N-Acetylcysteine (NAC)

Magnesium Threonate seemed to have a slight effect lowering my T but it seemed to make my brain feel "cold". Very weird. It could be because I was taking other supplements and medicine and it was a bad combination. That is what I am thinking. Magnesium Threonate is one the types of magnesium that crosses the blood brain barrier.

 

Yes, I have taken that for a while. Really great at keeping regular bowel movements and it is calming.

 

What is the best way to take NAC? It's important to not take it with food right? So first thing in the morning is good for the first dose, but what about the other one? Before bed? I have trouble sleeping on an empty stomach? Maybe I Should just take both doses in the morning? or is it more effective to spread them out?

 

@SilverSpiral NAC + ALC (Acetyl-L-carnitine) before breakfast.

 

I have 600mg caps so I should take 1200mg before breakfast instead of spreading them out?

 

@SilverSpiral Sorry, I don't know about that. I'm only taking 600 mg once a day as I feel like that is enough for me.

 

From what I understand what it does is increase glutathione levels which is a very powerful antioxidant. What the antioxidants are supposed to do is stop the free radicals from destroying cells. Many articles/studies point out free radicals continue to damage cells well after noise induced hearing loss.

However NAC isn't going to do much to reduce T from noise damage caused 6+ months ago. I would expect it to help T from getting worse in the future though.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1950331/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4432684/

 

i do take acetyl l-carnitine 500MG but haven't gotten any relief from it. take it mainly for good brain activity!

 

n-acetylcysteine and acetyl l-carnitine are two completely different supplements. This topic is about the former.

 

okay got it. but i dont think that will help people either. just my 2cents...

 

Hello all.

After a dog barking, loudly, 100db or so, near me occurred on 31st of Dec. (with music plugs) my T spiked a bit. I wen't ahead and took NAC as I usually do, for a few days, but this time I did NAC 600mg for 20 days, along with Taruine 500mg for the same length.

On the 19th of this month, something happened with no cause. My left ear got a bit of pressure (which left after 5-6 days) and both ears became louder. This was without a noise trauma. Not only did it increase, but the T was sounding different. Like electrical misfiring going haywire, going up and down and up and down.

Is there anything in NAC/Taurine that could do something to the ears to cause this? I've never taken these two for this long, and it's only thing I can think as the cause. If it did, I'm hoping it's temp. I've never had my T drastically change like this. Noise trauma yeah, my original T will go UP, but this was different and I'm pretty sure now it was those two combos.

I've been off it for about 6 days and haven't seen much of an improvement. Bad sign I think.

 

It could still be the dog barking incident. I had a similar experience with loud barking indoors for a minute or two and since then my ears have not been the same. I firmly believe this incident affected my ears as I went downhill gradually since then. Hope it settles for you.

 

Hey @shasta0863 I don't want to start a baseless conspiracy theory here but I am also shocked enough by what you reported and how very exactly it aligns with my recent experience that I thought I should post. I have had T for over 12 years now and taken NAC after every episode of noise exposure with a "well it couldn't hurt" attitude. The dosage I'd take was actually quite high, typically 2400mg-3g/day for 4-5 days following the episode. Maybe in retrospect this was dangerous but I've also done it for many, many years without issue.

At the very end of October 2016, though, after going to a concert (at which I actually wore earplugs and don't think noise exposure was really very dramatic), I did this regimen, and 2 or 3 days into it my tinnitus in a moment became much louder and now sounds exactly as you are describing. Exactly like "electrical misfiring going haywire, going up and down and up and down" in my left ear. I have been describing it as a "swirling" but your description is dead on. Previously for me it was a constant tone, much quieter.

I still hear the old constant tone but now have this new very, very loud, very distracting electronic type swirling going on on top of it. I would say the impact on my quality of life of this new tone is a multiple of the old T I'd lived with for 12 years, mostly because the constant fluctuation in volume makes it disrupt my hearing of outside sounds in a way that is much harder to ignore. I've been checked out for inflammation, tumor etc (MRI and carotid ultrasound) by my ENT. I'm seeing a neurologist monday. I'm wondering if a bad batch of NAC floating somehow had something to do with this.

The NAC I was taking when this happened was "NOW Foods" brand, purchased from Amazon on October 9, 2016.

Again I've taken NAC for years without issue. I'm wondering if by some chance this is the brand/batch you were taking?

 

Hey, have you tried L-Cysteine instead of N-Aceytl-Cysteine? If not, what do you think it would do?

 

NAC, is good for stress and therefore good for stressrelated tinnitus, also good is, glutamine and glucosamine for stress, i use it and it helps me getting more relaxed!

