NAC N-Acetyl Cysteine 600mg with Selenium, 100 Capsules
NAC supplement capsules provide N-acetyl cysteine 600mg with selenium, taken to help support the lungs, thin mucus and keep the body’s own antioxidant, glutathione, topped up.
Of everything on the supplement shelf, this is one of the few with a proper clinical trial behind a specific use. The dose in these capsules, taken twice a day, is the dose that was tested, and the people it helped were those with a long-term chesty cough who were bringing up phlegm most mornings. Whether that describes someone in your household is the question worth settling before buying, because for everybody else the case is much thinner.
What N-Acetyl Cysteine Does in the Body
It does two things. It breaks the bonds that make mucus thick and sticky, which is why hospitals have used it as a mucus thinner for decades. And it supplies cysteine, the amino acid your body runs short of when it makes glutathione, which is the antioxidant your liver and lungs rely on most.
The selenium is there for a reason rather than for the label. The enzyme that puts glutathione to work needs selenium to function, so the two belong together.
The Evidence, and Who It Is For
Long-term chesty cough and chronic obstructive lung disease is where the evidence is strongest. A year-long trial in over a thousand patients with moderate to severe disease gave 600mg twice daily and counted flare-ups: 1.16 a year on NAC against 1.49 on placebo, about a fifth fewer. It was well tolerated.
That matters in Kenya more than the trial’s Chinese setting suggests, because years of cooking on firewood or charcoal in a poorly ventilated kitchen produce exactly this kind of lung damage, and it is under-recognised here. If someone at home has coughed up phlegm most mornings for years, that is worth a doctor’s assessment, and NAC may have a place in the plan that comes out of it.
Glutathione support is real biochemistry rather than marketing: cysteine is the limiting ingredient, and supplying it raises glutathione where it has been depleted.
Mental health uses — compulsive hair-pulling, skin-picking and some obsessive symptoms — have promising early trials at higher doses than this, and belong with a psychiatrist rather than a shop shelf.
If You Have Asthma, Ask Before You Start
NAC can tighten the airways in some people with asthma rather than easing them. That is the opposite of what most people expect from a mucus thinner, and it is why asthma is a reason to check first rather than a reason to buy.
Asthma and chronic bronchitis are different conditions that can look similar from the outside, and they point in opposite directions here. If you have asthma or have ever been given an inhaler, speak to our pharmacist or your doctor before starting, and stop straight away if your breathing tightens or you wheeze more than usual.
What It Will Not Do
It is not treatment for paracetamol overdose. N-acetyl cysteine is the hospital antidote, given intravenously at doses many times this one and within a narrow time window. Anyone who has taken too much paracetamol needs to go to a hospital immediately, not to a pharmacy shelf. Delay is what causes the liver damage.
It will not detoxify a healthy liver, which does that job itself. It is not a treatment for any infection. And it does not replace an inhaler, a course of antibiotics or anything else a doctor has prescribed for your chest.
How to Take It
One capsule twice a day with water, with meals. That is 600mg twice daily, the dose used in the trial, and a hundred capsules gives fifty days.
Drink plenty of water while you take it; thinner mucus still has to be cleared, and fluid helps. Give it eight to twelve weeks before judging whether your chest is easier. NAC has a faint sulphur smell, which is normal and not a sign the capsules have spoiled.
Before You Start, Check These
Speak to our pharmacist first if any of these apply:
- Asthma, or any inhaler — the airway concern above, and the most important one here.
- Nitrate medicines for angina — isosorbide or glyceryl trinitrate. NAC can amplify their effect on blood pressure and bring on severe headaches.
- Blood thinners — NAC can add to their effect.
- Another supplement containing selenium, including most multivitamins. Selenium has a narrower safe range than most minerals and stacking is easy to do by accident.
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding, and any stomach ulcer.
Stop it a fortnight before planned surgery, because of the effect on clotting.
Side Effects
Nausea, loose stools and stomach discomfort are the usual complaints, and taking the capsules with food settles most of them. A few people get a rash or itching, which is a reason to stop and ask.
Stop and seek advice promptly for wheeze or chest tightness, swelling of the face or lips, or vomiting that does not settle.
Selenium, and Why the Amount Matters
Each capsule carries a modest amount of selenium, which at two capsules a day sits comfortably within normal daily needs on its own. The caution is addition: if your multivitamin also contains selenium, and Brazil nuts are in your diet, the total climbs faster than people expect, and too much selenium over months causes brittle nails, hair thinning and a metallic taste.
Bring your other supplements to the counter and we will add them up with you. It takes a minute and it is the single most useful thing a pharmacy can do for anyone taking more than one product.
Storing It
Keep the bottle closed, dry and out of direct sun, away from the bathroom and the kitchen steam. The faint sulphur smell when you open it is the compound itself, not spoilage.
