Glutathione:
The Master Antioxidant

Glutathione, sometimes called the Master Antioxidant, is the most abundant water-soluble antioxidant in your body. It's an important member of the antioxidant network family that includes lipoic acid, CoQ-10, vitamin C and vitamin E.

Some scientists consider this antioxidant to be the most important one that you have. Your levels largely determine whether you feel good and have plenty of energy, or you don't. When your levels drop, you also leave yourself open to increased risk from all types of degenerative diseases.

Specific Functions in the Body

Glutathione is a tripeptide, which means it is made of molecules of three other amino acids: cysteine, glutamic acid and glycine. Your body manufactures most of the what it needs, but as you age, your production decreases significantly. In order to maintain an optimal level, your body must have a sufficient supply of these amino acid building blocks it needs to manufacture it.

This prominent antioxidant circulates continuously throughout your body, rejuvenating immune cells and removing toxic waste products from your system. It works to replenish other members of the antioxidant network, helps keep your cell membranes strong and transports vital amino acids into your cells.

One of this antioxidant's most important functions is to protect your DNA from free radical attacks. If cellular DNA is damaged and not quickly repaired, it can cause the cell to mutate, which leads to the formation of cancerous growths.

Glutathione is responsible for protecting cells from free radical attacks which are resistant to other antioxidants such as vitamin E, vitamin C and the carotenoids. This is another example of how the different members of the network complement each other, and why it's important to get all of them into your diet.

Specific Benefits of Glutathione

Raising your levels of glutathione helps your body build up its resistance to all kinds of threats to your health. Numerous studies have demonstrated the following specific benefits:

• prevents chronic inflammation
• protects your eyes and skin from UV damage from the sun
• regulates immune cells and fights viruses
• fights autoimmune diseases
• promotes healthy liver function
• protects your cells against oxidation from air pollution
• helps eliminate toxins from your cells

Some of the diseases that can be
prevented by maintaining adequate levels
of glutathione include:

• asthma
• bronchitis
• cancers of the liver and ovaries
• psoriasis
• chronic fatigue syndrome
• cataracts and glaucoma
• retinal disease and diabetic blindness

Levels of this antioxidant are severely depleted in people with asthma, cancer, AIDS and other autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. There is also a strong correlation between cirrhosis of the liver and low levels of this antioxidant.

Best Food Sources

Fresh fruits and vegetables are an excellent source of glutathione, but once cooked, they have much lower levels. Spinach, potatoes, asparagus, avocado, squash, okra, cauliflower, broccoli, walnuts, garlic and tomatoes have the highest glutathione per serving. Other foods rich in glutathione include grapefruit, potatoes, brussels sprouts, cabbage and walnuts, strawberries, watermelon, onions, legumes and eggs.

Glutathione is also found in fresh, uncooked meats and raw milk, but is almost entirely absent in pasteurized dairy products.

The herb Milk Thistle is an excellent source of the antioxidant compound silymarin, which may help to prevent glutathione depletion in the liver. Glutathione is crucial in the liver for detoxification and can become depleted from acetaminophen (Tylenol) use, alcohol consumption, and general toxic overload.

Glutathione is also manufactured in your body from a combination of amino acids: cysteine, glutamic acid and glycine. Of these, cysteine is the one that most determines how much you can produce. Cysteine is found in many foods, especially whole grains, beans, eggs and meat. Two other nutrients, zinc and vitamin B2 are also important.

Keeping your glutathione levels up is a matter of increasing factors that boost your glutathione and decreasing factors that lower it. Smoking, alcohol, caffeine, strenuous exercise, food additives, prescription and over-the-counter drugs, ultraviolet radiation and air pollution will all deplete levels in your body.

Supplementing With Glutathione

There is some controversy over whether glutathione may be significantly boosted by taking oral supplements, because most of it is broken down into separate amino acids before it can be absorbed into your cells. There are glutathione supplements that come in an already-reduced form that have better bioavailability.

A more reliable method of boosting levels of glutathione would be to supplement with the building blocks selenium, alpha-lipoic acid and the amino acid N-acetyl cysteine. These supplements have been shown to be a very effective way to raise your levels of glutathione.

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