 

Guys, anyone knows if I can take 1600 Mg NAC and 500 mg magnesium, while taking perdisone (Medrol)? Had new potential loud noise trauma yesterday. (Also taking some other multivitamines/Ginkgo)

 

Had the spike settled yet?

 

Is it back to baseline by now?

 

@CDNThailand Unfortunately, it has not, but my attitude about it has become a little more accommodative and less panicked. The symptoms are essentially unchanged for me, though.

I am going to see a second neurologist later this month and ask to be evaluated for microvascular compression (MRI with FIESTA protocol and a Tegretol trial, which others on these forums have mentioned). Basically everything at this point has come up negative as far as audiogram (showed no haring loss) and MRI (no tumors, etc). I am honestly OK to face my tinnitus being essentially neurological in nature, I really just want to feel 100% confident that that is the case before investing in a path of treatment. I'm sure others here can relate to one of the most unsettling and frustrating aspects of chronic tinnitus being not having clear answers. I was literally hoping my last audiogram was going to show hearing loss just so that I had a clear answer and protocol for treatment/management. Facing the reality of hearing loss as a cause would actually be a lot more pleasant for me to deal with than just not having clear answers. Anyhow, my next neurologist appointment is on the 20th of this month and as I mentioned I am going to see if she would be open to trialing Tegretol and screening me for microvascular compression just because it doesn't seem like a completely misaligned explanation of the throbbing, swirling sort of quality of my new tinnitus tone.

Meanwhile I am also going forward with a trial fitting of a hearing aid with masking therapies (Signia/Siemens Pure Primax I think, which has both masking tones/white noise and something called "notch therapy") with an audiologist here at NYU Langone to help me manage the tinnitus. This audiologist is somewhat specialized in tinnitus (I was referred by the first neurologist I had seen) and also did offer Neuromonics and Desyncra therapies (but basically along with a little candid skepticism of both, which I actually appreciate as I am a little skeptical of those also). Anyhow, I wish I could say things were completely resolved but sadly they're not. I will update if things change though. The fact that my attitude could change is honestly something I wouldn't have even really thought possible a couple months ago (when I was literally near suicidal) and so that is worth being positive about at least.

I should note that the clear audiogram does make me wonder if I should be blaming the NAC or if it was coincidence, since I'd kind of thought that what had happened was oxidative stress/hearing loss/nerve damage of some sort. I suppose it's also possible that I do have loss but in a range or at a level the audiogram didn't pick up. It is the throbbing/swirling quality though that makes me think I should at least fully rule out some vascular cause.

 

I started taking Puritan's Pride NAC 600 mg. OMG does it really smell like a sewer? Or rotten eggs? I thought I got a bottle of spoiled pills but the expiry date isn't until June 2018. I also looked up reviews on Amazon, and apparently, this brand of NAC is an olfactory assault for other people as well.

Do other brands of NAC smell horrible?

 

I use Jarrows, and it also doesn't smell too good, but I've gotten used to it. At least it doesn't taste like it smells! I recently got the sustained release version from the same brand, and although it still smells the smell is much weaker.

 

Yes it stinks, thats normal

 

The NAC capsules are huge! Does anyone have any experience opening the capsule and swigging the contents down with water? Any unwanted side effects ?also how is the tAste

 

@Nick NY Just wondering if you met with your neurologist yet and if they are going to do the specific MRI you wanted to get or if you're starting the Tegretol.

 

@Cal18 Yes, the neurologist I saw and her resident looked in very close detail at the MRI I'd had and ordered this new MRA(w/ FIESTA protocol) specifically to screen for a vascular loop - I have it next monday. They said they want to hold off on the tegretol until that has come back. My attitude has actually improved a lot lately in general because these hearing aids really do feel like they've given me some sense of control back. On an emotional level it always felt to me like giving up to consider trying hearing aids and masking (like dealing with the symptom and not the cause) but on a practical level I think it's something people really should try if suffering. Also if one's tinnitus is caused to some degree by under stimulation in areas where there has been loss (and who knows if mine has...I don't really know, and my audiogram was clear) in a sense maybe it is actually treating the cause (or at least doing the most practical thing until we figure out how to actually heal the hearing organs). Anyhow I will update if anything comes of the MRA!

 

Thanks @Nick NY - I'm very interested in knowing what kind of results that type of MRI will produce. Please keep us posted.

 

I'm about 30 days into paromomycin induced ototoxicity. NAC actually makes a noticeable difference for me. Maybe because the drug is still in the ear tissue and causing free radical damage. It decreases the volume of T, and also helps alleviate the dizziness and head pressure. It does come back after a few hours though.

 

I've done 2 separate 60 day experiments with NAC and it makes my T much louder and annoying.