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You've probably heard of vitamin B3. It's a molecule that's in your cells right now, quietly helping keep you alive. It goes by other names such as nicotinamide. You've also heard of niacinamide, particularly if you're a skincare girly on social media.
Sometimes it's just called vitamin B3, or occasionally you will see NAD plus booster.
It's all largely the same thing. Kind of.
I wanted to have a chat about this particular ingredient because it's one of the many pieces of magic in Incrediballs, my new drinks start-up, which launches next week, so I know a lot about this ingredient.
But I also want to talk about it because it's kind of a symptom of the massive wellness industry, which is actually about three times larger than pharma.
So is it just hype, is it actually useful or does it just give you really expensive wee... ?
Kia ora, kaitiaki, and welcome to Now That’s What I Call Green. I’m your host, Brianne West—an environmentalist and entrepreneur trying to get you as excited about our planet as I am.
I’m all about creating a scientific approach to making the world a better place—without the judgement—and making it fun. And of course, we’ll be chatting about some of the most amazing creatures we share our planet with.
So if you’re looking to navigate through everything green—or not so green—you’ve come to the right place.
You’ve probably heard of vitamin B3.
It’s a molecule that’s in your cells right now—quietly helping keep you alive.
It goes by a few different names:
It’s all largely the same thing. Kind of. We’ll get to that.
I wanted to have a proper chat about this particular ingredient because it’s one of the magic pieces in Incrediballs—my new drinks startup, which launches next week.
So, yes—I know a lot about this ingredient. But also because it’s a bit of a symptom of the massive wellness industry, which—by the way—is about three times larger than pharma.
(Which is always interesting, given how much people love to bang on about “Big Pharma” being evil... and look, I don’t think pharmaceutical companies are wonderful by any stretch—but I have a very similar opinion of wellness companies. You just don’t hear about it as much.)
Like anything big and shiny and full of hype, NAD+, nicotinamide, niacinamide—ehhh... the science isn’t quite there for a lot of the claims being made.
Also, this week you’ll get the very first Micro Greens episode—short, sharp, sweet episodes that answer questions you’ve sent in. That’s out Thursday. And if you’ve got something you want answered, send it through!
So today’s topic:
Nicotinamide. NAD+. Niacinamide.
One form of vitamin B3.
It’s recently exploded on wellness TikTok, but it’s also turned up in peer-reviewed journals and dermatology guidelines, so there is something there.
But is it just hype?
Or is it actually useful?
Or does it just give you really expensive wee?
Let’s find out.
First, the name.
Yes, it sounds like it’s got something to do with tobacco—but it is not made from nicotine.
It has absolutely nothing to do with smoking.
Although yes—the names are irritatingly similar.
There are a few forms of vitamin B3 floating around out there:
If you’re a skincare girlie, you’ll already be familiar with niacinamide.
It’s been the star of SkincareTok and Skinstagram for years.
It’s known to help with:
And yes—that’s exactly the same ingredient that’s in your serum as what we’ve put in Incrediballs.
We just call it nicotinamide.
Why the name difference?
I Googled this a lot and asked a few science-y folks.
And it basically comes down to... branding.
“Niacinamide” sounds friendlier to customers.
“Nicotinamide” is what scientists and regulators prefer.
So that’s what goes on your ingredient panel if you’re being technical.
I know—it’s weird. But if I lamented all the weird stuff in the world, we’d be here all day.
You can take nicotinamide orally, yes. And we actually have quite a bit in our bodies already.
You may have seen NAD+ in ads or on TikTok.
It stands for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. (Try saying that three times fast.)
It’s a molecule found in every single cell in your body.
It’s not a vitamin. It’s what your body makes from nicotinamide, and it does a bunch of not-so-sexy but very important things:
In short: it’s essential.
But of course—because aging is a non-stop joyride of bad news—we lose NAD+ as we age.
Stress, sleep deprivation, poor diet? All make it worse.
And the enzymes that recycle NAD+? They get less efficient too.
It’s just an unavoidable fact:
We need NAD+. But we have less of it the older we get.
[TO BE CONTINUED IN NEXT MESSAGE...]
[CONTINUED: Episode Transcript – Nicotinamide]
So what does nicotinamide have to do with it?
Nicotinamide is a key player in something called the salvage pathway.
Which, yes, sounds like a recycling plant—but it’s actually the main way your body maintains NAD+ levels.
Here’s the quick-and-nerdy version:
Then, once NAD+ is used up, one of the byproducts is… you guessed it: nicotinamide.
And—because our cells are like tidy kiwis (if you’re from Aotearoa and over 30, you’ll get that reference)—our bodies take that nicotinamide, convert it back into NMN, and then into NAD+ again.
It’s a self-sustaining cycle. It’s actually kind of beautiful.
NMN isn’t some magic supplement. It’s just an intermediate your body makes from nicotinamide.
Yes, you can buy it as a supplement—it’s trendy—but your body makes it anyway.
And nicotinamide is:
Which brings us right back to Incrediballs.
I wanted to make a drink that eliminates plastic bottles.
(Not news if you’ve listened to this podcast before.)
I also wanted it to taste amazing—which it does. (You’ll be able to try it very soon!)
And I wanted an additional benefit or two.
We’ve got vitamin B12, yes—but I wanted something more.
And weirdly, nicotinamide ended up ticking a lot of boxes.
It’s part of the stability matrix that makes Incrediballs shelf-stable and plastic-free—but it’s also effective at a physiologically useful level.
It’s:
It’s not magic. But it’s legitimately useful.
