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N-acetyl cysteine (NAC)

Discussion in 'Drug and supplement treatments' started by Invisible Woman, May 4, 2018.

  1. Invisible Woman

    Invisible Woman Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I have recently received my order of Jarrow N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine 600mg sustained release tablets. I am mainly hoping they will improve sleep and help stop the old wired, but tired kind of feeling.

    I know some take one tablet 3 times per day: am, afternoon and evening.

    The instructions on the pack say 1 tablet once or twice a day.

    If you use it, how often and when do you take it?
     
    adambeyoncelowe and Mij like this.
  2. James

    James Established Member (Voting Rights)

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    90
    Only using it once a day on empty stomach (morning) as no side effects doing this which is always a good thing when finding what the system will tolerate.
     
  3. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    My bottle (400mg) says to take x3/day. Do not take with abxs or nitroglycerine or consult a doctor if you have diabetes or kidney stones.

    I've been taking x3/day without food for one week. My brain feels very calm, but I'm feeling quite exhausted so not sure if it's from taking the supplements. I think I will stop on the weekend to see how I feel.

    I'm taking it at 9:30 am, 3:30 pm and 9:30 pm
     
  4. Arnie Pye

    Arnie Pye Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I usually take one just before I go to bed. If my lungs are particularly bunged up I might add a second dose in the early afternoon, but I never do that for more than a few days because I find it dries my lungs out too much.
     
  5. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Adult Dosage
    Take 1 capsule three times daily with protein-containing meals, or as directed by a qualified health care practitioner.

    Cautions
    Do not use if you are taking nitroglycerin or antibiotics. Consult a health care practitioner prior to use if have kidney stones, diabetes or if you are pregnant or breastfeeding. If you experience sweating, paleness, chills, headaches, dizziness and/or confusion, discontinue use and consult a health care practitioner as these may be symptoms of serious low blood sugar.
     
  6. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    @Invisible Woman how are you doing on the NAC?

    I've had a couple of weeks to experiment and have concluded (based on how I feel) that taking it with food (protein) is more effective than on an empty stomach. It does have a calming effect on my brain, I'm not longer experiencing racing over stimulating thoughts. It has not improved my sleep though, at least no yet.
     
  7. Invisible Woman

    Invisible Woman Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    10,280
    Well.....I've been a big fat chicken....

    I was having a spot of bother with another med and as @James pointed out:

    I stopped and had a think and will wait until everything else has settled again before starting low and going slow.

    Even, after 20 years I still benefit from someone reminding me to be cautious.
     
  8. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Update. I've been taking 1200mg + 300mg ALA/day for 1 month and I have to say that there is something to this supplement. My reason for trying it is because I was hoping it would help improve my sleep. It has not really, but it has helped with wired/tired so there is some sort of calming effect. Seriously, it does help with that.

    I'm also noticing an improvement(?) in next day post power walking exertion. I stay within my energy limits to prevent PEM, so no PEM for the last 2+ years (!). Since taking NAC I feel zero indication that I even went out the day before which is quite interesting. I'm even able to do light weights (8 minutes) and some squats the next day.

    So for now I'm taking a break from NAC for a few weeks because I don't want to take any chances on it's immune modulating effects. I've had negative experiences in the past with immune modulators.
     
    Last edited: Jun 5, 2018
  9. Webdog

    Webdog Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Took Jarraw NAC up to 1800mg over a period of about 3 months. Never noticed any effects at all.
     
  10. hinterland

    hinterland Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    337
    Good choice, that’s the product I take.

    Weirdly, I’ve found that it helps with fat loss. As another poster mentioned, it can also ease congestion in the lungs.

    As I’m extra sensitive to meds/ supplements in general, I only take the NAC-sustain 2 or 3 times a week. Yes, only 2 or 3 tabs per week, and it still does me good, I believe.
     
  11. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    8,204
    So I restarted NAC after taking a 2 week break. My general observation is that it takes the 'edge' off. My sleep has improved but I can't say for certain it's NAC related.

    One interesting thing. . . I don't drink coffee every day but when I do I make sure I don't have any appointments, errands or plans to go out power walking that evening because caffeine exhausts me for at least 8-10hrs. In fact it makes me feel hung over. Yet I still drink it :rolleyes: It has had this affected on me for over 20 years. Since taking NAC I don't feel that exhaustion or edginess so that I can go out for my walks in the evening and 'do stuff' that day.

    I'm wondering if NAC detoxifies caffeine out of my system quicker and this is why I'm no longer experiencing this negative effect? Or whether it just has an overall calming effect on my nervous system and fooling me that I can do more?
     
  12. Mij

    Mij Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    8,204
    Update: I am recovering from a terrible viral infection that started around 3 weeks ago. Vertigo, ear inflammation, herpes rashes, very painful mouth ulcers and muscle fatigue. I lost a few kgs from not being able to eat from the mouth ulcers. Just miserable. I haven't had this sort of thing for years and I'm suspecting it might be from taking NAC because it has immune modulating effects.

    My supplement also contained ALA, so in addition to NAC I was taking 300mg ALA/day. I've read that too much can cause "antioxidative stress" (negative effects of antioxidants).

