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Fibromyalgia Monthly Newsletter
Glutathione and Detoxification
If you have Fibromyalgia you may be low in an important nutritional tripeptide called glutathione. Glutathione became important in the 1930's when it was found the low levels of glutathione was correlated to eye problems such as cataracts and macular degeneration. Glutathione is a tripeptide composed of three amino acids - glycine, glutamic acid and cysteine. Glutathione is present in every cell of your body and essential for life itself.
The liver especially needs glutathione for daily phase II detoxification. A lot of the oversensitivity found in people with fibromyalgia comes from a lack of proper daily detoxification by the liver. Every day your liver has to help your immune system clean out toxins (free radicals), and when it cannot get those toxins out of your body properly pain is a common result.
Using Tylenol or any other acetaminophen product depletes glutathione levels and affects the functioning of the liver, lungs and kidneys. Many pain medications cause an increase in free radicals, in turn causing more stress on the liver for detoxification. A free radical is an unstable, toxic compound that has lost a negative electron during normal activities. Loss of an electron can damage a cell and alter its ability to perform its special function or to replicate itself normally. High levels of free radicals cause us to age faster, increase our pain response, and can cause auto-immune diseases. Antioxidants are needed to give electrons to free radicals to neutralize them and make them harmless.
Where do we get Glutathione?
Many foods contains glutathione. Cruciferous vegetables are particularly rich sources of glutathione. Specifically, high glutathione levels are found in Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, kale, bok choy, cress, mustard, horseradish, turnips, rutabagas avocados, and kohlrabi.
Some companies put out glutathione powder, but it is only absorbed when other nutritional cofactors are available Glutathione needs riboflavin (B2), selenium, zinc and magnesium to be absorbed well. Riboflavin assists in recycling the enzymes created from glutathione and selenium aids in their formation. Zinc and magnesium also appear to be necessary in glutathione enzyme production. Of course, the cruciferous vegetables have these other nutritional cofactors.
From all appearances your glutathione level correlates to your rate of cell aging. Glutathione levels seem to give a pretty good indication of the overall health of an individual, as well as provide an indication of potential longevity.
The Truth About Antioxidants
The antioxidants found in multi-vitamins are from vitamin C (ascorbic acid), vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol), and beta-carotene. These antioxidant compounds consist of large complex molecules that give up only one electron each and are cumbersome in moving through our systems...sort of like an elephant moving through the jungle to give off something the size of a pea.
When one molecule of Vitamin C neutralizes one free radical, it becomes positively charged. It therefore temporarily becomes a free radical, but a less aggressive one, until it captures an electron from another antioxidant. This continues in a cascade of electron transfers to milder and milder and less damaging compounds.
Naturally occurring antioxidants found in fruits, vegetables and herbs are as powerful as the huge antioxidant molecules, yet work much faster and much more efficiently because they move through the system with ease, freely giving ions.
In addition to neutralizing free radicals it is believed these antioxidants from fruits and vegetables work by helping the body recycle other antioxidants so they can continue to do their job. They may also improve the chemical condition of our body fluids making an environment that is difficult for pathogens and microbes to exist. All pathogens and microbes produce free radicals.
Are you getting your cruciferous vegetables EVERY DAY? Remember we need a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and 5 servings of vegetables every day for optimum health. I recommend at least 3 servings of cruciferous vegetables per day to get the glutathione you need to help your liver detoxify daily. If you need support (and I know I do) you can take Juice Plus+. It does contain the variety of cruciferous vegetables we need on a daily basis. And I know for many of my fibromyalgia clients I recommend extra of the Garden blend (or vegetables) per day. If you want more information on Juice Plus+ go to my Juice Plus website.
Glutathione and DNA Repair
Your ability to repair damaged DNA is essential in helping to retard the aging process. And glutathione levels play an extremely important role. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is the master molecule of all body functions. This complex molecule resides in every cell of your body and provides both the blueprint and the instructions necessary for each cell to replicate and repair itself. It determines the particular build of your body, your height, skin color, hair texture and color, blood type and to which diseases and ailments you are most susceptible. DNA damage is a primary cause of aging.
Studies have shown a direct relationship between the life span of a species and its ability to repair damaged DNA. DNA can be damaged in thousands of ways. This includes everything from breathing polluted air to lying in the sun too long. When a strand of DNA is damaged, researchers believe two things can occur. If glutathione (or possibly another antioxidant) is available, it can attach to the damaged area and the DNA strand can be repaired. If glutathione is not immediately available, then oxygen attaches to the area and the damage will become irreversible. (Biomedicine 81;35[1]:35-7.) Increasing the levels of glutathione in the body has been shown to both decrease the frequency of DNA breaks and aid in their repair when necessary. Whenever you increase your ability to repair or protect DNA, you are in effect retarding the aging process. Glutathione has the ability to do both.
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