5 Ways to Improve Glutathione Levels Naturally

5 Ways to Improve Glutathione Levels 

The human body is under oxidative stress from a variety of sources at all times.  To combat this stress and damage the body utilizes antioxidants of all different varieties.  Glutathione (GSH) is a very special peptide molecule that provides the greatest antioxidant protection and recharges other antioxidants within the body (1).  In this article, you will discover 5 ways to improve glutathione levels naturally.

Every cell in the body produces glutathione.  Many longevity scientists believe that the level of glutathione in our cells is predicative of how long we will live (2, 3, 4).  This is logical considering the wealth of essential bodily processes that glutathione plays a critical role in.

Glutathione has been coined with the term “master antioxidant” due to its essential role in maintaining exogenous antioxidants such as vitamin C & E in their active form (5, 6).  Glutathione is like the cell’s security guard protecting the genetic equipment from outside attack.

It is estimated that each cell in the body withstands 10,000 hits by free radicals each day.  Glutathione disarms these free radicals before they wreak havoc and cleans up the oxidative stress related damage that has occurred.

Glutathione’s Role in Immunity:

Glutathione plays a significant role in immune function (7).  Studies have shown that glutathione strengthens T cells which are critical for modulating the immune system appropriately (8).  These are the cells that coordinate the attack against pathogenic bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc. while keeping tissue damage and autoimmune responses in check.  An overactive immune system can trigger allergies and autoimmune disease processes.

Glutathione fights against cellular toxins and works to eliminate carcinogens from the intracellular environment while healing damaged cells.  Glutathione is constantly in action protecting the body against disease, toxins, viruses, pollutants, radiation, drugs and oxidative stress (9).  When damage does occur, it immediately goes to work repairing the free radical damage.

Glutathione Levels Protect the Brain:

If sufficient glutathione is not available, the toxins will overload the liver and lead to fat soluble toxins being stored in fatty tissues.  The central nervous system, breasts, & prostate are the most susceptible areas.  Many researchers credit the increase in neurological and immune related problems to depleted cellular glutathione (10, 11, 12).  The brain produces more free radicals than any other tissues and is therefore in need of more glutathione than any other region.

Levels of glutathione begin to decline with aging as the majority of individuals in our society become more toxic and deficient.  Additionally, our society has more environmental toxicity than ever before so there is a significant need for more glutathione production.  Unfortunately, our modern world diets are void of the necessary precursors for this critical agent.

Aging Declines Glutathione Production:

By age 20, scientists estimate that the average person loses glutathione at 8-12% per decade (13).  Increased health challenges from infection, poor diet, smoking, increased toxic load, medication usage, etc. can deplete these stores at a much faster rate.  Scientists estimate that a 30% reduction of glutathione is enough for cellular dysfunction to occur.

When cellular dysfunction occurs over time it results in an accumulation of senescent “zombie” cells.  These zombie cells have lost their ability to perform normal functions. Instead, they leak a toxic chemical soup of oxidative and inflammatory compounds into their local environment.  This increases inflammation and damages healthy cells causing poor cell function and chronic symptoms.

Glutathione Precursors in the Diet:

Studies have shown that adequate vitamin D is necessary for optimal glutathione production (14).  The vast majority of our society is extremely deficient in vitamin D (15).  Optimal vitamin D levels should be between 60-100 ng/ml.

Glutathione precursors such as glycine, glutamic acid and cysteine should naturally be consumed through our diet.  The best vegetable sources include avocados, onions, spinach, & asparagus.  Herbs such as turmeric have also been shown to boost glutathione content.   Unfortunately, vegetable sources are still very low in these critical amino acids.

The best food sources are through high quality, non-denatured animal products.  These include non-denatured grass-fed whey protein and cultured, raw grass-fed dairy products and raw, organic eggs.

These cultured, raw grass-fed dairy products are an incredibly good source of highly bioavailable amino acids and offer more cysteine than any other food source.  Our Gut Healing Protein has a number of both food and supplemental factors to support glutathione levels.

Best Glutathione Supplements:

As a clinican, I recommend supplements to boost glutathione stores for nearly everyone.  This is because our society is so bombarded with toxins in the form of mental/emotional stressors, environmental chemicals in our air, water and food.  We are depleting our glutathione stores.

