Digestive enzyme supplements can be beneficial for people with enzyme deficiencies, helping them to digest food and absorb nutrients. However, most healthy individuals do not need to take additional enzymes. As we age, our bodies experience a decline in the levels of the coenzyme NAD+, which is directly related to the aging process. To combat this degenerative condition, some people turn to dietary supplements.
These supplements come in various forms, such as pills, capsules, powders, gel capsules and tablets, extracts, or liquids. They may contain vitamins, minerals, fiber, amino acids, herbs or other plants, or enzymes. Sometimes, the ingredients in dietary supplements are added to foods and beverages. You don't need a prescription to buy dietary supplements. However, it is important to be aware of potential side effects and interactions with prescription drugs. Today, there are NMN supplements that are marketed with anti-aging properties.
But very few have clinical evidence to support that claim. The Imai laboratory and others are working to develop NMN and another NAD+ intermediate, nicotinamide riboside (NR), as anti-aging strategies. In a recent study published in Cell, a team of researchers from Penn Medicine and other institutions demonstrated how a much-studied enzyme called SIRT1 decreases in blood vessels with age and that restoring it reverses the effects of vascular aging. The researchers also used a higher dose in the study compared to what is available on the market. Furthermore, ENAMPT is also found in human extracellular vesicles and supplementing with EnAMPT significantly extended the lifespan of elderly mice. Future studies should be conducted to see if low levels of the enzyme are associated with diseases in older people and if encapsulated ENAMPT supplements could also delay aging.
