Comment · Thu, September 24, 2020 · ND Owner
NMN, Niacin, NAD +, and Addiction
Original post in this thread
[deleted] · 5 points
I was really fascinated to see studies supporting the idea that NAD therapy could be a used pretty straightforwardly as a treatment for addiction:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7278809/
It seems clear that NMN is one of the best oral routes to raise NAD levels, but there also seems to be evidence that straight niacin can raise NAD levels, at least in individuals considered deficient:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32386566/
The substance itself, and its systemic effects is quite exciting, but even more wild is that the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Bill W., was an extremely fervent (really almost religious) advocate of high doses of niacin for treating alcohol addiction. The fact that this seems to be supported, at least in theory, is pretty wild. I am always shocked when things that are viewed strictly as quackery (and I know there is indeed a lot of that) turn out to be validated. A bit like IV vitamin c being totally written off, and now being used in major hospitals to treat sepsis. Anyways, I wonder if anyone had any experiences, or thoughts to share on…
What they were answering
Direct reply to the original post — see the thread post above.
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb · ND Owner
Niacin is associated with side effects like flushing with high acute doses, and associated with liver toxicity in extended release forms. So it is not idea for increasing NAD+.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12901025/
I actually had a couple long comments on our launch thread that spoke about the pharmacology with citations.