The National Advertising Division has issued a final decision in a challenge brought by Niagen Bioscience against competitor Reus Research LLC.
Reus is the marketer of Cata-Kor NAD+ Core and NAD+ Advanced.
The NAD determined that no competent and reliable scientific evidence exists to support claims that orally ingested NAD+ increases NAD+ levels in human cells.
It recommended that Reus discontinue all express health, efficacy and establishment claims related to its NAD+ products.
The ruling serves as a clear endorsement of Niagen Bioscience’s patented nicotinamide riboside (NR) ingredient, Niagen, which is clinically proven to safely and effectively raise NAD+ levels in the body.
The NAD had previously confirmed that supplementation with Niagen NR is supported by reliable evidence showing increased NAD+ concentrations in human blood.
Niagen said the decision underscores the company’s ongoing commitment to scientific integrity and consumer safety, calling for stronger adherence to advertising standards across the supplement sector.
“This victory reaffirms Niagen’s dedication to evidence-based innovation and helps separate clinically validated ingredients from speculative or misleading products,” the company said in a statement.
The case also sheds light on broader industry concerns.
According to Niagen, Reus Research has previously faced issues, including the following:
- An “F” rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB)
- Paid TikTok influencer content without proper disclosure
- The removal of its NR products from Amazon for not meeting label claims, later rebranded under Cata-Kor to circumvent the ban.
Independent testing by SuppCo, a third-party supplement verification initiative, also found that Cata-Kor’s NAD+ products contained as little as 231-324 mg of NAD+ per serving, despite labels claiming 500 mg.
“Our analysis of their label….indicates that some of these 60,000 customers may have believed they were getting 500 mg of NAD+, not 231 mg or 324 mg, as our tests showed," SuppCo noted in its report.
The findings also call into question claims about liposomal delivery in Cata-Kor’s formulations.
According to Niagen’s analysis, the products contained sunflower oil or lecithin — components of liposomes — but not actual liposomal structures capable of enhancing bioavailability.
In a broader market assessment, Niagen’s internal Market Surveillance programme found that 55% of the top 22 NAD+ supplements sold on Amazon contained less than 1% of the NAD+ stated on their labels, with 11 products showing no detectable NAD+ at all.
Niagen said it hopes this decision will encourage greater transparency and responsibility across the supplement industry, ensuring that consumers can trust product claims supported by rigorous science.