When we hit a critical mass where all of a sudden, our glutathione levels are unable to keep up with the oxidative stress from our environment, our health goes downhill quickly!  This is when all of a sudden, we have a significant rush of antibody formation and the maturation of an autoimmune disease develops, we develop chronic pain, or we have absolutely no energy anymore and/or tumors grow quickly (whether we know we have cancer or not).

21st century health is all about boosting our bodies antioxidant defense systems to protect the body from the onslaught of toxins and oxidative stress.

Glutathione Precursors

The best ways to boost glutathione from supplements includes formulated compounds that have key precursors such as glycine, glutamic acid and cysteine.

We can also look for herbs such as turmeric and milk thistle and sulfur compounds like MSM, N-acetyl cysteine and lipoic acid.  Selenium is a trace mineral that also helps increase glutathione levels. One product we use that combines a number of these forms of glutathione is Thyroliver protect which acts specifically to improve both the thyroid and liver function.

Acetylated Glutathione

I recommend glutathione precursors as great everyday support. In more tough cases where people are facing a health challenge rooted in chronic inflammation, using supplemental glutathione can be powerful. The problem with supplemental glutathione however is that most simply do not absorb through the gut barrier.

I recommend using an acetylated glutathione as it has been shown to survive the digestive tract and improve blood glutathione levels. Additionally, the form I carry (Super Glutathione) is encapsulated with acid-resistant technology to support optimal absorption in the gut.

For optimal glutathione absorption and utilization within the cell, you want to use an acetylated form of glutathione that bypasses the gut and is easily absorbed into the cell.  You can also use liposomal glutathione which also bypasses the gut and fuses into the cell membranes for optimal absorption.  An added benefit of liposomal forms is that they provide phospholipids which are necessary for health cell membranes.

Comprehensive Support

To take your antioxidant benefits to the next level, you can combine supplemental glutathione along with glutathione precursors and other anti-inflammatory nutrients. I often recommend using this combination strategy as it is likely the most effective. For this purpose, I always recommend ProOmega Curcumin.

This is a potent combination of reduced glutathione, glutathione precursors, and the powerful anti-inflammatory compound curcumin. Take all of this and combine it with purified omega 3 fatty acids and nothing beats it. For my patients struggling with chronic inflammatory conditions, this is my go-to.

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Sources For This Article Include:

1. Huffington Post: Healthy Living Glutathione: The Mother of All Antioxidants Link Here

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3. Alternative Medicine Glutathione: A Closer Look at the Master Antioxidant Link Here

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5. Oz: Glotathione: The Master Antioxidant Link Here

6. Mark Hyman: Essential Glutathione: The Mother of All Antioxidants

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8. Chang WK, Yang KD, Chuang H, Jan JT, Shaio MF. Glutamine protects activated human T cells from apoptosis by up-regulating glutathione and Bcl-2 levels. Clin Immunol. 2002 Aug;104(2):151-60. PMID: 12165276

9. Nicola Traverso, Roberta Ricciarelli, Mariapaola Nitti, et al., “Role of Glutathione in Cancer Progression and Chemoresistance,”Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, vol. 2013, Article ID 972913

10. Schnelldorfer T, Gansauge S, Gansauge F, Schlosser S, Beger HG, Nussler AK. Glutathione depletion causes cell growth inhibition and enhanced apoptosis in pancreatic cancer cells. Cancer. 2000 Oct 1;89(7):1440-7. PMID: 11013356

11. Nicola Traverso, Roberta Ricciarelli, Mariapaola Nitti, et al., “Role of Glutathione in Cancer Progression and Chemoresistance,”Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, vol. 2013, Article ID 972913

12. Garrido M, Tereshchenko Y, Zhevtsova Z, Taschenberger G, Bähr M, Kügler S. Glutathione depletion and overproduction both initiate degeneration of nigral dopaminergic neurons. Acta Neuropathol. 2011 Apr;121(4):475-85. PMID: 21191602

13. PHTPHarma: Oxition Link Here

14. Jain SK, Micinski D. Vitamin D upregulates glutamate cysteine ligase and glutathione reductase, and GSH formation, and decreases ROS and MCP-1 and IL-8 secretion in high-glucose exposed U937 monocytes. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2013 Jul 19;437(1):7-11. PMID: 23770363

15. Holick MF, Chen TC. Vitamin D deficiency: a worldwide problem with health consequences. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Apr;87(4):1080S-6S. PMID: 18400738