The NAD+ Question: Hype, IV Drips and the Molecule Everyone Suddenly Cares About
BECAUSE SOME MOLECULES DON’T NEED A REBRAND — JUST A BETTER EXPLANATION.
If you spend even five minutes in the modern wellness world, NAD+ will find you. It’s in clinic menus, supplement ads, podcast interviews, longevity protocols, and the sort of softly lit TikToks where someone in cashmere explains why they suddenly have more energy, better skin and a suspiciously calm nervous system.
The promise is always the same: more cellular energy, sharper thinking, slower ageing, deeper repair. The subtext is even simpler — this is the molecule that might quietly keep everything running well behind the scenes.
But as with most things that suddenly become “essential,” the conversation has outpaced the understanding. There are capsules, powders, patches, injections, IV drips, protocols, loading phases and monthly memberships. Some people swear by it. Others call it expensive urine. And somewhere in the middle sits the actual science, which is more interesting — and more measured — than the hype suggests.
So before you sign up for a drip or add another supplement to your morning line-up, here’s the real story.
The Molecule Behind the Hype
NAD+ isn’t a new discovery or a trendy compound cooked up in a Silicon Valley lab. It’s a coenzyme — a small but essential molecule — found in every single cell in your body.
Its main jobs are quietly unglamorous but deeply important:
Turning food into usable cellular energy
Supporting mitochondrial function
Helping repair damaged DNA
Activating sirtuins — the so-called “longevity proteins”
In simple terms, if your cells were a busy office, NAD+ would be the electricity, the repair crew and the internal communications system all at once.
The catch is that NAD+ levels naturally decline with age. By midlife, many people have significantly less than they did in their twenties. That drop is associated with lower energy, slower repair, and a general sense that your body is working a little harder to achieve the same results.
Which is why longevity researchers started paying attention — long before wellness TikTok discovered it.
The supplement, the drip and the lifestyle you already have
The modern NAD+ conversation tends to sound like a menu: capsules, powders, injections, IV drips, memberships, protocols. It can feel less like biology and more like a subscription service.
But underneath all of that, there are really only three ways people try to influence NAD+ levels.
The first is through supplements — usually NMN or NR. These aren’t NAD+ itself. They’re precursors, meaning the body uses them as raw materials to build NAD+. Studies show they can raise NAD+ levels modestly, which is promising, but not miraculous. Think of them less as a cellular facelift and more as a quiet energy subsidy.
The second is IV therapy. This is the version you’ll find in longevity clinics, usually delivered slowly over a few hours while you sit in a reclining chair and contemplate the price. IV NAD+ raises levels more dramatically and more quickly, and some people report noticeable boosts in energy or clarity afterwards. But the science is still young, and the evidence for long-term anti-ageing benefits in humans is limited.
In other words, the idea that IV is the only thing that works is more marketing narrative than medical consensus.
The third route is the least glamorous and the most proven: lifestyle.
Exercise, good sleep, metabolic balance and circadian rhythm alignment all support the same pathways NAD+ is involved in. These habits increase mitochondrial function, activate sirtuins and improve cellular repair — without a drip stand in sight.
Which means for many people, the most effective NAD+ “protocol” is still:
Regular sleep
Balanced nutrition
Sunlight in the morning
Not exactly TikTok-viral, but deeply effective.
So Where Does It Actually Fit?
This is where the conversation becomes less scientific and more practical.
If your lifestyle is currently running on caffeine, late nights and nervous-system whiplash, NAD+ supplements are unlikely to feel life-changing. It’s a bit like installing better lightbulbs in a house with faulty wiring — helpful, but not transformative.
But if you’re already doing most things reasonably well — sleeping decently, moving regularly, eating enough protein, not constantly in fight-or-flight mode — then a NAD+ precursor can act as a supportive longevity tool. Subtle, but potentially useful over time.
Most people who respond well report:
Slightly steadier energy
Better mental clarity
Improved stress resilience
More consistent recovery
What they don’t report is anything dramatic. No overnight glow-ups. No biological time travel. NAD+ works at the cellular level, which means its effects tend to be quiet, cumulative and slightly boring — which, in longevity science, is usually a good sign.
There is one quiet caveat worth mentioning. Because NAD+ supports cellular energy and repair, some researchers have questioned whether very high levels could also support rapidly dividing cancer cells. There’s no strong evidence that NAD+ supplements cause cancer, but many clinicians recommend a more cautious approach for people with active or recent cancer, or those at very high risk. In those cases, it’s simply something to discuss with a doctor rather than add casually to your supplement drawer.
If you are curious about trying a precursor, a well-formulated, moderate-dose supplement is usually the most sensible starting point. Brands like Artah have recently introduced NAD-support formulas that focus on quality ingredients and realistic dosing, rather than miracle claims or aggressive longevity promises — which is often a good sign in this space.
So is NAD+ a trend, or something worth paying attention to?
In truth, it’s both. The molecule itself is scientifically important and central to how our cells produce energy and repair themselves. But the way it’s currently being sold — as a luxury drip or a miracle capsule — is very much a product of the modern wellness economy.
The sensible position sits somewhere in the middle.
NAD+ isn’t a magic bullet, and it isn’t snake oil either. It’s a promising biological pathway that may support energy, repair and metabolic health over time — especially when paired with the habits that already keep those systems running well.
In other words, it’s less a miracle molecule and more a quiet backstage technician.
Not the star of the show, but without it, nothing runs properly.
And like most things in longevity, it works best when it’s supporting a good life — not trying to compensate for a chaotic one.
