NAD+ Reconstitution: How to Mix and Store It

How much bacteriostatic water to add to a NAD+ vial, why 200 mg/mL is common, saline vs BAC water, and how to store it.

Regimen Team · · 5 min read

NAD+ injections aren’t FDA-approved and there’s no official mixing ratio. These are community-standard numbers, not medical instructions.

How much BAC water for NAD+

A 1000mg NAD+ vial usually takes 5mL of bacteriostatic water; a 500mg vial takes 2.5mL. Both land at 200mg/mL, the concentration that comes up most. Use bacteriostatic water, not plain saline, for a multi-dose vial. Storage is the messy part: the community doesn’t agree on an exact shelf life, but everyone agrees keep it cold and don’t sit on a giant vial for months.

How much BAC water for a NAD+ vial?

The concentration people keep landing on is 200mg/mL. Two common ways to get there:

  • 500mg vial + 2.5mL bacteriostatic water = 200mg/mL
  • 1000mg vial + 5mL bacteriostatic water = 200mg/mL

At 200mg/mL, the shot volumes stay small and easy to draw. There’s a comfort tradeoff worth knowing: more water means a bigger but gentler shot (some people deliberately add extra, like 1000mg in 8mL, and report less sting), while less water means a smaller, more concentrated shot that some find stings more. If your NAD+ burns going in, more dilution is a lever.

Run your exact vial through a reconstitution calculator so you know your units per shot. Our reconstitution calculator does the math and saves the recipe.

Saline or bacteriostatic water for NAD+?

Use bacteriostatic water for a multi-dose vial. This comes up a lot and the answer is consistent.

Here’s why. BAC water has benzyl alcohol in it, a mild preservative that keeps bacteria from growing in a vial you’ll puncture over and over for weeks. Plain saline has no preservative, so it’s really only okay for a single use. Since NAD+ vials are big and you dose out of them for a while, BAC water is the right call. Saline in a multi-dose NAD+ vial is one of the common mistakes.

NAD+ for injection has to be sterile, pharmaceutical-grade. The FDA has specifically warned compounders not to use food-grade or supplement-grade NAD+ for injections because of contamination risk. This is a get-it-from-a-legitimate-source point, not a mix-it-from-raw-powder one. We don’t sell it and don’t care which source you use. We just don’t want you injecting something that was never meant to go under your skin.

How to store NAD+ and how long it lasts

Reconstituted NAD+ goes in the fridge.

The shelf-life question is where the community genuinely splits, so here’s the honest version instead of a fake-confident number. Some people repeat a “degrades in 24 to 48 hours” idea. Others say it loses maybe 40 to 50% potency over 10 to 15 days in the fridge. A compounding-pharmacy frame says a punctured vial often gets tossed around 28 days for sterility reasons. These don’t agree, and there’s no clean published answer for home-reconstituted NAD+.

What everyone does agree on: potency ticks down over time, and the risk is worst with a huge vial kept for months. So the practical read is keep it cold, and don’t buy a 1000mg vial you’ll be nursing until fall. If it’s been sitting forever, changed color, or you’re just not sure, that’s a toss-and-remix call.

Common NAD+ reconstitution mistakes

  • Saline instead of BAC water in a multi-dose vial (no preservative).
  • Not refrigerating after mixing.
  • Sitting on a giant vial for months and hoping the potency held.
  • Confusing generic “reconstitution solution” with real bacteriostatic water.
  • Buying unbuffered or badly buffered NAD+, which stings more going in. A buffered product plus more dilution both help.
Vial sizeBAC waterConcentrationOn a U-100 syringe
500 mg2.5 mL200 mg/mL50 units = 100 mg
1000 mg5 mL200 mg/mL50 units = 100 mg
1000 mg8 mL (gentler)125 mg/mL50 units = 62.5 mg

Last column is the conversion for that concentration, so you can read any amount off the syringe. Whatever you’re drawing, the reconstitution calculator gives you the exact units.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does reconstituted NAD+ last in the fridge?

The community does not agree. Estimates run from a couple days to a couple weeks of meaningful potency. Keep it cold and don’t nurse a giant vial for months.

How much BAC water for 1000mg NAD+?

5mL gives you 200mg/mL, the common concentration. Some use more (like 8mL) for a gentler, less stingy shot.

Saline or bacteriostatic water for NAD+?

Bacteriostatic water for a multi-dose vial. It has a preservative; plain saline doesn’t and is really single-use only.

How long does reconstituted NAD+ last in the fridge?

The community doesn’t agree. Estimates run from a couple days to a couple weeks of meaningful potency. Keep it cold and don’t nurse a giant vial for months.

Why does my NAD+ sting going in?

Often an unbuffered or under-diluted product. More BAC water and a buffered source both help, and so does injecting slowly.

Does NAD+ need to be refrigerated?

Yes, once reconstituted keep it in the fridge.

This article summarizes community practice, not medical advice. Injectable NAD+ is not FDA-approved for general use. Talk to a licensed provider before starting, changing, or stopping any medication.

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