    I took it for 2 months and only has a few left so threw them out.
     
    hinterland likes this.
  13. Dolphin

    Dolphin Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    4,990
    Post copied from N-Acetylcysteine to Combat COVID-19: An Evidence Review, 2020, Zhongcheng Shi and Carlos Puyo

    This was presented at a previous IACFS/ME conference:

    N-Acetylcysteine Alleviates Cortical Glutathione Deficit and Improves Symptoms in CFS: An In Vivo Validation Study using Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

    N. Weiduschata, X. Maoa, D. Vub, M. Blateb, G. Kanga, H.S. Mangatc, A. Artisd, S. Banerjeed, G. Langeb, C. Henchcliffec, B.H. Natelsonb, D.C. Shungua
    a Departments of Radiology, c Neurology and Neuroscience, and d Healthcare Policy and Research, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA; b Department of Neurology, Mount Sinai Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY, USA;

    OBJECTIVES We previously reported a robust 36% deficit of occipital cortex glutathione (GSH) – the primary tissue antioxidant – in patients with CFS compared to healthy comparison (HC) subjects, a finding that implicated oxidative stress in the disorder. The primary objective of the present study was to assess whether supplementing CFS patients with the GSH synthetic precursor N-acetylcysteine (NAC) daily for 4 weeks would spur in situ synthesis and significant elevation of cortical GSH compared to baseline, as assessed in vivo with proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MRS).

    METHODS For this pilot clinical study, we recruited 16 medication-free patients meeting the CDC criteria for CFS and 15 HC subjects. Following baseline measurement of occipital cortex GSH with 1H MRS and administration of a battery of clinical assessments, both CFS and HC participants received a 4-week supplement of 1800mg NAC/day. After 4 weeks, identical 1H MRS scan and clinical assessments were conducted to determine the effect of NAC on cortical GSH levels and on CFS symptoms as assessed with the CDC CFS symptom inventory.

    RESULTS At baseline, controlling for age and race, cortical GSH levels were 15% lower in CFS than in HC (95%CI: -0.0005,0; p=0.04, one-tailed as the differences and direction of changes were postulated a priori). Following 4 weeks of daily NAC supplementation, cortical GSH levels rose significantly relative to baseline (95%CI: 0.0001,0.0006; p=0.004, one-tailed) in CFS patients to match those in HC, which did not differ compared to baseline (95%CI: -0.0002,0.0003; p=0.33, one-tailed). Lastly, NAC supplementation markedly improved symptoms in CFS patients, with significant decreases in CDC CFS symptom inventory total scores (95%CI: -51.5-9.6; p=0.006), case definition scores (95%CI: -28.2-2 .0; p=0.03) and “other symptoms” scores (95%CI: -24.0-7.3; p<0.001). However, GSH levels did not correlate with any clinical measure.

    CONCLUSION The results of this study have provided the very first direct evidence that NAC crosses the blood-brain barrier to spur in situ synthesis and elevation of cortical GSH. Significantly, increasing cortical GSH levels with NAC ameliorated symptoms in CFS patients. Future studies evaluating the clinical efficacy, and optimal dose and treatment duration of NAC are warranted.

    Dikoma C. Shungu, Ph.D., Professor of Physics in Radiology, Fellow of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (FISMRM); Chief, Laboratory for Advanced MRS Research Citigroup Biomedical Imaging Center, Weill Cornell Medicine; 516 E 72nd Street, New York, NY 10065. Email: dcs7001@med.cornell.edu. Funding source: NIH Grant # 1 R21 NR013650. There are no conflicts of interest to declare or disclose.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 14, 2022
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  14. Trish

    Trish Moderator Staff Member

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    51,878
    Location:
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    Thanks, @Dolphin.
    After a bit of searching I found this abstract in the conference abstracts of the 2016 IACFS/ME conference on page 33:
    https://growthzonesitesprod.azureed...s/sites/1869/2020/10/IACFSME-2016-Program.pdf
     
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  15. perchance dreamer

    perchance dreamer Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    NAC gives me really bad insomnia.
     
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  16. josepdelafuente

    josepdelafuente Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    Have just ordered some, will update with progress!
     
  17. Dolphin

    Dolphin Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    By the way, NAC powder tastes disgusting. Capsules get around this problem.
     
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2022
    josepdelafuente, Arnie Pye and Amw66 like this.
  18. Arnie Pye

    Arnie Pye Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    And it smells like bad eggs.
     
  19. josepdelafuente

    josepdelafuente Senior Member (Voting Rights)

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    I ordered the Solgar 600mg capsules..!
     
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  20. josepdelafuente

    josepdelafuente Senior Member (Voting Rights)

    Messages:
    236
    Hi all, update on my experience with NAC.

    I started taking 1 x 600mg daily with food in the morning, it seemed to help.
    I definitely seemed to have more energy & capacity for doing stuff. Started doing a bit of work again, seemed to be able to handle that, with crashes / rest days needed if I pushed it too far, although "too far" seemed to be a bit further than it was before.

    After a month, and having no side-effects, I went up to 2 x 600mg daily (breakfast & dinner), which is what I'm doing now, for about 5 weeks at this point.

    There has definitely been a correlation between my capacity increasing and the time at which I started taking the NAC. I am definitely absolutely not "cured", and still have all the same symptoms I had before, but in general they all seem to be a little less severe and I'm able to do a bit more generally, in terms of concentration & physical activity, than I had been able for 1-2 years previously.

    Obviously it's just n=1 and there's no way of knowing if this increased capacity is a result of the NAC or just a coincidence.
    I should probably try stopping for a few weeks and see if my capacity goes down again, but so far have not tried that!
     
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