what are the benefits of NAD+ IV therapy?
Let's talk about a tiny molecule called NAD. It's super important for life, and without it, life wouldn't exist! As we age, the amount of NAD in our bodies decreases, which can lead to a lot of problems like trouble with energy, immune function, and DNA repair. But there are some supplements, like nicotinamide riboside and nicotinamide mononucleotide, that can boost NAD levels and help keep our cells healthy. Scientists have found that high doses of these supplements can even improve aging in animals! While there's still a lot we don't know about NAD, it's exciting to think that supplements could help us stay healthy as we get older.
What are Some symptoms of low NAD+ Levels?
Low NAD levels are associated with several hallmarks of aging, such as loss of protein balance, mitochondrial dysfunction, glucose intolerance, insulin insensitivity, cellular senescence, and altered epigenetics. This is partly because NAD promotes DNA repair capacity and a decline in NAD levels is associated with an increase in DNA-damaging reactive oxygen species. NAD is required for energy production in every tissue and is also required to activate a family of enzymes involved in longevity called sirtuins. When NAD levels decline with age, the tissues don't function properly as they did during youth when energy levels were maintained. Chronic inflammation and immune activation are two processes that consume NAD and tend to go up with age, leading to an immense demand on the NAD pool for DNA repair, while our ability to produce and recycle NAD decreases with age. However, the content doesn't explicitly mention the specific symptoms of low NAD levels.
What foods can boost NAD+ Levels?
NAD is an important molecule for making energy in our bodies. We can get it from eating healthy foods like salmon and spinach, but our body also recycles it. We need a lot of NAD to make energy from glucose and fatty acids, and to repair our DNA. NAD is also needed for enzymes to work properly; without it, life on Earth wouldn't be impossible. NAD helps with something called redox reactions, which are crucial for breaking down glucose and fatty acids and making ATP, which is how we make energy. It also helps enzymes in the mitochondria make energy from glucose, and in glycolysis, which is how some cells, like red blood cells, make energy. NAD is also important for repairing DNA damage. Without NAD, we couldn't make energy and our bodies wouldn't work properly. It is involved in back-and-forth processes of reduction and oxidation, also known as redox reactions, which are essential for the metabolism of glucose and fatty acids and the formation of ATP.
How does NAD+ Repair DNA Repair and Increase Longevity?
In addition to its role in energy production, NAD is also a cofactor for many vital enzymes. For example, it is required for the activation of an enzyme called PARP-1, which is involved in repairing DNA damage. The activation of PARP-1 requires an enormous amount of NAD, and excessive DNA damage and subsequent PARP-1 activation have been shown to decrease NAD levels to 20-30% of normal levels. Studies have found that the ability to repair DNA damage is important for longevity. Lymphoblastoid cell lines established from blood samples of humans who were centenarians (100 years or older) have significantly higher PARP-1 activity than cell lines established from younger individuals who are 70 years old. PARP-1 activity has also been correlated with maximum lifespan in mammals; the higher the PARP-1 activity, the longer the lifespan. For example, the activity of PARP-1 was measured across multiple mammalian species, and the difference in PARP-1 activity between the longest-lived mammals tested (humans) and the shortest-lived mammals tested (rats) was fivefold.
The Role of NAD and Sirtuins in Health Span and Longevity:
NAD is also required to activate signaling proteins known as sirtuins, which are highly conserved enzymes that play roles in health span and longevity in multiple organisms. Sirtuins are linked to the regulation of a variety of metabolic processes, including the response to stress and the modulation of lifespan. They utilize NAD to remove specific chemical structures called acetyl groups from cellular proteins, a process called deacetylation, to control the activation of genes involved in energy metabolism, circadian rhythm, DNA repair, cell survival, and more.
Effects of NAD Depletion on Age-Related Diseases:
Unfortunately, NAD becomes depleted across various tissues, including the brain, as we age. The brain, skeletal muscle, and heart are all tissues with very high metabolic demands and thus require a lot of NAD. When we can't meet that metabolic demand, things start to deteriorate and fall apart; they don't work as well. Depletion of NAD has been associated with the hallmarks of aging, such as decreased metabolism, increased DNA damage, increased mitochondrial dysfunction, and dysregulated metabolism. This depletion may predispose organisms to the development of a variety of age-related diseases, including neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, cardiovascular disease, and muscle atrophy.
However, NAD levels can increase under conditions that are generally healthspan-promoting, such as exercise and fasting or caloric restriction. Resveratrol, a naturally occurring compound found in red grapes and other plants, is a potent sirtuin-activating compound, and its beneficial effects on healthspan, some of which are now showing up in human research, are thought to result from sirtuin activation.
Michael Lickteig, along with his wife Melissa, built Liberty IV Infusion Therapy to serve the North Texas community. Both Michael and Melissa are Nationally Registered Paramedics licensed in the State of Texas, and both hold National Board Certification as Certified Flight Paramedics. Their careers in emergency medicine span more than a decade working in prehospital emergency 911 and critical care transport, as well as on staff inside some of North Texas’ busiest emergency/trauma units serving both adult and pediatric populations.. Michael holds an MBA from the University of North Texas and Melissa a BS degree from the University of Texas Arlington. The Lickteig family has strong ties to the military and has established partnerships with retired veterans and first responder organizations dedicated to reducing the occurrence of suicide in these vulnerable groups. Their goal is to make care available and affordable to veterans, first responders, or anyone else who is struggling with chronic pain, TBI, or PTSD throughout the North Texas Region.
Melissa Lickteig NRP, LP, FP-C, BS
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