N-Acetylcysteine (NAC)

[Guest asaxon]

I stumbled across a line of research that shows that there is a subset of OCD that is is mediated by the disregulation of the neurotransmitter glutamate. N-Acetylcysteine is an amino acid that is available in health food stores that is speculated to moderate levels of glutamate in the brain, and there is both anecdotal evidence and at least one controlled study that shows it is safe and can be very effective in treating some patients with OCD (effects seen after 9 weeks).

 

It's cheap and apparently safe, so it seems to be worth a try for anyone with OCD.

 

 

See, for example,

 

http://www.nature.com/npp/journal/v30/n9/full/1300733a.html

 

http://www.bentham.org/rpcn/samples/rpcn2-1/0004PRN.pdf

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581567.

 

http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=17461757

[MomWithOCDSon]

I stumbled across a line of research that shows that there is a subset of OCD that is is mediated by the disregulation of the neurotransmitter glutamate. N-Acetylcysteine is an amino acid that is available in health food stores that is speculated to moderate levels of glutamate in the brain, and there is both anecdotal evidence and at least one controlled study that shows it is safe and can be very effective in treating some patients with OCD (effects seen after 9 weeks).

 

It's cheap and apparently safe, so it seems to be worth a try for anyone with OCD.

 

 

See, for example,

 

http://www.nature.com/npp/journal/v30/n9/full/1300733a.html

 

http://www.bentham.org/rpcn/samples/rpcn2-1/0004PRN.pdf

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581567.

 

http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=17461757

 

Thanks! I've heard of this somewhere else at some point, and I've very interested! In a PrimeTime Live episode on OCD not too long ago, they noted some research at the University of Michigan that agreed with this glutimate-based discrepancy in OCD brains.

 

Has anyone actually tried this supplement? Any success? Any side effects? Any downside?

[Chemar]

Carolyn.N on the TS board has experience with NAC

 

my son prefers samE

[janna]

Chemar,

 

Does SAMe do the same thing as NAC: regulate levels of glutamate?

 

Janna

 

 

I stumbled across a line of research that shows that there is a subset of OCD that is is mediated by the disregulation of the neurotransmitter glutamate. N-Acetylcysteine is an amino acid that is available in health food stores that is speculated to moderate levels of glutamate in the brain, and there is both anecdotal evidence and at least one controlled study that shows it is safe and can be very effective in treating some patients with OCD (effects seen after 9 weeks).

 

It's cheap and apparently safe, so it seems to be worth a try for anyone with OCD.

 

 

See, for example,

 

http://www.nature.com/npp/journal/v30/n9/full/1300733a.html

 

http://www.bentham.org/rpcn/samples/rpcn2-1/0004PRN.pdf

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19581567.

 

http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=17461757

[Chemar]

I dont think that is it's action Janna but honestly dont know for sure. I do know it increases serotonin and that is likely why it helps OCD

 

I am not trying to compare NAC and samE...only mentioned that samE is currently my son's personal preference for his OCD and that Carolyn on the TS forum has experience with NAC use

[MomWithOCDSon]

Does anyone know of NAC attributing to gastro-intestinal distress at all?

 

It may be entirely coincidental, but I've been giving my son NAC for the last week, and he's had trouble with stomach cramps, gas and bloating during the same time period. It might be a bug, but just wondered if it might be connected to the NAC since the addition of this supplement has really been the only change we've implemented recently?