N-Acetyl Cysteine and Your Health

Check price on NAC below.

N-ACETYL-CYSTEINE N-A-Cysteine is not "homocysteine"

N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC) is an important supplement that can prolong and improve life in several important ways. It is an acetylated form of the amino acid cysteine. NAC is a potent antioxidant.

NAC is used by the body to make glutathione peroxidase, one of the body's most important naturally occurring antioxidants. NAC raises glutathione levels better than taking supplemental glutathione.

NAC is a chelator of heavy metals. In other words, NAC binds to toxic heavy metals such as mercury and lead, and removes them from the body. This can be a slow process, but most chelating agents, such as EDTA, must be given intravenously. NAC is one of the most effective oral chelating agents. (Alpha-Lipoic Acid is another effective agent.) Taken regularly over a period of time, NAC will remove many toxic heavy metals from the body. Toxic metals can accumulate in the body over time from many sources such as drinking water and possibly even from tooth fillings made of silver-mercury amalgam.

NAC is an excellent mucolytic agent. It keeps the membranes of the respiratory system moist, thereby lessening the irritation of dry air, dust, and pollutants. It also helps the immune system to do its job properly in the respiratory tract. NAC is available as a prescription drug for this purpose, but you can get NAC from us for far less money.

The cysteine in NAC is an essential component in hair and nails. Many people find that it enhances nail growth and makes nails less brittle.

NAC helps to prevent damage by aldehydes, which are breakdown products of alcohol [and of the small, but significantly harmful, amounts of methanol produced by aspartame(Nutrasweet)].

NAC can help to prevent damage to the liver caused from overuse of acetaminophen (Tylenol). NAC is the standard treatment for acetaminophen overdose. It is prudent to take NAC whenever one uses acetaminophen. Baylor College report links liver damage to lack of antioxidant "The problem occurs when you run out of glutathione." NAC stimulates the formation of glutathione.

N-Acetyl-Cysteine is much more stable than L-Cysteine, and resistant to being oxidized to an insoluble form. Nevertheless, it is wise to take at least as much vitamin C as N-Acetyl-Cysteine, to prevent the possibility of deposits forming. (Diabetics should consult their physician before using N-Acetyl-Cysteine, since it may have an insulin-blocking effect.)

NAC (N-acetyl-cysteine) has been in the news a lot since the publication of research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, on March 4, 1997. That research demonstrated beyond a doubt that oral use of NAC is associated with significantly greater survival for people with HIV. NAC stimulated interest as a possible treatment over 8 years ago. It is known that supplementation with NAC will cause glutathione levels to increase and that glutathione levels are decreased by an average of 30% in the blood and 60% in lung tissue in HIV-positive persons. In early 1991, Dr. Alton Meister of Cornell University Medical College reported the spread of HIV to be reduced up to 90% using NAC. Since that time numerous studies have been conducted and the results are promising for NAC. When used in combination with Interleukin-2 (IL-2), it resulted in markedly enhanced immune cell proliferation and function. One study demonstrated a significant T4 cell increase using NAC. Another demonstrated that hiv replicates more easily when glutathione levels are low and that NAC replenishes glutathione levels. Low cysteine levels also appear to correlate with elevated TNF (tumor necrosis factor) and b-2-m (beta-2-microglobulin) levels, both of which signify an increase in viral activity.

Many drugs, most commonly acetaminophen (Tylenol) and alcohol, deplete glutathione. HIV itself may lower glutathione levels by a complicated mechanism involving producing a chemical, called TAT, that interferes with two enzymes necessary for glutathione function.

The doses used in most studies of people with hiv were 1800 to 2000 mg per day in 3 doses of 600 mg or 4 doses of 500 mg. As an amino acid, it is much better to take it on an empty stomach with either water or fruit juice (the sugar in the juice enhances absorption). One commonly read HIV treatment book says to take it with food but that is completely wrong! Other foods, mainly other proteins, will compete with the uptake of cysteine and you could be wasting the product unnecessarily. The culprits in the food are two other amino acids, taurine and methionine, which will decrease the absorption of cysteine. Occasionally a person will complain of mild stomach distress from taking this supplement without food. In this case, eat something light that has little or no protein, such as a bowl of cereal or oatmeal, pasta, or some fruit.

