Methylene blue vs NAD+ and its precursors
Every row cites its source. Where a cell reflects our own reading of the evidence rather than an external source, the row says so.
| Dimension | Methylene Blue | Nad Precursors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regulatory status | FDA-approved as an IV drug (ProvayBlue) for methemoglobinemia; no approved oral form | No FDA-approved NAD+ drug product exists (openFDA Drugs@FDA query returns no records) | source |
| Mechanistic claim | Electron cycling in the mitochondrial electron transport chain; hormetic dose-response; rodent-verified, human-unmapped | Substrate repletion of the NAD+ pool; covered on the sister site | source |
| Human cognitive-outcome RCTs | One: single 280 mg dose, n=26, +7% memory retrieval accuracy; nothing chronic | None head-to-head with methylene blue; no published comparison exists | source |
| Serious risk profile | Boxed warning (serotonin syndrome with antidepressants and opioids); G6PD contraindication; dose-dependent toxicity from 3 mg/kg | Different profile; see sister site rather than an unsourced summary here | source |
| The honest bottom line | A real drug with a real warning and thin cognitive-enhancement evidence | A supplement category without approved-drug status; neither compound has chronic human cognitive-outcome data | source |
Marketed side by side as 'mitochondrial' compounds; the evidence bases barely overlap. Our sister site nadplusrx covers the NAD+ evidence with the same standards; this table links there rather than duplicating its claims.