The Longevity Reality Radar
46 approaches, rated by evidence.

Do longevity supplements work? What the evidence shows

NMN and other NAD+ boosters, urolithin A, taurine and hydrogen water, each graded by the human evidence behind it. None has outcome data yet.

Published 14 September 2026. Built from the radar entries linked below; grades and verdicts update with them.

The short answer

None of the widely sold longevity supplements on this radar has human outcome data. No trial shows that any of them helps people live longer or get sick less. Some reliably raise the molecule they promise to raise, and one shows modest effects on muscle and immune markers. That is a long way from what the marketing implies.

  • Urolithin A (Mitopure)Grade B, RCTs, function markers. Human biomarker trials.Randomised trials show modest gains in muscle strength, endurance and immune markers, but there is no lifespan or disease-outcome data.
  • Hydrogen waterGrade D, single pilot. Early clinical, one pilot.One unreplicated 40-person pilot found longer telomeres, a surrogate marker, there is no outcome data, and most claims come from sellers.
  • NAD+ boosters (NMN, NMNH, NRH)Grade C, NAD levels only. Supplement, early trials.Trials show these supplements raise NAD+ levels 2 to 3 times, but there is no human outcome data on lifespan or disease.
  • Taurine for longevityGrade D, animal data only. Preclinical, human trials under way.Extended healthy lifespan by about 10 to 12% in mice, but there is no human outcome data and later analyses question whether taurine really declines with age.

Raising a level is not a health benefit

The best-supported claim for NAD+ boosters such as NMN is that they raise NAD+ levels, by 2 to 3 times in clinical trials. That shows the supplement is absorbed and does something chemically. It does not show that higher NAD+ makes anyone healthier.

Hydrogen water has the same gap in a weaker form. One randomised pilot trial in 40 adults over 70 reported longer telomeres after six months. Telomere length is a surrogate marker, the trial was small, and it has not been independently replicated. Our guide to biological age tests explains why markers like this are not outcomes.

Urolithin A: real trials, modest results

Urolithin A has randomised human trials at 1,000 mg a day. They report better muscle strength and endurance in older adults, lower markers of cellular senescence, and higher CD8+ T cell and natural killer cell counts. These are functional and biomarker results. There is still no data on lifespan or disease outcomes.

Mouse results do not transfer automatically

Taurine extended healthy lifespan by about 10 to 12% in mice, with improved markers in monkeys, in a 2023 study in Science. Human trials are running, and some later analyses question whether taurine really declines with age in people. Until those trials report, the effect in people is unknown.

What a supplement claim should be able to show

  • A randomised trial in people, not only in mice or cells.
  • An outcome that matters, such as disease, function or survival, rather than only a level in the blood.
  • Results replicated by researchers who do not sell the product.
  • Null and negative trials reported next to the positive ones.

The full grading method is on how we rate.

Where the stronger evidence is

The approaches on this radar with the strongest human evidence for staying healthy are not supplements. Cardiorespiratory fitness and strength are linked to much lower all-cause mortality in large cohorts, and dietary nitrate from vegetables lowers blood pressure in randomised trials. Prescription drugs studied for aging, such as rapamycin, are covered in our guide to anti-aging drugs.

  • VO₂max and strength for longevityGrade B, large cohorts. Established.In large observational cohorts the top VO₂max quartile has about 4 to 5 times lower all-cause mortality than the bottom, and nothing pharmacological on this list comes close.
  • Dietary nitrate and nitric oxideGrade B, blood pressure RCTs. Established, for blood pressure only.Lowers systolic blood pressure by about 3 to 5 mmHg in randomised trials, but there is no outcome data showing it prevents heart attacks, deaths or plaque.

More guides

Not medical advice. Discuss any change with a clinician who knows your history.