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How NAC and Glutathione Can Help To Heal Hashimoto's Disease
How NAC and Glutathione Can Help To Heal Hashimoto's Disease
Disease
Glutathione thyroid hormones protects the body in an extraordinary number of ways, but the fact
that it protects the thyroid against hydrogen peroxide is particularly significant.
In untreated Hashimoto's, the body's levels of T4 (thyroxine) begin to fall, and TSH (thyroid
stimulating hormone) levels generally start to climb. In order to stimulate the thyroid to make more
T4, the TSH activates the thyroid cells to make hydrogen peroxide. If the TSH levels remain high,
the thyroid cells continue to produce more and more hydrogen peroxide, and this can lead to
increased inflammation, scarring, and ultimately the destruction of thyroid cells. If the hydrogen
peroxide manages to gain entry to the cell, the damage becomes far worse.
A 2001 study (2) found that if hydrogen peroxide is allowed to enter thyroid cells, it attacks and
cleaves thyroglobulin (a protein within the thyroid gland), producing fragments that are able to
diffuse into other cells - and these fragments were recognized by autoantibodies taken from people
with Hashimoto's disease. This suggests that hydrogen peroxide entry into thyroid cells may actually
be the cause of Hashimoto's disease.
There is no recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for glutathione or N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Intake
of NAC does increase zinc loss through urine, so zinc supplementation would be advisable for
anyone supplementing NAC over an extended period. Read more about dosage and safety levels
here.
Glutathione can also be "upregulated" (i.e. the amount in the cell increased) by vitamins C and E,
and lipoic acid (an organosulfur compound found in spinach, offal - such as hearts, livers, and
kidneys - yeast extract, and broccoli). N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is considered to be the most effective,
fastest route to raising levels of glutathione. It also increases levels of glutathione (through
synthesis) only when there is an actual need, and it seems to concentrate only in tissues where
glutathione is required. (Burgunder JM et al 1989)
N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and Hashimoto's Disease
The fact that NAC is able to restore glutathione levels and thereby protect the thyroid (as well as
protecting the body in numerous other ways) is particularly interesting given its ability to "crack
open" bacteria such as chlamydia pneumonia, which "hide" inside the body's own cells during one
part of their life cycle, using the host cell's machinery to replicate. Chlamydia pneumoniae has been
implicated in autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is
considered an important part of treatment. Read more about NAC here.
If you suspect bacterial infection with a bacteria susceptible to NAC, take the NAC deficiency test
References:
"N-Acetylcysteine - a safe antidote for cysteine/glutathione deficiency"; Atkur, Mantovani,
Herzenberg and thyroid problems Herzenberg; Current Opinion in Pharmacology; 2007; 7.
"Hydrogen peroxide-induced production of a 40 kDa immunoreactive thyroglobulin fragment in
human thyroid cells: the onset of thyroid autoimmunity?, Duthoit, C., Estienne, V., Giraud, A.,
Durand-Gorde, J.M., Rasmussen, A.K., Feldt-Rasmussen, U., Carayon, P., Ruf, J., ; Biochem. J. (2001)
360(Pt 3):557-562.
"Autoimmune disease: Mechanisms"; Encyclopedia of Life Sciences; DeLisa Fairweather
"Competition for glutathione precursors between the immune system and the skeletal muscle:
pathogenesis of chronic fatigue syndrome, Medical Hypotheses"; Bounous, G., and Molson, J.,;
53(4):347-349.