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Supplements

NR + Pterostilbene Lifts NAD+ ~40–90% in Human Trial

Nova Chen · · 3 min read
#healthy aging #clinical trial #nad+ #nicotinamide riboside #pterostilbene #nrpt #basis

The headline number: NAD+ up ~40% to ~90%

NAD+ is the coenzyme your cells use for energy metabolism and DNA repair, and levels are widely reported to decline with age. That is why NAD+ precursors are a hot supplement category. One of the most-discussed formulas, NRPT, pairs nicotinamide riboside (NR) with pterostilbene (PT). It is sold commercially as Basis.

The 2017 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in npj Aging and Mechanisms of Disease was the first-in-human repeat-dose trial of the combination. Its core finding:

  • ~40% increase in whole-blood NAD+ at the recommended dose (NRPT 1X)
  • ~90% increase at double the dose (NRPT 2X)
  • No increase in the placebo group
  • No serious adverse events reported

Those gains were measured after four weeks, against both placebo and baseline.

Who was studied and how

The trial enrolled 120 healthy adults aged 60 to 80. Participants were split into three arms:

  1. Placebo
  2. NRPT 1X, the recommended dose
  3. NRPT 2X, a double dose

Everyone took their blinded supplement daily for eight weeks. The researchers tracked NAD+ in whole blood alongside safety outcomes.

Why the combo matters: NR plus pterostilbene

NR is a form of vitamin B3 found in trace amounts in milk. Cells can convert it into NAD+. Pterostilbene is a polyphenol related to resveratrol and found in blueberries. The idea behind the pairing is that the two ingredients complement each other. The trial, however, tested only the combination against placebo. It did not compare NRPT with NR alone or PT alone. So the data cannot tell you how much of the NAD+ rise comes from each ingredient, or whether pterostilbene boosts the effect.

Dose takeaways at a glance

  • Dose-dependent response. Doubling the dose roughly doubled the NAD+ rise, from about 40% to about 90%. This is a useful pattern because it suggests the effect is tied to the supplement.
  • Fast onset. The significant increase was already apparent at the four-week measurement.
  • Sustained, not a spike. NAD+ stayed elevated through the full eight weeks. It did not rise and then fade, which is what "sustainably" refers to in the title.
  • Placebo stayed flat. This makes it less likely that the change came from natural fluctuation or the act of participating in a study.

The 1X arm used the commercial Basis dose. As described in the full paper, that is 250 mg of NR and 50 mg of pterostilbene daily, with the 2X arm doubling both. Check the full text for the exact formulations before drawing any conclusions about your own use.

Safety: what the study did and didn't show

The authors reported no serious adverse events across the eight weeks. That is reassuring for a first-in-human repeat-dose study, and it includes the double-dose group.

The safety evidence has limits:

  • Short duration. Eight weeks says little about years of daily use.
  • Healthy participants only. The results do not cover people with chronic conditions or those on multiple medications.
  • Modest sample size. With 120 people across three arms, rarer side effects could go undetected.

What this study does not claim

This is where hype tends to outrun the data. The trial's endpoints were safety and blood NAD+ levels. It did not report that NRPT:

  • Extends lifespan or slows aging
  • Improves strength, cognition, or energy
  • Reverses any disease marker

Raising NAD+ is a biochemical result. Whether it translates into better health outcomes needs separate, longer trials with clinical endpoints. Anyone selling NAD+ boosting as a proven longevity strategy is going beyond what this paper shows.

Reading the result critically

A few points are worth keeping in mind:

  • Whole-blood NAD+ is a proxy. It confirms that the precursor is absorbed and converted, but it does not show what is happening in muscle, brain, or other tissues.
  • Industry involvement. Studies of branded supplements are often tied to the manufacturer, so check the disclosures in the full paper. Independent replication is always valuable.
  • Population matters. Results in healthy 60-to-80-year-olds may not carry over to younger people or to those with health conditions.

The bottom line

The NRPT trial is a clean demonstration of one thing: in healthy older adults, a daily NR plus pterostilbene supplement raised blood NAD+ in a dose-dependent way, by roughly 40% at the recommended dose and 90% at double the dose. It kept NAD+ elevated for eight weeks with no serious adverse events. What those higher NAD+ levels mean for healthspan remains an open question. If you are considering any NAD+ precursor, especially at higher doses or alongside medications, talk with a clinician first.

Original study

Read the original research on pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov →

This article summarizes published research for general information. It is not medical advice.

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Written by

Nova Chen

Nova Chen writes for Biocracked: biohacking science, longevity & human performance.

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