[TO BE CONTINUED IN NEXT MESSAGE...]
[CONTINUED: Episode Transcript – Nicotinamide]
Alright—if nicotinamide boosts NAD+ levels...
Does that mean it’ll make you smarter?
Protect your brain?
Help you remember where your damn keys are?
Let’s break it down.
First, nicotinamide is NOT a nootropic.
Even if you haven’t heard that word before, it just means a substance that boosts cognitive function—like memory, focus, clarity.
So no, it’s not going to turn you into Bradley Cooper in Limitless.
(It’s also not going to make you microdose mushrooms and chew raw liver like a biohacking bro.)
But—is there evidence that it helps your brain function, especially with age?
Surprisingly, yes—some early research in humans, not just mice.
For example:
Another small trial found it lowered levels of a blood protein linked to Alzheimer’s regression.
Yet another found that raising NAD+ levels in older adults reduced phosphorylated tau, a key Alzheimer’s marker.
Still—no one’s claiming this is a cure, and the cognitive test results in these studies were… mixed.
But it’s promising.
A 2022 study gave newly diagnosed Parkinson’s patients 1000mg of nicotinamide riboside (a related precursor) or a placebo daily for 30 days.
Results?
Again—interesting. Not definitive. But a step.
So for healthy people in their 30s or 40s?
You might not notice anything right away.
But if you’re interested in long-term cognitive resilience, nicotinamide could be a smart, subtle support act.
[TO BE CONTINUED IN NEXT MESSAGE...]
[CONTINUED: Episode Transcript – Nicotinamide]
Here’s where the wellness industry goes into overdrive.
Some people are selling NAD+ boosters as a fountain of youth.
Is there some truth to that?
Sort of.
But not in the way Instagram ads would have you believe.
By middle age, your NAD+ levels are likely half what they were as a teenager.
And that sucks, obviously.
There are three key aging-related pathways NAD+ is involved in:
Most of the studies showing NAD+ boosting longevity come from:
🐭 Mice
🪰 Flies
🐶 Dogs
And yes, they often:
...But we’re not mice.
Just because something works in rodents doesn’t mean it works in humans.
Need I remind you of thalidomide?
It was tested in rodents, looked totally fine, and then caused catastrophic birth defects in humans.
So: promising, yes. Proof? Not yet.
Sort of.
One study gave middle-aged adults nicotinamide riboside for 6–12 weeks.
Result: improved blood pressure and arterial stiffness—which are both related to aging.
Another showed modest improvements in inflammation.
Not bad.
But again—not “miracle molecule” stuff.
If anything, NAD+ is about healthspan, not lifespan.
More years functioning well—not just living longer.
And honestly? That’s what I’d choose.
You’ve definitely seen niacinamide hyped up for your skin:
So what does the actual science say?
Topically? Yes.
There’s solid evidence for applying niacinamide to your skin.
Orally?
Not so much.
There’s no strong evidence that taking nicotinamide improves skin appearance.
Hydration, tone, texture—those claims are anecdotal.
But!
There is one thing nicotinamide does for your skin that’s really well-supported...
At a dose of 500mg twice a day, nicotinamide has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of:
That’s huge.
One trial showed a 23% reduction in new cancers over 12 months.
So, if you're at high risk of skin cancer, nicotinamide is a legit recommendation.
Dermatologists are backing this more and more.
Forget the glow.
It might actually save your skin.
Ah, the old “natural energy” claim.
Yes, NAD+ is involved in energy production—it’s part of the ATP-making process.
But no—it’s not caffeine.
You won’t feel a buzz.
Think of it like supporting baseline energy, not spiking it.
In terms of metabolism:
But...
So... mixed bag.
We won’t be claiming Incrediballs “boosts your metabolism,” because that’s not a thing.
But it might support your cells in doing what they already do, just a little more efficiently.
[TO BE CONTINUED IN NEXT MESSAGE...]
[CONTINUED: Final Section – Episode Transcript: Nicotinamide]
Yes.
Because—as with all things—the dose makes the poison.
In Australia and New Zealand:
The Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) is just 16mg/day.
→ That’s the amount needed to prevent deficiency—not support optimal health.
Incrediballs contains:
You’d have to drink 13 full-strength serves in a day just to hit the UL—
If you’re doing that, we need to talk about your hydration habits.
At mega-doses (3000mg+ per day), side effects may include:
There’s also a theoretical risk that very high doses could inhibit some of the enzymes you’re trying to support (like PARPs).
So again—more is not better.
Support NAD+ regularly—not in one heroic chug once a week.
A lot of wellness brands throw around vague claims like:
...without explaining anything.
We didn’t want to do that.
Nicotinamide is:
And while NMN or NR are trendier, they’re more expensive, less stable, harder to dose, and... your body turns them into nicotinamide anyway.
So we thought—skip the middleman.
No, NAD+ is not a miracle molecule (yet).
But it is legit.
And if you're trying to support your brain, body, and skin in a sustainable, scientifically sound way—nicotinamide is worth knowing about.
And yes, I’m excited that it ended up in Incrediballs—kind of by accident, honestly. But a happy one.
That’s it for this episode!
Let me know if this was clear or helpful—or if it made your brain melt with too many acronyms.
And there you go.
I hope you learned something—and realised that being green isn’t about everything in your pantry matching with those silly glass jars or living in a commune.
If that’s your jam, fabulous.
But sustainability at its heart is just using what you need.
If you enjoyed this episode, please don’t keep it to yourself—drop me a rating and hit that subscribe button.
Kia ora, and I’ll see you next week.
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