Art (Tustin, Ca. Usa) on 08/08/2012
I recently read a 2008 study about people with diabetes and hypertension who were treated with a combination of arginine and n acetyl cysteine (nac), two commonly available substances at online vitamin sites.
http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/31/5/940.long
At the dosages used in this study, arginine and nac have a fairly good safety profile and from the study results, they not only lowered blood pressure, but produced side effects that were also positive such as lowering ldl cholesterol while raising hdl cholesterol (the good one) and lowering levels of adhesion molecules vcam1 and icam1. It also lowered high sensitivity crp, a common marker of inflammation in the body. Add in the antiatherosclerotic effects and it seems like a good combination so I started taking them two weeks ago. One drawback to this study is the small number of participants, but the results were striking enough to make me want to try it.
Nac by itself has hundreds of studies suggesting it has many health benefits in humans, some related to its efficacy as a potent antioxidant.
I just took my blood pressure reading and it was 123/83. I am taking more than what was used in the study, at least initially and plan to go down to the study dose after a month or so.
I take 600mg of nac with 1 gram of arginine, three times per day for a total of 1.8 grams of nac and 3 grams of arginine per day.
Art
Replied By Art (Tustin, Ca. Usa) on 08/24/2012
I also dropped my dose down to just twice a day instead of three times per day, so I am currently taking 600mg of nac with 1 gram of arginine two times per day for a total of 1,200mg of nac and 2 grams of arginine per day which is fairly close to the dosage used in that 2008 study.
Art