Where to Buy NAC 600mg in Kenya
Order online and we deliver countrywide, or collect from our pharmacy at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. We send orders to Nairobi and every neighbourhood around it — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Rosslyn, Kitisuru, Lower Kabete, Lavington, Kileleshwa, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Buruburu, Donholm, Embakasi, Ngong Road, Kasarani, Roysambu, Zimmerman, Githurai, Ruaka, Banana Hill, Two Rivers, Village Market and Pride Lands — and across Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru and Ngong.
Beyond the capital we deliver to Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Athi River, Kitengela, Kajiado, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Bomet, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Siaya, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Vihiga, Webuye, Kitale, Nandi Hills, Iten, Kapenguria, Embu, Meru, Chuka, Kerugoya, Murang’a, Othaya, Nyahururu, Nanyuki, Maralal, Isiolo, Marsabit, Moyale, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Mwingi, Makueni, Emali, Kibwezi, Voi, Taveta, Wundanyi, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi, Lamu and Hola. Packed to travel, cool-boxed where the weather calls for it, and tracked from our counter to your door.
Across Africa, ask us before you order. We have sent orders to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and as far as Malawi, and we will quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of the continent. What we need to know first is your country’s import rules for food supplements and how long the parcel will be in transit; we will tell you plainly if a destination is not worth the shipping cost.
Living abroad? Order from wherever you are and we deliver to your family here in Kenya. Kenyans in the UK, the United States, Canada, South Africa and the Gulf order from us regularly for parents and relatives at home. You pay online from where you live, we deliver to their door anywhere on the list above, and we confirm with you once it has arrived. Give us their name, their phone number and the estate or town they live in, and we will do the rest.
Why Buy Your NAC Supplement from HealthAlone Kenya?
HealthAlone is a pharmacist-led health ecosystem licensed by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, and our stock is original, sealed and correctly stored.
Tell our pharmacist who it is for and what else they take. Asthma, nitrate tablets and a second source of selenium are the three things that change the answer here, and none of them is obvious from the label. If the reason for buying is a cough that has gone on for months, we will tell you plainly that it needs a doctor first.
It is one more step in our vision: building Africa’s most trusted health ecosystem, accessible to everyone, everywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is NAC 600mg used for?
It thins mucus and supplies cysteine, the amino acid the body needs to make glutathione. Its strongest evidence is in long-term chesty cough and chronic obstructive lung disease, where 600mg twice daily reduced flare-ups by about a fifth over a year. It is also taken for general antioxidant support.
How many capsules a day?
One twice a day with meals, which is the dose used in the trials. A hundred capsules lasts fifty days. Drink plenty of water alongside, because thinner mucus still has to be cleared.
Is a NAC supplement safe if I have asthma?
Ask first. NAC can tighten the airways in some people with asthma rather than easing them, which surprises people who expect a mucus thinner to help. Asthma and chronic bronchitis look similar and point in opposite directions here, so speak to your pharmacist or doctor, and stop immediately if your breathing tightens.
Can I take it for a paracetamol overdose?
No. N-acetyl cysteine is the hospital antidote for paracetamol poisoning, but it is given into a vein at far higher doses and within a narrow time window. Anyone who has taken too much paracetamol should go straight to a hospital. Waiting is what causes the liver damage.
Why is there selenium in it?
The enzyme that puts glutathione to work needs selenium, so the pair is sensible rather than decorative. Check whether your multivitamin also contains selenium, because the amounts add up and too much over months causes brittle nails, hair thinning and a metallic taste.
Does it detox the liver?
A healthy liver detoxifies itself, and no capsule improves on that. What NAC genuinely does is supply the raw material for glutathione, which the liver uses heavily. That is worth having when reserves are low, and it is not the same as cleansing an organ that is working normally.
Can I take it every day?
Yes, at this dose, for a stretch of weeks or months with a reason. The trial ran for a year without safety concerns. If you find yourself taking it indefinitely without a clear purpose, that is worth reviewing.
Does it help with a cough?
It helps with the kind of cough that brings up thick phlegm, by making the phlegm easier to clear. It does nothing for a dry or tickly cough. A cough lasting more than three weeks needs a doctor rather than a supplement, especially with weight loss, fever or blood.
Can I take it with my other medicines?
Check first if you take nitrate tablets for angina, where NAC can amplify the blood pressure effect and cause severe headaches, or a blood thinner. Otherwise it interacts with little, but bring your list and let the pharmacist confirm.
Why does it smell of sulphur?
That is the compound itself. N-acetyl cysteine contains sulphur and a faint eggy smell when you open the bottle is normal. It is not a sign the capsules have gone off.
Where can I buy a NAC supplement in Kenya?
From HealthAlone, online for delivery countrywide or over the counter at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. We deliver across Nairobi — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Kitisuru, Lavington, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Kasarani, Roysambu, Githurai, Ruaka and Banana Hill — and to Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru, Ngong, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Kitengela, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Kitale, Embu, Meru, Nanyuki, Nyahururu, Isiolo, Marsabit, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Makueni, Voi, Taveta, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi and Lamu. Outside Kenya we have delivered to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and Malawi, and we quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of Africa on request.
