NAC

A powerful nutraceutical

By Hal Leonard

Our most precious commodity is our health, but while we have it we rarely value it as we should, or at least we don’t do all we can to protect and preserve it.
In the fitness world a lot revolves around looking good. It’s about images and aesthetics, toned and buffed bodies, free of fat and rippling with muscle. Whatever doesn’t tie in with these attributes does not seem to enjoy the support of the public.
Nevertheless, I want to tell you about a supplement that, while gaining popularity among those involved in bodybuilding and fitness, has other qualities that have led it to be regarded as a powerful nutraceutical.
I’m talking about N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC).

I think it’s fair to say that for most of us involved in fitness and bodybuilding, a big part of what pushes us to work out hard nearly every day in gyms and sport centres is the desire to look good. Yes, aesthetic aspirations are one of our key motivations. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing but it’s worth remembering that regular exercise has benefits far beyond this. The most important ones you can’t see, for they take place beneath the skin, such as in the cardiovascular, respiratory or skeletal systems, in the joints, muscles and even at the mental level.
In the same way, when these enthusiastic sports players look for the aid of a nutritional supplement, they do it with the hope of improving their strength, endurance or power to a certain degree to alter their body composition. In other words, generally to try to increase the rate at which they shed body fat and to gain as much muscle as possible.
However, some supplements can do much more that all that, and one of them is popularly commonly known as NAC – N-Acetyl Cysteine. It is one of the new generation supplements that fall into the special category of nutraceuticals.
Before telling you more about NAC, let’s first clarify what a nutraceutical is.
This recently-coined term defines a substance of natural origin, generally from a food (hence the use of nutra) that has important metabolic, even therapeutic effects.
Nutraceuticals have become very popular despite resistance from pharmaceutical multinationals who are worried about the impact on their monopolies and profit margins. One of the biggest threats to them is that since nutraceuticals are not molecules that have been developed synthetically – they are designed by nature - they can not be patented or subjected to exclusive marketing.
Worldwide, more and more people are recognising the importance of prevention and of investing in natural substances that bolster their health, thereby also reducing their likelihood of later needing medication.
N-Acetyl Cysteine’s various benefits have been demonstrated in numerous studies, some of which would be of particular interest for people involved in fitness and bodybuilding.
Sports players find it particularly useful during periods of high intensity training to reduce the usual increase in free radicals that results from high levels of cell oxidation. Many athletes claim that when they incorporate NAC in their nutrition programme they recover faster, suffer less fatigue and, above all, seem to resist more easily the infections that heavy training otherwise makes them prone to.
There is also speculation that NAC regulates cortisol secretion, keeping it within normal parameters, avoiding big spikes and associated catabolism.

NAC and immune defence
N-Acetyl Cysteine is derived from an amino acid that has been used clinically for a long time in the treatment of paracetamol overdose¹.
But NAC is also used to reinforce the body’s defences, to reduce cholesterol, treat cystic fibrosis, counter toxic shock and poisoning by heavy metals, to counteract liver toxicity, to help resist infection in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, to fight against infections in general and also to prolong the life of people with AIDS.
A study in Holland showed that the administration of 600mg of NAC a day was not only completely safe but offered chemoprevention against lung cancer. The latter was attributed to NAC’s ability to increase glutathione and to repair DNA, and its antioxidant capacity and other properties².
German researchers gave 600mg of NAC three times daily, for five days, to 17 patients who were non-smokers but suffered severe lung inflammation. In just this short period there was a significant elevation of the levels of glutathione in the bronchial fluids. This led the researchers to conclude that supplementation with NAC could increase antioxidant protection for patients with pulmonary fibrosis³.
According to researchers at the University of Genoa, Italy, NAC has also been seen to have protective effects on cancer in a wide range of experiments. They discovered that this substance has strong antioxidant properties and can break down certain cancer-causing compounds and improve concentrations of thiol in intestinal bacteria.
Another study found that smokers had less mutagens in their urine when given sufficient doses of NAC⁴. Researchers believe this is because NAC breaks down these potentially cancer-causing agents.
I won’t go into all the studies proving the benefits of regular use of NAC supplements for people with liver problems, how it lowers cholesterol levels, or even the fact that it reduces pulmonary mucosity, but I will mention in passing that since NAC can stimulate production of glutathione, the strongest antioxidant available in the body, scientists are investigating whether taking NAC in the first stages of HIV infection can halt development of AIDS.
A German research team claims that since 90% of these patients are diagnosed in the early stages of HIV infection, treatment with NAC is safe and very cheap and should be accepted as part of AIDS prevention therapy.
Perhaps I should not be surprised that pharmaceutical multinationals are not happy about this cheap, natural supplement that is derived from an amino acid, without side effects (other than diarrhoea or vomiting if an excessive amount is used, or in some cases of allergy, respiratory problems, itches or skin inflammation) and that also shows potential to retard or stop the development of AIDS, which I imagine is one of their biggest income sources.
While it may not be obvious to the average citizen, the scientific community is torn between two tendencies: one is to maximise knowledge and use of natural substances that improve the quality of life and the other is corporate pressure to perpetuate the monopolies that profit from the disease and misfortune of others and that mistrust anything outside their powerful economic control.
But to end on a positive note, N-Acetyl Cysteine is just one example of various nutraceuticals - new, natural supplements with strong potential to improve and protect your health - that will hopefully soon be much more widely available. 

Bibliography
1. Graudins, Andis, et al. “Overdose of Extended-Release Acetaminophen.” New England Journal of Medicine, July 20, 196, 1995.
2. Zandwijk, Nico van, “N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC) & Glutathione (GSH): Antioxidant and Chemopreventive Properties with special reference to Lung Cancer”. Journal of Cellular biochemistry S22:24-32, 1995.
3. Meyer, A., et al “The Effect of Oral N-Acetyl Cysteine on long Glutathione Levels in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis”. European Respiratory Journal 7:431-36, 1994.
4. De Flora, Silvio, et al. Chemopreventive Properties and Mechanisms of N-Acetyl Cysteine. The Experimental Background”. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry S22: 33-41, 1995.
5. Droge, W., et al. HIV Induced Cysteine Deficiency and T-Cell Dysfunction- a rationale for treatment with N-Acetyl Cysteine.” Immunology Today 13(6): 211-14, 1992.