If you’ve been to any aesthetics conference or scrolled through a practitioner Facebook group in the last year or two, you’ve probably noticed the same three letters coming up again and again: NAD+. It’s gone from a niche longevity-clinic offering to something showing up on treatment menus at general aesthetic practices, med spas, and even some GP-led wellness clinics. So what’s actually behind the buzz — and is it worth clinics paying attention to?
Let’s break it down properly, without the hype.
What NAD+ Actually Is
NAD+ (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) is a coenzyme found in every living cell in the body. It’s not some new discovery — it’s been studied in biochemistry for over a century — but what’s changed is how it’s being applied clinically.
In simple terms, NAD+ plays a central role in how cells produce energy. It shuttles electrons around during metabolic processes, and it’s a required partner for enzymes involved in DNA repair and cellular signalling. Without adequate NAD+, cells become less efficient at doing basic maintenance work.
Here’s the part that’s driving clinical interest: NAD+ levels naturally decline with age. By the time someone reaches their 40s or 50s, NAD+ levels can be roughly half of what they were in their 20s. Researchers have linked this decline to a number of processes associated with ageing — reduced mitochondrial function, slower cellular repair, and changes in metabolic health. That’s the scientific hook that’s pulled NAD+ out of the lab and into clinical settings.
Why It’s Landed in Aesthetics Specifically
NAD+ started in longevity and functional medicine circles — IV clinics offering it for energy, recovery, and general “healthspan” support. Aesthetics has picked it up for a few overlapping reasons:
It fits the shift toward “inside-out” treatments. Clients are increasingly asking about skin quality and cellular health, not just wrinkle reduction. NAD+ sits comfortably alongside polynucleotides, skin boosters, and biostimulators as part of that broader regenerative-aesthetics conversation, rather than being framed as a stand-alone miracle fix.
It diversifies the treatment menu. For clinics already offering injectables, adding NAD+ (via injection or IV) is a relatively low-friction way to introduce a new category without retraining on an entirely different skill set.
Client demand is genuinely pulling it in. A lot of clinics report that clients are arriving already having heard about NAD+ from wellness influencers, podcasts, or biohacking content, and are asking for it by name. That’s different from most aesthetic trends, which are usually clinic-led rather than client-led.
It complements existing protocols. Some practitioners are positioning NAD+ as a support treatment — something offered around procedures, or as part of a broader wellness and skin-health package, rather than competing directly with fillers or toxins.
What the Evidence Actually Supports (and Where It’s Thin)
This is the part worth being honest about, because NAD+ marketing can get ahead of the science.
There’s solid, well-established research on NAD+’s role in cellular metabolism and DNA repair at a biochemical level — that part isn’t controversial. Where things get less certain is the leap from “NAD+ is important for cellular function” to “supplementing NAD+ produces measurable clinical anti-ageing or aesthetic outcomes in humans.”
Most of the human trial data on NAD+ precursors (like NMN and NR, which are related but not identical to direct NAD+ administration) is still early-stage — small sample sizes, short durations, and mixed results on things like energy, cognitive function, and metabolic markers. Direct NAD+ injection or infusion has even less robust, peer-reviewed clinical trial data behind it specifically for skin or aesthetic outcomes. A lot of what’s circulating is extrapolated from cellular and animal studies, or based on practitioner and client-reported experience rather than controlled trials.
That doesn’t mean it’s ineffective — plenty of clinics report positive client feedback around energy, recovery, and general wellbeing, and the underlying biology is genuinely interesting. But it does mean clinics should be careful about how they frame it to clients. “Supports cellular energy and metabolic function” is defensible. Guaranteeing reversed skin ageing or dramatic anti-ageing results from a course of NAD+ isn’t backed by strong clinical evidence yet, and overselling it is a fast way to damage trust — and potentially fall foul of advertising standards.
How Clinics Are Typically Offering It
NAD+ is usually delivered one of two ways:
- IV infusion — slower administration, allows for higher doses, generally used in wellness/longevity-focused settings
- Subcutaneous or intramuscular injection — quicker in-clinic, easier to fit into an aesthetics appointment slot, increasingly common as an add-on or stand-alone offering
Injectable NAD+ tends to be the more practical fit for aesthetic clinics that don’t have IV infrastructure already set up, which is part of why it’s spread quickly through the injectables space specifically.
What to Think About Before Adding It to Your Menu
If you’re considering bringing NAD+ into your clinic, a few practical questions are worth working through first:
- Sourcing — NAD+ products vary in quality and regulatory status. Working with a supplier that provides CE-approved, properly documented products matters, particularly given the relative lack of long-established regulatory precedent compared to more established injectables.
- Training — administration itself isn’t complicated for practitioners already comfortable with injectables, but understanding dosing, contraindications, and realistic client expectations takes some study.
- Positioning — decide whether you’re offering it as a wellness adjunct, a skin-health support treatment, or part of a broader longevity offering. How you frame it will shape both client expectations and how you market it.
- Client screening — as with any treatment, a proper consultation matters. NAD+ isn’t necessarily appropriate for every client, and practitioners should be upfront about what it can and can’t realistically deliver.
The Bottom Line
NAD+ is a legitimate area of biochemistry with a genuinely interesting rationale behind it, and it’s clearly resonating with clients who are paying attention to wellness trends. That’s a large part of why clinics are adding it to their menus — it meets real demand and fits naturally alongside existing regenerative and skin-health treatments.
At the same time, the clinical evidence for aesthetic-specific outcomes is still developing, and clinics that treat it as an evidence-backed miracle rather than a promising, client-requested addition will serve their clients — and their reputations — better in the long run.
For clinics exploring the category, the sensible starting point is the same as with any new treatment: source from a reputable, CE-approved supplier, get properly trained on administration and client selection, and set expectations honestly.
Looking to add NAD+ to your clinic’s treatment menu? Browse our range of CE-approved NAD+ products, sourced for UK aesthetic practitioners.