Regular fasting and cutting calories by around a third, has been demonstrated to have health benefits. In some cases it has been observed as a way to naturally extend lifespan.

This longevity boost has been attributed to the suite of changes the body implements, such as slowing down the metabolism, when it recognises that food is scarce.

Now a dietary supplement, a substance called nicotinamide riboside (NR), a building block for vitamin B3, has shown early signs that it can have similar effects without having to go to the brink of starvation.

Researchers from the University of Colorado at Boulder observed that a regular dose of NR started the same metabolic processes seen in people who are fasting.

It also showed some slight improvements in patients’ blood pressure and their arterial health, which are now set to be investigated further in larger longer clinical trials.

“This was the first ever study to give this novel compound to humans over a period of time,” said senior author Doug Seals, a professor and researcher in the Department of Integrative Physiology.

“We found that it is well tolerated and appears to activate some of the same key biological pathways that calorie restriction does.”

It is the second study this month to look at substances which may short-cut the calorie restriction health benefits,

The other trial, in mice, showed that a different supplement could reverse the cardiovascular effects of old age with “surprising ease” and has moved to human tests.

Professor Seals and his fellow authors in the latest study, published in the journal Nature Communications, stressed it should be considered a pilot and was aimed at testing if the drug was safe and what sort of doses could be useful.

The team only followed 24 health volunteers, aged 55 to 79, for a period of six weeks with half receiving a 500mg dose of the supplement twice a day, and half receiving a placebo.

It found that the supplement group had elevated levels of a chemical called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), which is depleted more quickly in old age.

NAD+ activates a group of enzymes called sirtuins which control these body aging processes and are credited with the health benefits seen in fasting.

“The idea is that by supplementing older adults with NR, we are not only restoring something that is lost with aging, NAD+, but we could potentially be ramping up the activity of enzymes responsible for helping protect our bodies from stress,” said lead author Chris Martens.

Though the trial is small it noticed that some of the participants with elevated blood pressure saw decreases which could amount to a sizeable reduction in heart attack risk.

Independent researchers said the findings were “interesting” but certain benefits of this particular supplement could not be claimed just yet as the results were only marginally significant and needed more subjects.

This is a very early look into what this new supplement might do,” said Professor Naveed Sattar, professor of metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow.

He said it was too early to get excited but hoped to see bigger studies looking at the impact in patients with diagnosed high blood pressure or who were clinically obese.

He added: “We have had many results from such small studies in the past which have not been replicated – so, it’s interesting, but very early.”

The Independent

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