Our Science

Nicotinamide Riboside:
A Supernutrient for Your Cells

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Nicotinamide riboside is a groundbreaking ingredient that fuels your body from within.

Your health starts with your cells. Everything you do in life depends on the constant cycle of using and regenerating energy throughout your cells. Scientists have known for decades the importance of a coenzyme (a molecule that binds with proteins) called NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) plays a vital role in the processes of your body. NAD+ helps create cellular energy and support cellular repair throughout your trillions of cells—and organs—throughout your body.

NR to NAD

Your NAD+ supply declines with age as well as in response to stressors on your body including alcohol consumption, intense exercise, and lack of sleep. However, in 2004, Dr. Charles Brenner discovered a naturally-occurring vitamin in milk called nicotinamide riboside. This micronutrient increases NAD+ levels by 40-50%.

While nicotinamide riboside can be found naturally in certain foods, you cannot get anywhere near the amount you need through a normal diet to effectively increase NAD+. That is why we created Tru Niagen®, the only patented, broadly studied, and safety-reviewed nicotinamide riboside in the world. Niagen® has achieved regulatory acceptance for use in supplements by the US FDA. In addition to receiving approval for use in medical foods by the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA), Niagen® has also been approved for use in food supplements by the European Commission, complementary medicines by the Therapeutic Goods Administration of Australia (TGA), and medical foods by the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ). Tru Niagen® has also been approved by Health Canada as a Natural Health Product.

Nicotinamide riboside is a groundbreaking ingredient that fuels your body from within.
The importance of NAD+ Play button
Video Transcript

OPEN ON ROB FRIED AT CHROMADEX HQ

Rob Fried is the Chief Executive Officer at ChromaDex, the makers of Tru Niagen.®

Voice Over: People need to understand the importance of this thing called NAD+. Our NAD+ levels begin to decline at an early point in our life.

CUT TO ANIMATION OF THE HUMAN BODY

Voice Over: From head to toe, your body is made up of trillions of cells. Each one hard at work, they perform their specific functions to keep you healthy and resilient.

TRANSITION TO ANIMATION OF CELLS

Voice Over: To keep up with all the work, a sufficient supply of an essential molecule called NAD+ must be maintained. NAD+ must transform into NR, Nicotinamide Riboside, or Niagen®, which is optimized for crossing into each cell. Once in the cell, NR is rapidly converted into NAD+. Cells function best when they have a healthy supply of NAD+ on hand. When they don’t, they struggle to perform their normal functions, which include creating ATP for energy, repairing your cells, and supporting healthy mitochondria. 

FADE TO ANIMATION OF STRESSORS

Voice Over: Many common lifestyle factors that can decrease your cells’ NAD+ supply include: stress on the immune system, intense exercise, alcohol consumption, sun exposure, poor diet, time zone disruption, and even aging itself.

FADE TO ANIMATION OF CELLS WITH NR

Voice Over: Over 6 human clinical trials have demonstrated that daily supplementation with NR, known as NIagen®, can safely and effectively elevate your NAD+ levels, giving each one of your hard working cells exactly what it needs to perform at its best.

CUT TO DR. CHARLES BRENNER

Dr. Charles Brenner is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board at Chromadex and is the world’s foremost authority on NAD+ metabolism.

Voice Over:ChromaDex has developed Nicotinamide Riboside that has been safety tested.

CUT TO DR. YASMEEN NKRUMAH-ELIE

Dr. Yasmeen Nkrumah-Elie is the Director of External Research at ChromaDex and the External Research Program (CERP).

Voice Over: We are now inVoice Overlved in 70% of the clinical research that’s being conducted on nicotinamide riboside.

CUT TO DR. BRUCE GERMAN

Dr. Bruce German is a Member of the Scientific Advisory Board at Chromadex and is a leading NAD+ Researcher.

Voice Over:Maintain activity as you age, that's why we do science

END SCENE

An image of the Tru Niagen bottle. Cellular Health for Life.

Tru Niagen Medifacts Video V2 Play button
Video Transcript

OPEN

A woman stands in a supermarket with Tru Niagen displayed behind her.

Voice Over: Did you know you can address one of the root causes of aging by targeting all the cells in your body?

CUT TO: An image of a Tru Niagen Bottle

Voice Over: Try Tru Niagen – Researched by the world’s top scientific institutions and backed by over 200 scientific studies and 30 patents.

CUT TO: A video that shows a human taking Tru Niagen and nicotinamide riboside (the main ingredient) going inside a cell. The cell visually looks healthier after Tru Niagen enters.

Voice Over: Tru Niagen is proven to increase NAD, to support brain health, heart, and muscle health, and energy production that starts in your cells.

CUT TO: A woman holding a Tru Niagen bottle in a super market.

Voice Over: Address one of the root causes of aging... with Tru Niagen – Search Tru Niagen to learn more.

Niagen® is backed by 25 clinical studies that demonstrate safety and/or efficacy.

Our human clinical studies provide our foundation of scientific evidence. Over 75% of registered ongoing or completed nicotinamide riboside trials use Niagen®. Here are five of our studies, just to name a few.

A clinical trial published in Scientific Reports in 2019

Niagen® safely and effectively elevated NAD+ levels in healthy overweight adults.

A study published in Nature Communications in 2018

Nicotinamide riboside safely and effectively elevated NAD+ levels in 60 healthy men and women aged 55-79.

A study published in Cell Reports in 2019

Nicotinamide riboside increased human skeletal muscle NAAD, a sensitive marker of increased NAD+ metabolism.

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2018

2000mg of daily nicotinamide riboside supplementation appeared safe and showed an increase in NAD+ metabolites in urine samples.

A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2020

Nicotinamide riboside modestly improved body composition and acetyl carnitine (a fatty acid transporter) concentrations in skeletal muscle and increased metabolic rate during sleep.

ONE OF THE MOST WELL RESEARCHED PATENTED SUPPLEMENTS ON THE MARKET**; BACKED BY:

2 Nobel Prize
Winners

40+ Patents

300+ Published Scientific
Studies

275+ Global Research
Collaborations

Charlie Brenner in a laboratory. Charlie Brenner in a laboratory. Charlie Brenner in a laboratory. Charlie Brenner in a laboratory. Charlie Brenner in a laboratory.

“The power of this form of vitamin B3 to raise NAD+ impressed me back in 2004 when I discovered it. Now, 14 years and 42 publications on NAD+ later, its unique ability to restore balance in the face of metabolic stress continues to amaze me.”

Charles Brenner, Ph.D., ChromaDex’s Chief Scientific Advisor 

The scientist who discovered nicotinamide riboside's utility as a micronutrient.

A new clinical study shows that Niagen® safely and effectively elevates NAD+ levels.

34 healthy and overweight adults were chosen at random to take NIAGEN® or a placebo for eight weeks. The study proves Niagen® (300mg daily) increases NAD⁺ levels by 40-50%. 

Graph showing 300mg of Tru Niagen vs placebo

Want to dive deeper into the science behind Tru Niagen and NAD+?