By Dr. Mary Alice Mina, Board-Certified Dermatologist · Host, The Skin Real
What your skin cells are actually starving for, and what the science says about it.
I’ll be honest: when NAD started showing up in my feed, my first instinct was to roll my eyes.
IV drip clinics. Longevity influencers. A serum claiming to “recharge your cells.” It had all the hallmarks of another wellness trend dressed up in science-adjacent language — the kind that gets loud for a year and then quietly disappears.
But then I started reading the actual research. And I stopped rolling my eyes.
If you’ve been paying attention to the wellness world lately, you’ve probably seen NAD popping up everywhere. And if you’re anything like most of my patients, your first reaction is probably: Is this actually legit, or is it just the next CBD?
“The science is real. But there’s a lot of noise to cut through first.”
I sat down with a veteran beauty executive who has spent decades separating what actually works from what just sells — to find out. This is what you need to know before you buy anything with “NAD” on the label.
What Is NAD — And Why Does It Matter for Your Skin?
NAD stands for Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide. Here’s the simple version: it’s a molecule found in every single cell in your body, and it plays a starring role in energy production, DNA repair, and cellular communication.
Think of NAD as the battery that keeps your cells running. When your cells have plenty of it, they function well — they repair damage, regenerate, and stay resilient. When NAD levels drop, cells slow down, break down, and age faster.
Here’s where it gets relevant for your skin: NAD levels naturally decline as we get older. By midlife, our cells have significantly less of it than they did in our 20s. And skin cells — especially in the deeper layers where new skin is actually made — are particularly affected by this drop.
The Aging Skin Problem Nobody Talks About Honestly
Most of us have been told that aging skin is really about losing collagen. And while that’s part of the story, it’s not the whole picture.
What’s actually happening underneath is a cellular energy crisis. Your skin cells work hard every day — protecting you from UV damage, pollution, and environmental stress. They need energy to repair themselves. They need energy to make new collagen. Without enough NAD, that repair process slows down. And that’s when you start to notice it: the dullness, the slower healing, the texture changes, the loss of that lit-from-within glow.
Understanding this helps explain why simply slathering on a moisturizer — or even a great vitamin C serum — isn’t always enough. If your cells don’t have the energy to do the work, the best ingredients in the world can’t fully deliver.
Can Skincare Actually Reach the Cells That Matter?
This is one of the most important — and most overlooked — questions in skincare, and one that comes up directly in our conversation.
Most skincare products, even really good ones, are doing their work on the surface layers of skin. They hydrate, they smooth, they temporarily improve the look and feel. But they’re not reaching the deeper cellular level where real regeneration happens.
THE SCIENCE, SIMPLY PUT:
NAD+ is too large a molecule to penetrate the skin barrier on its own. The more effective approach — developed through academic research — uses a precursor complex: smaller molecules that cross the barrier and prompt the skin to produce its own NAD+ from within. It’s not about applying NAD. It’s about giving your cells what they need to make it themselves.
So when you’re evaluating NAD skincare products, the big question isn’t just “does this contain NAD?” The question is: does this formula have any real evidence that the ingredient is penetrating deeply enough to matter?
How to Spot the Fakes
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: just because a product has “NAD” or “NAD+” on the label doesn’t mean it’s doing anything meaningful for your skin. The space, like so many buzzy ingredient categories before it, has attracted a lot of opportunistic brands.
A few things to look for when evaluating any NAD skincare product: look for NAD precursors like niacinamide or NMN rather than NAD itself — they penetrate more readily and can be converted by the cells. Look for real research, not just ingredient lists. And ask who developed the formula. Vague claims about “cellular renewal” without specifics are a warning sign.
The 3 Non-Negotiables
With decades in the beauty industry, the argument is refreshingly simple: you don’t need a 15-step routine. You need three things done really well.
3 Things Worth Doing Really Well:
- NAD Precursors – The building blocks your cells use to replenish NAD — supporting the repair and regeneration that slows with age. This is where the next wave of effective anti-aging skincare is headed.
- Retinol – Still the gold standard for a reason. Decades of evidence behind its ability to stimulate collagen, speed up cell turnover, and improve skin texture. If you’re not using it yet, talk to your dermatologist about where to start.
- Sunscreen – Non-negotiable, every single day. UV exposure is still the number one driver of visible skin aging, and no amount of serums can undo what the sun does if you’re not protecting yourself consistently.
The Bottom Line
The science behind NAD is not hype. But most of the products wearing the label are. What separates real cellular science from a very expensive moisturizer is whether the ingredient can actually get to work — and whether the brand can prove it.
This conversation is worth your full attention — and it takes an unexpected turn toward the end, into a topic no one in the beauty industry wants to talk about yet, but probably should.
Watch the Full Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2TKLgl8sPw