Originally published January 24 2006
South Carolina researcher believes supplement may help cocaine users quit their addiction
by Mike Adams, NaturalNews Editor
At a meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, Dr. Peter Kalivas, of the University of South Carolina, presented research that claims a supplement known as N-acetylcysteine could help cocaine addicts kick their habit.
- The supplement, N-acetylcysteine, appears to reduce addicts' desire for cocaine.
- The findings were presented last week at a meeting of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.
- When hospitalized addicts were given the supplement, known as NAC, and then exposed to pictures related to cocaine, they reported less desire for the drug than addicts given a placebo, said a researcher, Dr. Peter Kalivas of the University of South Carolina.
- When M.R.I. scans were taken of some of the patients' brains, the researchers also saw differences associated with the supplement.
- "What we found is that it inhibited the cravings, and it blunted the cortical activation that you normally see when an addict is looking at cues that induce craving," Dr. Kalivas said.
- NAC already has some other medicinal uses, but the researchers cautioned against cocaine users' taking it until more research is conducted.
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