Don't take NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide); read this First

Before I started to take NMN as a daily supplement I did a lot of research and there were some key questions and concerns that kept coming up, things I had ponder and ultimately make a decision on, one way or the other. What is NMN? NMN or Nicotinamide Mononucleotide to give it its full name is a precursor to NAD.

NMN as a daily supplement has one function, to raise the depleted NAD levels in our cells. NAD or Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide to give it its full name is found in virtually all our living cells and is essential for sustaining life. Unfortunately, NAD levels decline drastically with age, creating an energy deficit that decreases the body’s ability to retain youthful functions. NAD is biologically unstable, which makes it unsuitable for oral supplementation.

You can take NAD intravenously if you can find a clinic that will do it, or you could use an NAD precursor commonly called an NAD booster like NMN or NR (Nicotinamide Riboside), which converts to NAD after it enters the cell.

Although NMN is commercially available, there is no official Recommended Daily Allowance/Intake (RDA/RDI). However, there are numerous protocols on the back of bottles relating to how much to take and how many times to take it during the day, bear in mind all these companies are guessing. No protocols have been established i.e. before food, with food, after food, on an empty stomach, in the morning, just before bed etc. David Sinclair has explained that he takes 1 gram of NMN a day in the morning with his homemade yoghurt. I now take 1.5 grams a day between 6am and 7am, along with 1.5 grams of TMG (Trimethylglycine).

Although there is no official dosage recommendation, Dr. Rhonda Partick did state during a Joe Rogan podcast that the successful animal study dose equivalent, for humans, is 2.4 milligrams of NMN per 1 kilo of body weight.

If I followed this formula, I would need to take 2 grams and 280 milligrams per day, which I may do in the future but at the moment, I'm seeing and feeling great results with 1.5 grams of NMN per day.

The next thing to consider is purity, there are many companies that will sell you NMN, and this number grows by the month. You can of course choose any company you wish, but it would be wiser to look for a company that has a certain amount of history in the supplement space, and a company that not only conducts third-party testing, but also posts its results.

The next thing you may wish to consider is how you will take your NMN. There are two methods of administration, oral and sublingual. Oral administration is a route of administration whereby a substance is taken through the mouth and swallowed; this can be in tablet form or mixed with a liquid. Sublingual administration is where a tablet or powder is placed under the tongue and allowed to dissolve. Sublingual administration may well be superior for certain compounds, but at present there are no human clinical studies showing that sublingual is superior to oral, or indeed oral is superior to sublingual. There are conflicting views on the best form of application, so, with no clear official direction you will need to choose what method of administration you think is best. When asked about administration, David Sinclair said when it comes to NAD precursors “we are all still guessing.”

What of cost? Prices have dropped dramatically since first coming onto the market, although NMN is still relatively expensive for much of the population. If NMN is stored correctly it has a shelf life of two years, so buying in bulk may be a cheaper option in the long run. When buying in bulk it's important that you choose a supplier that has a history in the supplement space, and avoid deals that appear to be too good to be true on sites like Alibaba, Ali-express, Ebay, Amazon etc.

As with most things that are not fully understood yet there are going to be skeptics pointing out that some of the clinical studies have returned unfavorable results. But remember what I stated at the start, which is that NMN’s only job as an NAD precursor is to raise NAD levels, and every scientific study conducted in humans where the aim was to test this, has come back showing that NMN does indeed raise NAD levels, as does NR Nicotinamide Riboside.

Some clinical studies have looked at NMN and its effect on things other than raising NAD levels. Some were successful, to some degree or another, and some were unsuccessful. Those that were successful can just be seen as a win-win. And those that were unsuccessful don't really change the fact that NMN, as an NAD precursor, is only supposed to raise NAD levels, which it does.

Another thing to consider is that the vast majority of these clinical trials, in humans, consisted of people who were younger and fitter. And although anecdotal, there is evidence that people who are less active or who are older, do see and feel physical benefits from taking NMN as a daily supplement. I am indeed one of those anecdotal cases.

There is no question that I feel and possibly look much healthier, more energized and more motivated than I did when I started my longevity experiment in 2019. And there are a number of other YouTube channels similar to mine, that although may not go into as much detail with their record keeping as I do, still talk of very positive results. And let's not forget the longevity community who regularly comment on my YouTube channel’s videos and in the comment sections of other longevity related channels. They explain how they too have seen and felt remarkable benefits since they have started to take NMN as a daily supplement.

Now if you are considering starting to take NMN as a daily supplement there are a few things that if I was starting now, I would do differently. First make sure that your diet and exercise regime are dialed in and set. If you haven’t got one, buy a fitness tracker so you can monitor your step count, sleep scores, resting heart rate etc.

Also, think about major life changes that you have planned, things such as switching to a vegan or carnivore diet, joining a gym, giving up smoking etc. Try not to start these at the same time that you start your longevity journey.

And finally set some baseline metrics that you can measure your progress against, and it is important to record them. I am glad I started to keep a record from day one, because now, in 2024, I cannot remember exactly what I did, and what results I saw, in the 2020.

Things to consider for your baseline tests are your sleep scores, your resting heart rate, and possibly some simple tests. Tests like the ‘sit-to-stand test’, also called the ‘sit-stand test’ or ‘sitting-rising test’ (or SRT), then there is the ‘6-minute walk test’, and the ‘single leg balance test’. These are all free and you can research them very easily on social media. You could also consider a ‘grip test’; this is a well-established proxy for longevity. And any other objective test that you think may be relevant and easy to conduct and record.

Please feel free to visit my YouTube Channel, My Longevity Experiment, and leave questions in the comments section.