The key to the ability of NAC to provide protection from so many disorders may lie in the sulfur and sulfhydryl groups contained in N-Acetyl Cysteine and its derivative, Glutathione. Both Cysteine and Methionine are good precursors of glutathione, but N-Acetyl Cysteine is better. L-cysteine loses approximately 85% of its sulfur group (which becomes the active part of glutathione) in the digestion process, while N-Acetyl Cysteine, a more stable compound, loses only 15%. This means that N-Acetyl Cysteine has almost six times more effective sulfur groups left after digestion.

N-Acetyl Cysteine is actually a better source of glutathione than taking glutathione itself, because less than half of supplemental glutathione gets out of the digestive system and into the body. This greater efficiency is important since cellular glutathione levels tend to drop 30% to 35% with age. Supplemental N-Acetyl Cysteine may have an anti-aging effect by increasing glutathione levels particularly in the liver, lungs, kidneys and bone marrow. Still, NAC is best known as an oral chelation agent. Research is continuing, and is favorable. For example, an Italian study gave NAC or a placebo to participants in a study during the cold and flu season. Those using NAC who did get the flu had only one third of the flu symptoms usually experienced.

A very promising report from the U. of Florida on NAC and neurological disorders. Extensive report on NAC from Thorn Labs.
A well documented report on NAC from Dr. Richard Passwater, PhD.

Typical supplemental doses of N-Acetyl-Cysteine are 500-2000 mg. per day.
NutriTeam Home

NACysteine is Not Homocysteine

Perhaps you've heard that "cysteine" is dangerous. This is a misunderstanding. "Homocysteine" is the culprit that is getting so much press in heart-health studies these days, and for good reason.

The yolk of an egg contains about 250 mg of cysteine. Cysteine is the primary nutrient needed to maintain healthy skin, fingernails and hair. It has many other uses in the body -- as one of the building blocks of the structure of your body. Cysteine is so important to the body that the body can actually also manufacture cysteine out of other amino acids.

Cysteine, therefore, is not catagorized as an "essential" amino acid. That means that while your body must have cysteine, the body can make it. In other words, you don't have to eat foods containing cysteine to have the necessary supply, but you may want to. If you do eat foods with cysteine (like an egg) or take cysteine in a tablet(as above in its more stabilized form), then the body doesn't have to make it. Taking cysteine this way bypasses the body's production of cysteine.

How does the body make cysteine?

There is another amino acid which is essential. This is "methionine." Methionine is "essential" because you must have it to live and because the body cannot manufacture it. You get methionine in an egg, too, as you also get it in many other forms of protein. The body uses methionine to make cysteine. How?

By first converting it to homocysteine. Then the body converts the homocysteine into regular cysteine, but only when there is enough of certain other nutrients (mostly B Vitamins) available. So, if you take cysteine directly into your mouth, there is no homocysteine created. If you eat your ordinary food and don't get enough B vitamins, your ordinary food can, some of it, convert into homocysteine and never get converted into cysteine. So those who may have claimed that taking a cysteine supplement(as above) is "dangerous" are not making an accurate statement.

Heart disease is now believed much more closely linked to high levels of homocysteine than high levels of cholesterol. The statement that "homocysteine causes heart disease" is not fully accurate, though. The homocysteine is high only when there is a deficiency in B vitamins. And it may be homocysteine's ability to oxidize cholesterol that presents the biggest problem. There is more research to be done.

Click for Nutriteam HomePage

More Info?
send email to:
NutriTeam, Inc.
Or call toll-free: 1 800 785-9791. Or not-toll-free, 1 802 388-0661(voice), 1 815 377-2198(fax) And thanks!