N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC)

by Pure Prescriptions

Boosts Antioxidant Levels: NAC raises your body’s levels of glutathione, an antioxidant that protects your cells from damage. This is super important for keeping your body healthy as you age.

Helps Your Brain: Some studies have shown that NAC can help with mental health conditions like bipolar disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). It seems to work by balancing levels of a chemical in your brain called glutamate.

Supports Lung Health: If you have a condition that causes a lot of mucus in your lungs, like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma, NAC might help. It works by thinning the mucus, making it easier to breathe.

Detoxifies Your Body: Your liver does a lot of work to remove toxins from your body, and NAC can give it a helping hand. In fact, doctors even use NAC to treat overdose from paracetamol (or acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol).

May Help Your Heart: Some research suggests that NAC might help manage blood pressure levels, which is important for heart health.

Boosts Your Immune System: NAC might help your body fight off infections and diseases by supporting your immune system.

Slow Down Aging: Because NAC is a powerful antioxidant, it might help slow down the aging process by protecting your cells from damage.

May Improve Fertility: Some early research suggests that NAC could help improve fertility, especially in women with a condition called polycysteine ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Watch Dr. Larson Discuss NAC Benefits

That’s where NAC comes in. NAC is a precursor to glutathione, meaning that our bodies use it to produce glutathione. When you take NAC, it’s well absorbed by your body and then used to make glutathione within your cells. In essence, it helps boost your body’s natural production of glutathione, making it a more effective way to increase your glutathione levels compared to taking glutathione directly.

In addition, NAC has a range of other potential benefits that go beyond boosting glutathione levels, making it a multifaceted supplement for overall health.

The Health Benefits of Glutathione

Glutathione production in the body is dependent on cysteine and that is why N-acetyl-l-cysteine or ‘NAC’ is important to take as a supplement.

Glutathione occurs naturally in cells and is a cofactor in dozens of enzymatic reactions involved in detoxification.* As an antioxidant, glutathione directly quenches several reactive oxygen species (free radicals).* The body’s benefits from maintaining a normal level of glutathione include support for liver function, pulmonary function, immune function, bowel health, carbohydrate metabolism, cardiovascular health, cognitive health, and eye health.*

Glutathione is the most abundant anti-oxidant. Since training and competition create more oxidative stress and damage, athletes have a higher need for antioxidants. Exercise longer than 60-90 minutes significantly decreases glutathione levels in the blood, so supplementing is beneficial for endurance and ultra endurance events.

The liver is the body’s largest reservoir for glutathione. A potent endogenous antioxidant, glutathione is essential for the liver’s phase I and phase II detoxification.* However, negative lifestyle issues and adverse conditions that affect liver health can result in a decreased amount of glutathione in the liver.

Maintaining an optimal level of glutathione appears to be important for supporting cognitive function, especially during aging.* The normal process of aging is associated with a decrease in glutathione activity, which can result in increased oxidative activity.* Less than an optimum level of glutathione is observed in individuals experiencing a decline in cognitive function.* Conversely, individuals who live to 100 tend to have higher glutathione activity.*

Adults take 1 to 3 capsules daily, with our without food or as directed by your health care provider.