When we started element³, neither of us came from nutrition or medicine. We built our careers in e-commerce, data, and global scale. So when it came to deciding what goes into a bottle that women across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, the US, and Asia would take every morning, we leaned purely on evidence.
NMN was one of the most scrutinised formulation decisions we made. It's also one of the most misunderstood ingredients in the global wellness category right now, surrounded by big promises, complex regulatory shifts, and very little plain explanation.
This is how we thought about it, what the human research supports, and where the honest limits are.
What is NMN, actually?
NMN (β-nicotinamide mononucleotide) is a naturally occurring molecule that acts as a direct precursor to NAD⁺, an essential coenzyme your cells use for normal energy production.
Found in trace amounts in foods like edamame, broccoli, and avocado, its job in the body is highly specific. In plain terms: your cells use NAD⁺ to turn the food you eat into usable cellular energy, and NMN is one of the primary raw materials they use to make it. When you read about "NMN supplement benefits" and energy support, this is the biological mechanism underneath the claim.
The reason this matters from your mid-thirties onward is that natural NAD⁺ levels can decline with age. Research suggests this decline can begin earlier than many women expect, which is part of why we built element³ specifically for women 35 and over, rather than a generic daily multivitamin.
Why did NMN earn a place in element³ Rise?
We didn't start with NMN. We started with a globally-minded approach.
We studied 120 international supplement brands, analysed 127 competing products, and then examined 124 individual active ingredients down to their specific form, their dose, and the clinical research behind them.
NMN survived our standard for two reasons:
- Measurable mechanisms. NMN targets something real and measurable, NAD⁺ availability, rather than a vague feeling of "vitality."
- Human clinical data. The human research, while young compared to legacy vitamins, is genuinely promising. We prioritised trials conducted on people, not just cell cultures or animal models.
These studies include work by Igarashi et al. (2022) on muscular function in older adults,1 Morita et al. (2022) on NAD⁺ biomarkers,2 and Yi et al. (2023) on physical performance.3 We link all of them on our ingredients page so you can read exactly what our formulation team read.
Why not just take NAD⁺ directly?
You might wonder: "If we need NAD⁺, why not just put NAD⁺ in the capsule?"
An NAD⁺ molecule is large. Swallowed whole, it doesn't pass easily into the cell.
This is where NMN comes in. NMN is the smaller raw material your body uses to make NAD⁺. It passes into the cell more readily, and once inside, your cellular machinery converts it into the NAD⁺ your cells run on.
What dose did we choose, and why?
element³ Rise contains 250mg of NMN per serving, a dose chosen to sit within published human trials and strict international regulatory limits.
We chose this dose for two reasons.
First, 250mg sits comfortably within the range recognised by some of the world's strictest regulators. The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) recognises a maximum daily NMN intake of 500mg,4 so at 250mg we work well within global limits.
Second, NMN doesn't work alone in Rise. We formulated it in deliberate synergy with Trans-Resveratrol and PQQ, two ingredients that support complementary cellular energy pathways. When ingredients are chosen to work together, the question stops being "how much of this one thing can we fit on the label?" and becomes "what does the whole formula need to perform well?"
How do we source it?
Purity matters more with NMN than with almost any other ingredient we use.
Because NMN is a premium raw material, the global market carries a wide, sometimes concerning, spread of quality. We source β-NMN, and every batch is tested. We set this specification for consistency: whether you order from Auckland, London, or Los Angeles, you get the same high-grade NMN in every serve of Rise.
We also specifically use beta-NMN, the molecular form used in the majority of human clinical trials, rather than cheaper, less-studied variants.
Is NMN safe, and what is its regulatory status?
Here's the part we think matters most, because transparency is the foundation of our brand.
NMN has been well-tolerated in human studies at doses up to 1,200mg per day, which leaves our 250mg dose with a wide safety margin. Some people report minor digestive changes when they first begin supplementation, which reflects the current picture from published trials.
Navigating the global regulatory landscape
As a globally-focused brand, we watch regulatory science closely. The legal landscape for NMN has moved quickly:
- United States: after a period of regulatory ambiguity, the US FDA reversed its previous stance in late 2025 and now recognises NMN as a lawful dietary ingredient.5
- Australia: in December 2025, the TGA, widely considered one of the strictest regulators in the world, added NMN to its Permissible Ingredients Determination for listed medicines, with a maximum daily intake of 500mg for adults.4
- UK & Europe: NMN continues to be monitored under food and novel-food frameworks, managed by the FSA and MHRA.
The honest limitation is time. Robust, multi-decade safety data is still emerging, simply because NMN is a relatively new ingredient in human research. We'd rather say that plainly than imply a certainty the science doesn't yet support. The TGA restricts NMN to adults and does not recommend it during pregnancy or breastfeeding, so if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or taking prescription medication, please speak with your healthcare practitioner before starting any new supplement.
The short version
NMN earned its place in element³ Rise because it does a specific, measurable job: it supports your cells' ability to produce NAD⁺. We chose a 250mg dose backed by human trials, we made sure it met strict global compliance standards, and built it to work in synergy with Trans-Resveratrol and PQQ.
The research is promising and expanding. We'll keep reading it, keep working with our medical advisors, and keep publishing exactly what we find.
Read the full research behind NMN, Trans-Resveratrol, and PQQ, or see how all 21 active ingredients come together in Rise.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. element³ products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
