Does a NAD infusion (IV drip) make sense?
There is no clinical evidence that a NAD infusion does anything for your health or ageing. Oral NAD supplements do demonstrably raise certain blood values, but tangible health results are lacking for those as well.
NAD infusions are offered at clinics as an anti-aging or wellness treatment, but there is not a single randomised controlled trial supporting this use. A systematic review found only one small, non-randomised study on IV-administered NMN, and that study yielded only short-term safety and blood-value data. No conclusions could be drawn about actual health effects.
Oral NAD supplements (such as NMN) have been studied more thoroughly at the biochemical level. In 28 randomised studies, oral forms demonstrably increased NAD-related metabolic markers in blood and cells, and they were well tolerated. But the same caveat applies here: that rise in blood values has not yet translated into clear, measurable benefits for energy, blood vessels, metabolism or other outcomes that matter to you. Biochemical activity is not the same thing as a tangible health effect.
In Parkinson's disease, a small double-blind study was conducted using IV NADH (a related compound). Five patients received the treatment and four received a placebo. A slight improvement was observed on the Parkinson's rating scale, but the same improvement was also seen in the placebo group and was not statistically significant. The study was far too small to draw any conclusions from.
A NAD infusion often costs hundreds of euros per session. Given the complete absence of clinical evidence for its effectiveness, there is currently no scientific justification for that expense, especially not as an anti-aging or wellness treatment.
All claims are based on one systematic review (PMID 41655607) and one small randomised study in Parkinson's patients (PMID 7887134). No RCTs were found that have investigated IV NAD⁺ in healthy individuals or for anti-aging purposes.