our metabolism and increase the risk of diabetes. Both of these problems get worse with age. NMN has been demonstrated to reverse diet- and age-induced diabetes as well as to halt the neuronal degeneration and renal illness that are linked to diabetes, indicating that NMN may be able to guard against these metabolic abnormalities. This is backed up by evidence that NMN increases older women’s muscle insulin sensitivity. Thus, NMN may prevent obesity and diabetes even though lifestyle changes like regular exercise and a nutritious diet are of the utmost importance. - Promotes Healthy Heart
Our hearts are increasingly sensitive to irregular beats as we age, which can have disastrous consequences including heart failure. NMN has been proven to guard against heart failure. The fact that our heart tissue cannot be regenerated makes it valuable. Instead, fibrosis (scarring) results from damaged tissue, which causes heart malfunction. By decreasing scarring, NMN restores the function of the heart. The heart uses a lot of energy as it beats continuously and forever. It requires healthy mitochondria for this. By renewing mitochondria, NMN boosts cardiac metabolism and guards against heart failure.
The cardiovascular system includes our heart, which pumps blood enriched with oxygen to the rest of our organs. Our heart’s surrounding blood veins can become blocked, causing the tissue there to suffer damage and eventually perish from a lack of oxygen. This is called ischemia and commonly leads to heart attacks. NMN guards against ischemic cardiac damage. The combined use of melatonin and stem cell treatment enhances this defense. (12) - Enhances DNA Repair Maintenance
Although our DNA codes for the components of our cells, as we become older, it sustains more damage. Age-related diseases can be avoided by repairing DNA damage. Sirtuins, which are frequently referred to as the keepers of our healthspan, are powered by NAD+. Sirtuins are essential for DNA repair. Additionally, the DNA telomeres at the ends of our chromosomes shorten with each cell division. This telomere shortening eventually starts to harm our genes and cells. Sirtuins impede this process by keeping the telomere length constant. Since sirtuins depend on NAD+ to operate, efforts have been made to increase sirtuin activity by increasing NAD+ levels. NMN also fixes radiation-induced DNA damage.
NMN Supplement Side Effects
Nicotinamide mononucleotide has not yet been linked to any adverse effects in people. The majority of investigations on NMN have been carried out in rodents, and these studies have shown that NMN has beneficial benefits on metabolism, brain function, liver, skin, muscle, bone structure, heart health, reproduction, immunity, and lifespan. A lengthy trial revealed no toxicity, harmful side effects, or elevated death rate during the course of the intervention’s 12-month duration.
There are no safety issues with NMN after a single oral intake of 100, 250, or 500 mg of the substance in humans, according to one study. Researchers observed no changes in body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, or blood oxygen levels five hours after the lone oral delivery of NMN. Blood investigations in the lab did not reveal any notable changes, with the exception of four molecules whose levels were within normal limits. The sleep quality was also evaluated in this study, and there were no variations between the pre- and post-NMN periods. (13)
