Daily consumption of nicotinamide riboside (NR) has a myriad
of health benefits for older persons, says a new research.
Nicotinamide ribosidea, a dietary supplement, is a form of
Vitamin B3.
Researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder say NR
restricts calories, improves blood pressure and cardiovascular health.
Caloric restriction, which is the act of reducing food
intake without causing malnutrition, has been found to slow down ageing
process.
To make the determination, half of the study participants
were given a placebo for six weeks, and also took a 500 mg twice-daily dose of
nicotinamide riboside (NR) chloride (NIAGEN), while the other half took NR for
the first six weeks, followed by placebo.
The researchers took blood samples and other physiological
measurements at the end of each treatment period.
They found that in 13 participants with elevated blood
pressure or stage 1 hypertension (120-139/80-89 mmHg), systolic blood pressure
was about 10 points lower after supplementation.
The researchers say a drop of that magnitude could translate
to a 25 percent reduction in heart attack risk.
“This was the first ever study to give this novel compound
to humans over a period of time,” said senior author Doug Seals.
“We found that it is well tolerated and appears to activate
some of the same key biological pathways that calorie restriction does.”
On his part, lead author Chris Martens, said: “The idea is
that by supplementing older adults with NR, we are not only restoring something
that is lost with aging (NAD+), but we could potentially be ramping up the
activity of enzymes responsible for helping protect our bodies from stress.”
The study was published in the journal, Nature
Communications.
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