A key compound that can help address fertility issues faces an FDA ban. We must stop it. Action Alert!
Are you, or is someone you know, trying to start a family but having real difficulty? You’re/They’re not alone. We’re facing a massive crisis in fertility, affecting both men and women. Research has shown, for example, that sperm counts for men have fallen 59% from 1973 to 2011; girls are experiencing early puberty; adult women face declining egg quality and more miscarriages. One researcher stated bluntly, “Not everyone who wants to reproduce will be able to.”
Exciting new research is showing the promise of a metabolic cofactor, nicotinamide dinucleotide NAD+, in helping those with fertility challenges. A straightforward way of increasing the amount of circulating NAD is to supplement with a key precursor, nicotinamide mononucleotide – otherwise known as NMN. Unfortunately, the FDA is poised to ban NMN, because a drug company wants a monopoly on it. Help us push back against this shameless ransacking of nature!
A new study has elaborated on the connection between NAD+ and fertility. NAD+ is present in all cells but naturally declines as we age; in the study this decline was observed in the ovaries, and we now know that it contributes to the winnowing over time of egg numbers combined with reduced egg quality—both factors add up to decreased fertility in females.
It stands to reason that maintaining optimal NAD+ levels would help support fertility. NAD+ is not absorbed well by cells, so we need precursors to raise blood levels of NAD+. There is some debate as to which precursor is most effective, but NMN is one of the most promising and cost effective agents available proven to augment NAD+.
This would all be great news for people struggling with fertility issues—if the FDA wasn’t pursuing a ban on NMN supplements. As we’ve been reporting for some time now, the FDA announced that NMN is not a legal dietary supplement because a pharmaceutical company studied it first for use in a drug. You can read our previous articles for the details. The larger issue at play is the “back-channel” at the FDA that allows Big Pharma to turn natural products into monopoly drugs.
The study on NAD+ and fertility points to the incredible promise of this and related molecules for a wide range of health conditions. NAD+ is critical to longevity; studies have shown that boosting NAD+ levels increases insulin sensitivity, reverses mitochondrial dysfunction, and extends lifespan. It is insanity for the FDA to even consider simply handing this compound over to the drug industry.
>>>Check out our article on supporting a healthy pregnancy
To be clear, NMN is not a silver bullet that can cure all ills. There’s plenty of other changes that can be made to lifestyle and nutrition that have been shown to help support a pregnancy and promote fertility. Research has shown that consuming a multivitamin reduced the risk of ovulatory infertility. A small amount of folate added to a prenatal multivitamin can substantially cut the risk of neural tube defects and spina bifida. In fact, ANH-USA’s first lawsuit was the landmark case of Pearson v. Shalala—and because we won, there is now widespread public knowledge about the importance of consuming enough folate during pregnancy to prevent neural tube defects. But folic acid is not the only vitamin that is needed to reduce the risk of neural tube defects. Those with low circulating levels of the closely-related vitamin B12 are also significantly at risk. We’ve also reported on the detrimental impact of environmental contaminants like endocrine-disrupting chemicals on fertility.
Infertility can be associated with a host of diet and lifestyle factors that interact with an individual’s specific genetic profile: insufficient or excessive exercise, heavy metal contamination, stress, lack of sleep, micronutrient deficiencies and electromagnetic pollution, to name some of the most important.
An additional note: as infertility rates rise, more and more people are turning to in vitro fertilization (IVF). The decision to pursue IVF is of course up to every woman and her doctor, but what are less publicized are the downsides to pursuing this technological solution, especially if natural methods discussed above are overlooked. Quite aside from its traumatic, prolonged and often unsuccessful nature, IVF treatment involves a big whack of artificial hormones whichmay aid conception in the short term but cause untold problems in the future.
The main point is that we, as patients, deserve all the available options to heal. We must push back against the FDA restricting those options for no apparent reason other than to line the coffers of Big Pharma.
Action Alert! Write to Congress and the FDA, telling them to protect consumer access to NMN supplements. Please send your message immediately.
