NAD+ and Sleep Quality

Jan 18

You probably know that NAD+ has a crucial role in preventing aging and chronic disease.

You may also have heard that increasing NAD+ concentration through lifestyle and supplementation can boost energy levels and even contribute to disease prevention.

But, what role do sleep quality and quantity play in supporting healthy NAD+ concentrations?

This article reviews the science that reveals the role of sleep in supporting NAD+ concentrations and how increasing NAD+ concentration through lifestyle and supplementation may support sleep quality.

Sleep, Aging, and the Circadian Rhythm

To better understand the relationship between NAD+ levels and sleep, it is helpful to understand the basis of sleep-wake cycles, known as the circadian rhythm.

The circadian rhythm encompasses the physical, mental, and behavioral cyclical change in the human body over a 24-hour cycle (1). It responds to light and dark and fasting-feeding times, among other things, and result from healthy cell function. It also affects hormone release, eating habits and digestion, basal body temperature, and metabolic homeostasis. Disruption of the circadian clock is associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome (a precursor for type 2 diabetes) and obesity (2).

As humans age, circadian function declines. In fact, to quote one study, “several lines of evidence indicate that decline in circadian processes is a hallmark of aging.” This is observed in the following tendencies that come with age:

- Increased daytime napping

- A shift toward earlier hours of waking and sleep-onset

- Dampened oscillation (higher lows and lower highs) of gene expression throughout the day, making sleep and wake disruption common.

The circadian clock controls the levels of NAD+. It does this by regulating the expression of nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT), the rate-limiting enzyme in the salvage pathway of NAD+ biosynthesis. NAD+ is also synthesized from tryptophan, a protein associated with sleepiness (3, 4).

Read more about ways NAD+ promotes anti-aging.

How Your Current NAD+ Levels Influence Your Sleep Quality

NAD+ levels fluctuate throughout the day, peaking a few hours after waking and a few hours after sleeping. Fluctuations of NAD in the day may affect motor and cognitive functions during the day and the rest-activity cycle at night. Regarding the sleep cycle, this means that low NAD+ levels could cause restlessness and disruptions in the REM (rapid-eye-movement) stage of sleep, in addition to using too much energy to try and maintain regular bodily functions (3).

In short, healthy NAD+ concentrations help to regular the sleep-wake cycle. When NAD+ concentrations are low, or the oscillations in NAD+ levels over a 24-hour cycle are not normal sleep is disrupted and you can feel lethargic during the day (3).

How NAD+ Supplementation May Improve Sleep Quality

As our cells age, they induce a decline in circadian function. This means that as people grow older, they often feel sleepy during the day, have trouble sleeping at night, sleep less time, or sleep very lightly. This is likely primarily due to the impact of aging on stress-response pathways (2).

Newly published lab research suggests that supplementing with the NAD+ precursor, nicotinamide riboside (NR), significantly impacts the body’s stress response pathways. In fact, lab research found that providing nicotine riboside (NR), a NAD+ precursor in the drinking water of old mice, countered the decline in nighttime activity (5). If these findings transfer to humans, it means that supplementation with NAD+ and NAD+ precursors may help support healthy sleep cycles, not by inducing sleep but by helping to repair normal cellular function.

Main Takeaway

Health researchers know of the fundamental importance of NAD+ in health, wellbeing, and longevity. Much of the research has focused on understanding how NAD+ levels wane as we age and the impact on cell function and disease risk. The research on the influence of NAD and sleep is in the early stages. Still, knowing that NAD+ levels oscillate in line with the circadian rhythm, the potential impact of supplementation with NAD+ and NAD+ precursors on sustainable sleep quality is promising.

References

1. Levine, D. C., Hong, H., Weidemann, B. J., Ramsey, K. M., Affinati, A. H., Schmidt, M. S., Cedernaes, J., Omura, C., Braun, R., Lee, C., Brenner, C., Peek, C. B., & Bass, J. (2020). NAD+ Controls Circadian Reprogramming through PER2 Nuclear Translocation to Counter Aging. Molecular Cell, 78(5), 835–849.e7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molcel.2020.04.010

2. Pirinen, E., Auranen, M., Khan, N. A., Brilhante, V., Urho, N., Pessia, A., Hakkarainen, A., Kuula, J., Heinonen, U., Schmidt, M. S., Haimilahti, K., Piirilä, P., Lundbom, N., Taskinen, M. R., Brenner, C., Velagapudi, V., Pietiläinen, K. H., & Suomalainen, A. (2020). Niacin Cures Systemic NAD+ Deficiency and Improves Muscle Performance in Adult-Onset Mitochondrial Myopathy. Cell Metabolism, 31(6), 1078–1090.e5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2020.04.008

3. Williams, A. (2009). P3.188 Fluctuating symptoms, including sleep-disturbances, and metabolic/electrical rhythms that drive normal brain function may be forged by NAD+ bimodal circadian oscillations. Parkinsonism & Related Disorders, 15, S196. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1353-8020(09)70752-7

4. Sahar, S., Nin, V., Barbosa, M. T., Chini, E. N., & Sassone-Corsi, P. (2011). Altered behavioral and metabolic circadian rhythms in mice with disrupted NAD+ oscillation. Aging, 3(8), 794–802. https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.100368

5. Bieganowski, P., & Brenner, C. (2004). Discoveries of Nicotinamide Riboside as a Nutrient and Conserved NRK Genes Establish a Preiss-Handler Independent Route to NAD+ in Fungi and Humans. Cell, 117(4), 495–502. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0092-8674(04)00416-7