Written by the Nuvirox Research Team
Short answer: no direct human trials exist. NAD+'s well-documented effects on blood vessel function offer a genuinely plausible mechanism for sexual health, since healthy blood flow is central to sexual response in both men and women — but no study has tested NAD+ precursors for libido or sexual function as an outcome.
Key Points
- Vascular blood flow is central to sexual response, and NAD+ precursors have real, trial-confirmed effects on endothelial (blood vessel) function.
- No published human trial has measured libido, sexual function, or erectile function as an outcome for NAD+ precursors.
- The evidence that does exist (vascular stiffness, walking distance in peripheral artery disease) is suggestive of a mechanism, not proof of a sexual-health benefit.
Why the vascular connection matters here
Sexual arousal and function — in men and women — depend heavily on nitric-oxide-mediated vasodilation, the same process that lets blood vessels widen and increase blood flow to tissue on demand. This is precisely the mechanism erectile dysfunction medications target. It's also the same mechanism that NAD+ precursor research has most consistently shown an effect on: multiple trials of nicotinamide riboside have found improvements in endothelial function, arterial stiffness, and blood-flow-dependent outcomes like six-minute walk distance in people with peripheral artery disease [1].
That overlap is why the libido question comes up. It is a reasonable hypothesis rooted in real biology. It is not, however, something anyone has actually tested.
What has actually been studied
The relevant trial evidence comes from cardiovascular research, not sexual health research. The NICE trial, a randomized, double-blind clinical trial in 90 people with peripheral artery disease, found that 6 months of NR significantly improved six-minute walk distance compared to placebo — a functional outcome dependent on blood flow to working muscle [1]. Separately, a crossover trial in healthy middle-aged and older adults with impaired vascular function found NR supplementation improved measures of arterial stiffness and endothelial function over 6 weeks [2].
Study snapshot: NICE trial — NR and blood-flow-dependent function
| Design | Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled |
| Population | 90 adults with peripheral artery disease |
| Dose / duration | NR with/without resveratrol, 6 months |
| Key finding | +17.6m improvement in 6-minute walk distance vs. placebo |
Neither trial — nor any other published NAD+ precursor study — measured libido, sexual satisfaction, erectile function, or any related outcome. The connection to sexual health is an extrapolation from vascular biology, not a demonstrated result.
What NAD+ won't do
NAD+ precursors are not an approved or clinically tested treatment for low libido, erectile dysfunction, or female sexual dysfunction, and they shouldn't be substituted for evaluation of those conditions. Sexual dysfunction has many possible causes — vascular, hormonal, psychological, medication-related, or relational — and a proper evaluation by a doctor can identify the actual driver, some of which (like uncontrolled diabetes, low testosterone, or certain medications) have specific, effective treatments that a supplement won't replace.
A reasonable way to think about this
If low libido shows up alongside other signs of poor vascular health — like cold hands and feet, or reduced exercise tolerance — it's worth mentioning to your doctor as part of a broader cardiovascular picture, since vascular health genuinely is one contributor to sexual function. But that's different from expecting a supplement, on its own, to meaningfully change libido. The honest position is that this is biologically plausible and clinically untested.
Frequently asked questions
Does NAD+ increase libido?
There's no direct evidence either way — no trial has tested this. NAD+ precursors do have documented effects on blood vessel function, which is relevant to sexual response, but that's an indirect, untested connection.
Is NAD+ like a natural alternative to erectile dysfunction medication?
No. ED medications work through a well-studied, specific mechanism with strong clinical trial support for that exact use. NAD+ precursors haven't been tested for this purpose at all.
What should I actually do if I'm concerned about libido or sexual function?
Talk to a doctor. Low libido and sexual dysfunction can stem from hormonal, vascular, psychological, or medication-related causes — many of which are very treatable once identified.
Could poor vascular health be part of the picture?
It can be a contributing factor in some cases, since healthy blood flow matters for sexual response. That's worth mentioning to your doctor, but it's one possible piece, not a diagnosis.
The same vascular mechanisms discussed here show up in a few other places in NAD+ research — our article on NAD+ and fertility covers the reproductive-health angle specifically, and if hormonal changes around midlife are part of what’s driving the question for you, our new article on NAD+ and menopause covers a directly relevant 2026 pilot trial.
Does age-related NAD+ decline affect men and women differently for this?
NAD+ decline with age is documented in both sexes, but the specific downstream effects on sexual health haven't been separately studied by sex in any NAD+ precursor trial, so there's no evidence-based distinction to draw here yet.
For context on how meaningful the walking-distance improvement in the PAD trial actually was: a 17.6-meter between-group difference in six-minute walk distance is generally considered clinically meaningful in cardiovascular rehabilitation research, since it reflects a real functional change in blood-flow-dependent physical capacity, not just a statistical blip. That’s useful context for why researchers consider the vascular mechanism behind NAD+ precursors credible enough to keep studying — but it also underscores how far that specific, measured outcome (walking distance in diagnosed vascular disease) is from an untested outcome like sexual function in a general population. The biology bridges the two; the evidence does not.
It’s also worth noting that vascular function is only one contributor among several to sexual response, alongside hormonal, neurological, and psychological factors. Even if the vascular mechanism NAD+ precursors support turns out to matter here, it would likely be one piece of a larger picture rather than a complete explanation — which is one more reason a doctor’s evaluation, capable of assessing all of these contributing systems at once, is a more useful starting point than a supplement.
From Nuvirox
Why we formulated NAD+ Restore
If what you're dealing with sounds like it belongs in a doctor's office rather than a supplement aisle, please start there — a clinician can rule out the specific causes discussed above. For general cellular energy support, each serving of NAD+ Restore provides 500 mg of nicotinamide riboside chloride (NR), one of the two most-researched NAD+ precursors, within the dose range used in published human trials, alongside 150 mg trans-resveratrol and 50 mg quercetin (polyphenols studied alongside NAD+ pathways for cellular health support) and 10 mg of galactomannans from fenugreek to support absorption.
We back it with a 60-day money-back guarantee — long enough to actually evaluate it the way the research says you should.
Learn more about NAD+ Restore →The bottom line
The honest answer is that no one has studied this directly. NAD+ precursors have a real, trial-supported connection to vascular and blood-flow-dependent outcomes, and blood flow genuinely matters for sexual function — but connecting those dots is an extrapolation, not a finding. If sexual health is a real concern, a doctor can actually diagnose what's driving it; a supplement can't.
References
- McDermott MM, Martens CR, Domanchuk KJ, et al. Nicotinamide riboside for peripheral artery disease: the NICE randomized clinical trial. Nat Commun. 2024;15:5046. doi:10.1038/s41467-024-49092-5.
- Martens CR, Denman BA, Mazzo MR, et al. Chronic nicotinamide riboside supplementation is well-tolerated and elevates NAD+ in healthy middle-aged and older adults. Nat Commun. 2018;9:1286. doi:10.1038/s41467-018-03421-7.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.