NADream: Effects of Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Supplementation on Sleep Quality in Healthy Individuals

What Was Tested

This registered phase 2 trial tested NAD+.

The purpose of this study is to evalue the effects of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) supplementation (nicotinamide riboside (NR) form) on sleep in healthy adults compared to a placebo.

NAD is important for brain health and energy balance and a proposed explanation for its effect on sleep is that NAD supplementation restores the neurophysiological capacity of the brain to 'rest' during sleep.

It had two arms (groups): Nicotinamide Riboside (NR) (experimental) and Placebo (other).

Placebo, no active ingredients. Administered in tablet form twice daily for the duration of the trial (8 weeks).

The registry classes the interventions as dietary supplement and other.

More on the Plan

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is important for regulating cellular energy metabolism, mitochondrial function, and circadian rhythms, which are key processes involved in the sleep-wake cycle and sleep regulation.

As people age, there is evidence of a decline in NAD+ levels, which may lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and disruptions in circadian rhythms.

Impaired NAD+ metabolism has been linked to problems with the molecular clock, which regulates circadian timing through effects on sirtuin activity and clock genes such as BMAL1.

NR may also support synchronization of circadian rhythms, further promoting healthy sleep.

Who Took Part

Enrollment: 16 planned participants were the target.

It was open to people of any sex aged from 40 years up to 60 years.

Healthy volunteers could join, not only people with the condition.

Examples of who could join: Participant must be 40 to 60 years of age inclusive, at the time of signing the informed consent. Male or female. Participants who are healthy as determined by medical evaluation including medical history and physical examination. Capable of giving signed informed consent which includes compliance with the requirements and restrictions listed in the study protocol. Self-reported normal sleep patterns, assessed by Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI; cutoff ≤ 5).

The full record lists 7 inclusion and 11 exclusion criteria; among the exclusions: history of sleep disorders (e.g. insomnia, sleep apnea); chronic use of alcohol, tobacco, or medications affecting sleep; travelled \>1 time zone and night work \<1 month before study, or during the study.

How the Study Was Run

Design: randomized, parallel-group and triple-blind.

Random assignment meant chance, not the researchers, decided who got NAD+ and who got the comparison, which limits bias.

The NAD+ group and the comparison group ran side by side rather than switching.

As a double-blind NAD+ study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

Those kept unaware of assignments: participant, care provider and investigator.

It started in 2025-10-13 with completion listed for 2026-05-01.

It ran at 1 site in Norway.

Its stated primary purpose is treatment.

What Was Measured

Researchers chose this as the main measure: The primary objective is to evaluate the effect of NAD supplementation on objective sleep parameters via polysomnography (PSG) (time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks).

It also tracked 10 secondary outcomes, for example The secondary endpoints are to evaluate the effect of NAD supplementation on objective sleep parameters via polysomnography (PSG), EEG power, Arousals during sleep, Theta activity, Time in bed (TIB) and Sleep onset latency (SOL).

What This Means in Plain Language

Put simply, this is a phase 2, randomized trial of NAD+ in 16 people.

Its size is small, so on its own it can only give an early look.

It is still recruiting; no results are posted to the registry yet, so nothing here describes outcomes.

More context: the NAD+ compound page, all human trials.