N-acetyl cysteine

N-ACETYL-CYSTEIN 500MG REV VCP

 http://www.douglaslabs.com/product.cfm?litm=200062-90X

 http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-nac.html


N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) is a derivative of the amino acid L-cysteine. Health benefits come from the fact that Amino acids help the body build protein. NAC also provides excellent anti-oxidant support in the body.
Anti-oxidant Effect Explained In NAC, an acetyl group (COCH₃) is attached to the nitrogen atom in Cysteine. NAC is then a precursor in the formation Glutathione, which is a powerful antioxidant in the body. The thiol (sulfhydryl) group gives Glutathione its antioxidant effects as it is able to reduce free radicals by donating electrons to bond with any unpaired electrons found in the body. Unpaired electrons are usually produced by the body in response to damage, illness and stress. Glutathione is stable even when it donates these electrons, hence it is an excellent antioxidant as it doesn't continue the chain effect of grabbing electrons. This is how all anti-oxidants work.
Health Benefits of N-Acetyl Cysteine As well as its powerful anti-oxidant effect, NAC offers many other health benefits ranging from counteracting poison to remedying lung infections. For example, N-acetyl cysteine works to treat bronchitis, ear infections, help relieve hangover symptoms, help with symptoms of Lou Gehrig’s disease and heart disease, lower cholesterol, reduce cancer treatment side effects, help with polycystic ovary syndrome, increase immunity against certain strains of influenza, help increase energy and allow the body to recover faster after a sports injury. It may lessen symptoms of these diseases and also reduce common side effects from the medication used to treat these patients.
Psychiatric Conditions It is also thought to help in various psychiatric conditions. So far results are looking very good for: bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, depression, cocaine craving, smoking, and obsessive symptoms. It may also help with Autism, as this condition may be due to cysteine and related sulfur amino acids depletion.
Counteracting Poison N-Acetyl cysteine is so powerful, in fact, that it works to help counteract acetaminophen poisoning and carbon monoxide poisoning. Individuals exposed to certain heavy metals like cadmium, mercury or lead often take the medication to help counteract dangerous side effects of exposure.
The supplement also helps prevent an allergic reaction to x-ray dyes and phenytoin (which is an anti-seizure drug) and reduce the side effects of some cancer treatments.
Hospital Uses Many hospitals use N-Acetyl Cysteine to prevent a crusting over of the windpipe after an individual has received a tracheotomy. In addition, doctors give the medication to those with heavy mucus in the lungs, such as cystic fibrosis or pneumonia patients.

Dosing and how to take In general, health adults can take 600 mg tablets or capsules, twice daily as a health supplement to improve overall health and immunity. If only one dose is being taken, try to take at night time and on an empty stomach.
When taken as a health supplement for lung problems such as bronchitis or asthma, 200 mg twice a day is recommended.
Using N-Acetyl cysteine as a poison treatment should be performed by a doctor but is usually 140 mg, followed by several doses of 70 mg. Consult a doctor or call 911 immediately if you suspect that you or someone else has ingested dangerous doses of acetaminophen or any other substance.
If taking N-Acetyl cysteine for chest pain that does not go away during rest, take 600 mg three times daily and call your doctor. If the chest pain is sudden or severe, call 911 or head for the nearest hospital for assistance.
N-Acetyl cysteine can be given through an IV to help prevent kidney failure, reduce chest pain during a heart attack and to slow down organ failure. There is research to suggest that taking N-Acetyl cysteine may reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack for kidney disease patients by as much as 40 percent.

 interactions Do not use N-Acetyl cysteine with nitroglycerin, as this can cause the body’s blood flow to increase and the blood vessels to dilate. In addition, activated charcoal interacts with N-Acetyl cysteine if given at the same time to help prevent poisoning and may reduce the effectiveness of both treatments.
 http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2010/may2010_N-Acetyl-Cysteine_01.htm
 In this article, you will discover the latest research on N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), a readily available, inexpensive amino-acid derivative with four decades of scientific validation. You will learn of its role in restoring intracellular levels of one of the body’s most powerful antioxidant defenses, glutathione (GSH). You will also find out how 600-1,800 mg of NAC daily may act as an effective intervention against a constellation of chronic, degenerative diseases, including impaired glucose control and cancer.

 http://www.raysahelian.com/acetylcysteine.html

 N Acetyl l cysteine is made from the amino acid cysteine joined to an acetyl group. This nutrient (sometimes abbreviated as N-A-C  or NAC) is a strong antioxidant. It donates the amino acid cysteine to help form the antioxidant glutathione, a powerful natural antioxidant normally found in the body.

 Benefit
N-acetylcysteine is an excellent source of sulfhydryl groups and is converted in the body into metabolites capable of stimulating glutathione synthesis, promoting detoxification, and acting directly as a free radical scavenger. Administration has historically been as a mucolytic [mucus dissolving] agent in a variety of respiratory illnesses; however, it appears to also have beneficial effects in conditions characterized by decreased glutathione or oxidative stress, such as HIV infection, cancer, heart disease, and cigarette smoking. 

