Before understanding what can increase Glutathione in the body, let us tell you why we need glutathione in the first place. “Glutathione is an antioxidant in plants, animals, some bacteria. Glutathione prevents damage to important cellular components caused by sources such as reactive oxygen species, free radicals,” says Dr Prashant Mistry physiotherapist and celebrity fitness trainer
Glutathione is essential for the immune system’s proper functioning and is vital in building and repairing tissue. It acts as an important antioxidant, which helps protect your body from damage to cells caused by free radicals.
Here are some of the benefits of Glutathione holds.
Glutathione holds many anti-ageing benefits:
Since it is a natural detoxifier, it improves the health of the body's cells to reverse ageing. Like melatonin, Glutathione protects the skin against oxidative damage which leads to wrinkles — making it an excellent form of anti-ageing skincare. It prevents or reverses acne, wrinkles and crows feet via detoxification of the skin and body.
Helps improve insulin levels:
Higher levels of GSH can cause less fat stored in the belly, which can lead to a lower risk of certain types of diabetes, explains College of Medicine in Houston combined studies of older adults and older mice since both groups were glutathione-deficient, which is a common side effect of aging. Less than two weeks after the volunteers were instructed to consume foods with the amino acids cysteine and glycine, such as lentils and sunflower seeds, their ability to burn body fat jumped to a rate similar to the average young adult.
Decreases risk of heart disease:
In an animal study conducted at the University of Michigan Health System, scientists fed a grape-enriched diet to rats with hypertension (chronic high blood pressure) who were at an elevated risk of heart failure. After 18 weeks, the authors discovered that the antioxidants in the fruit “turned on” antioxidant defense pathways, which ultimately increased the activity of genes that boost the production of glutathione. Furthermore, the rats experienced fewer occurrences of heart muscle enlargement, along with better diastolic function.
Helps prevent obesity:
“If the body is low on glutathione, the environmental toxins will metabolize in the fat tissues, which means the body will hold onto excess weight,” According to a study published in the journal Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine, adults who were diagnosed with metabolic syndrome—a number of health conditions (such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, high cholesterol and a large waistline) that can raise the risk of heart disease, diabetes and stroke, as defined by the National Institutes of Health—and who initially tested with higher levels of glutathione showed greater reductions in body weight and body fat percentage after following a personalized healthy eating plan for six months.
May aid in fighting autoimmune issues:
Research published in the journal Autoimmunity Reviews found a strong association between oxidative stress and apoptosis—a controlled process of cell death—in patients living with lupus, an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks healthy cells and tissues by mistake. And depletion of glutathione was discovered to be “closely related” to the destruction of cells.
Glutathione supplements: Although oral glutathione supplementation does not efficiently increase intracellular glutathione levels for the above reasons, it can be absorbed intact into the blood stream. Since increased glutathione levels in the blood have been shown to slow the breakdown of nitric oxide, glutathione supplementation may be useful to augment nitric oxide boosters such as L-Citrulline or L-Arginine
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