Glutathione (GSH) is classified as a ‘tripeptide’, which means it is composed of three amino acids. The human body produces glutathione from the amino acids Cysteine, Glutamic Acid and Glycine, and it is the key antioxidant compound required for vital functioning of all cells.
Glutathione is a powerful antioxidant essential for alleviating oxidative stress and protecting individual cells and tissues from free radicals. It is also known to enhance healthy growth and activity of immune cells needed for disease resistance and immune protection. In addition it enables the body to rid itself of unwanted toxins and heavy metals, detoxifying the liver, the body’s most concentrated source of glutathione; and protecting the body from today’s environmental pollutants, natural and synthetic toxins, genetically engineered processed foods and toxic waste.
Low levels of glutathione have been implicated in many autoimmune disorders and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s, Autism, HIV, MS Rheumatoid Arthritis etc.
Glutathione is so beneficial in Parkinson’s disease because it has the unique ability to increase the dopamine receptor’s sensitivity making certain areas of the brain more sensitive to dopamine despite the decreased levels associated with this condition.
Raising the amount of glutathione in the blood, it will help bind the heavy metals and remove them from the body and also help brain and immune development for children with autism. Increasing glutathione levels and effectively improving detoxification of the liver has been found to increase language and awareness for these children.
Glutathione has also been used to help treat Aging, Autism, Cancer, Chemotherapy recovery, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, for Detoxification, Drug addiction, Emphysema, Fibromyalgia, Glaucoma, Hepatitis, Hypoglycemia, Kydney disease, Liver disease, Liver cancer, Mercury poisoning,Parkinson’s disease, Respiratory problems such as cystic and pulmonary fibrosis, Smoking, Tuberculosis, to name a few.
How to test for Glutathione
Oxidative stress causes a deficiency of intracellular glutathione, therefore making it difficult to measure. The rapid turnover of reduced glutathione makes testing levels in Red Blood Cells inaccurate. Most practitioners will order an oxidative stress panel or amino acid analysis to look at the amino acids that make up glutathione which both give an indirect indication of glutathione’s activity.
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