When you swallow a supplement, a significant amount of it doesn’t reach your bloodstream. That is not a flaw in the supplement — it is how digestion works. The compound passes through the gut wall, survives first-pass metabolism in the liver, and what remains enters systemic circulation. For some nutrients, at everyday doses, that process works adequately. For others — particularly at the concentrations required to have a measurable therapeutic effect — the attrition is the problem.

IV delivery removes that variable entirely. The compound goes directly into the bloodstream. Bioavailability is 100%. The question is not whether IV delivers more — it does, by definition. The question is whether the difference matters for what you are trying to achieve. That depends on the compound, the dose, and the clinical picture.

Below is a precise account of what we use, why, and what the evidence shows. Including where it has limits.

What we use — and the rationale behind each

At Your Little Self we offer three IV protocols. Each has a specific mechanism. Here is what is in them and why.

NAD+

Think of NAD+ as the fuel your cells use to produce energy. Levels decline naturally with age, but they also drop faster under chronic stress, illness, or sustained pressure — which is why people who are physiologically depleted often feel it most acutely. The difficulty with taking it orally is that it does not survive digestion well enough to reach the cells that need it. IV is currently the most reliable way to raise levels where it counts.

Mitochondrial energy · Cellular repair

Curcumin

Curcumin is the active compound in turmeric, and it has a well-researched role in reducing inflammation. The problem has always been getting enough of it into the body — taken orally, most of it never makes it past the gut into the bloodstream. IV bypasses that entirely, delivering it at concentrations that can actually have an effect on systemic inflammation rather than just passing through.

Systemic inflammation · Immune modulation

Glutathione, Vitamin C + Acetylcysteine

Your body makes its own antioxidant — glutathione — but chronic illness, sustained stress, and environmental load deplete it faster than the body can replenish it. The problem with taking it orally is that the digestive system breaks it down before it can be absorbed, so it never arrives where it is needed. IV bypasses that entirely and delivers it intact.

Vitamin C and Acetylcysteine (NAC) work alongside it — one helps the body recycle glutathione once it has been used, the other helps the body produce more of its own. Together the three compounds address the same deficit from different angles.

Antioxidant defence · Hepatic detoxification · Immune resilience

**What the evidence actually shows**

The research behind each of these protocols is genuinely promising — the mechanisms are well understood, and the clinical studies are growing. What does not yet exist is the kind of large-scale trial data that would satisfy a medical regulator. That is true of many interventions that work well in practice, and it is worth being clear-eyed about.

If you are someone who will only act on definitive proof, this is an honest heads-up that the wider research field has not yet reached that point.

The goal here is not to persuade you. It is to give you the information required to make a considered decision — and to be direct about where the evidence is strong and where it is still emerging.

Where IV supplementation fits in an existing protocol

For the people we work with, IV supplementation is rarely a starting point. It is a next step — taken after the foundations are already in place.

If you already have a private GP, a functional medicine practitioner, a targeted supplement protocol, and a structured approach to nutrition and training, and you are still not where you should be — that is the gap IV supplementation is designed to address. Not as a replacement for what you are already doing. As the layer above it.

The protocol may be relevant if:

You are carrying significant cumulative physiological load — sustained pressure, post-viral depletion, or recovery from a period of high demand
You want a proactive protocol that supports your capacity to perform at the level your life currently requires — not just in the short term
You are thinking in decades, not just months, and want to invest in cellular health now, before depletion becomes clinically significant

Your existing supplement protocol is well-constructed and you are still not seeing the cellular recovery or energy baseline you would expect
You have a chronic inflammatory or autoimmune condition and are looking for a clinically informed adjunct to your current treatment
Your gut function means oral absorption is compromised

How it works in practice

Sessions at our Kensal Rise clinic run between 45 minutes and 4 hours (NAD+ 500mg) depending on the protocol. There is no significant downtime. A NAD+ infusion can cause a mild transient sensation during administration; this is normal and is managed by adjusting the infusion rate.

A clinical consultation precedes any treatment. We will take a detailed history, review any relevant bloodwork, and discuss what you are trying to achieve. If your picture requires input from your GP or specialist before we proceed, we will say so. If the protocol is not the right fit, we will be direct about that too.

Treatment is typically delivered in courses rather than single sessions — the cumulative effect is meaningful, and results build over time. We will discuss what a realistic protocol looks like for your specific situation at consultation.

What this clinic is — and what it is not

This

A clinically led protocol with a specific mechanism of action

A clinically informed complement to an existing health protocol

An honest account of the evidence, applied to your specific picture

A considered protocol that starts with a proper clinical conversation

Not this

A wellness experience designed to make you feel good in the moment

An alternative to conventional medicine

A guarantee of dramatic or immediate results

Something you book on a whim and see how you feel

Your Little Self is CQC registered. I am a registered nurse. All protocols are administered with prescriber oversight. That is not a marketing credential — it is a minimum standard, and it matters when you are putting something into a vein.

Start with a consultation — not a session.

We will review where you are, what you are already doing, and whether this fills a gap your current protocol cannot. If it does not, we will tell you. If it does, we will build something that works.

Book your consultation

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