Athletics and physical exertion
N acetyl cysteine enhances muscle cysteine and glutathione availability and attenuates fatigue during prolonged exercise in endurance-trained individuals.
J Appl Physiol. 2004.
The production of reactive oxygen species in skeletal muscle is linked with muscle fatigue. This study investigated the effects of the antioxidant compound acetylcysteine on muscle cysteine, cystine and glutathione, and on time to fatigue during prolonged, submaximal exercise in endurance athletes. Eight males completed a double-blind, crossover study, receiving acetylcysteine or placebo before and during cycling. The nutrient was intravenously infused for 20 min prior to and throughout exercise. This natural antioxidant improved performance in well-trained individuals, with enhanced muscle cysteine and GSH availability a likely mechanism.

Chemotherapy benefit
There is a condition called "chemo-brain," which effects a large number of cancer patients receiving chemotherapy patients. Patients with this condition suffer from memory loss and have difficulty with focus and concentration. Dr. Gregory W. Konat at West Virginia University School of Medicine in Morgantown first gave one group of rats to two drugs commonly used to treat cancer, Adriamycin and Cytoxan. These drugs led to memory problems. However, memory loss was prevented when the rats were given n-acetylcysteine injections three times per week during chemotherapy. Metabolic Brain Disease, 2008.


Kidney disease and peritoneal dialysis
In patients with chronic kidney disease, inflammation and oxidative stress are cardiovascular risk factors. A study looked at the effect of oral NAC on plasma levels of inflammatory and oxidative stress markers in peritoneal dialysis patients. The eight week, placebo-controlled study included 30 patients on regular peritoneal dialysis. Twelve patients were treated twice daily with 600 mg of NAC and the remaining ten patients received placebo. NAC significantly decreased IL-6 levels without adverse side effects. Treatment reduced the inflammatory response in peritoneal dialysis patients. Nascimento MM, Suliman ME. Effect of oral N-Acetylcysteine treatment on plasma inflammatory and oxidative stress markers in peritoneal dialysis patients. Perit Dial Int. 2010.

 Tylenol toxicity, overdose, acetaminophen excess
In addition to its antioxidant properties, acetylcysteine is currently used to counteract the effects of an overdose of acetaminophen (i.e., Tylenol). Regular use of the painkiller acetaminophen is associated with higher rates of liver and kidney toxicity, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and reduced lung function. Animal experiments have suggested that acetaminophen might lower antioxidant activity in the lungs, and causes harm to the liver and kidneys. With hundreds of people each year dying from acetaminophen overdose, thousands more with liver damage or other health problems, why is acetaminophen still available for sale without a prescription whereas regulators have tried to pull away certain nutritional supplements that are far less toxic? Those who need to take the painkiller for a health condition should consider regular use of acetylcysteine, a nutrient that protects the liver from this drug's toxicity. As a resident, I prescribed intravenous N-acetylcyteine to patients with liver damage due to acetaminophen (Tylenol) overdose. It protected the liver quite well. 

 http://www.life-enhancement.com/magazine/article/636-n-acetylcysteine-can-take-a-load-off-your-chest


N-ACETYLCYSTEINE DOES DOUBLE DUTY AS ANTIOXIDANT
NAC is notable not just as an antioxidant but also as a precursor to the body's "master antioxidant," glutathione, the most important antioxidant in our cells. Glutathione itself cannot be taken as a supplement, by the way, because it breaks down in the digestive tract. Our bodies produce it in great abundance, however. It can become depleted by the frequent use of acetaminophen (Tylenol), and in cases of acetaminophen overdose (the most common reason for calls to poison control centers in the United States), the standard treatment is with NAC, which protects the liver from the damage that would otherwise be done. NAC is also used to treat poisoning by the death cap mushroom, Amanita phalloides.


N-ACETYLCYSTEINE'S BENEFITS ARE CONFIRMED
The Swiss researchers evaluated eight studies from five different countries, conducted between 1976 and 1994 on a total of 1408 patients with chronic bronchitis. Five of the studies had found a positive benefit from NAC, whereas three had not. Their duration ranged from two to six months, and the dosages used varied from 600 mg three times per week (equivalent to 257 mg per day, on average) to 600 mg per day. Several studies used 400 mg per day, which is now considered to be the lower limit of the recommended dose, according to the authors. The NAC was well tolerated: side effects were mostly mild gastrointestinal upset.
When all the statistical smoke cleared, the authors concluded:

. . . the results of the present meta-analysis suggest that 3 to 6 months of therapy with NAC results in a definite, although not extreme, reduction in the expected number of acute exacerbations of CB and may thus decrease morbidity and health care costs.

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 http://altmedicine.about.com/od/completeazindex/a/clove_benefits.htm