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There is more to finishing your veggies than meets the eye! When it comes to your health there is one thing that helps prevent a number of complex problems; and that would be the antioxidant. Maybe now you will think worse about slipping them off to the waste basket.

The contamination to the environment also causes a lot of damage to us humans as well. Today pollutants and radiation are more widespread than ever. Microwaves, smoke, and many other things unseen all contribute to an increase among free radicals in your body. The modern conveniences of mass production, energy, cell phones, transportation, tobacco smoke, and beyond; all bring about increases carbon monoxide and radiation emissions.

When it comes to health, the group of compounds called the antioxidant can assist in the fight against these free radicals. Free radicals are clearly linked to many diseases we suffer. Antioxidants also help fight other degenerative conditions as well.

Free Radicals Damage Cells Health

Cells in your body manufacture free radicals in nature. Their increase is a by-product of exposure to these environmental factors. Free Radicals occur during oxygen molecules oxidation. The process can become carcinogenic which is where trouble begins. When these free radicals build up over the years they can bring on irreparable injury to cell walls and structure. The free radicals cause health problems without good intake of antioxidant rich fruits and vegetables. You can purchase antioxidant supplements, however they don’t deliver as well as those naturally ingested.

The minimal health wear you will experience from free radicals is aging. They speed up this process considerably. It can also be more serious free radical damage such as heart disease, cancer, and strokes. It’s sad that many aren’t more for prevention in this area of health as there are steps that can help avoid all those terrible degenerative diseases. The antioxidant in foods can definitely make life healthier and happier.

Balancing Health with Antioxidant Intake

When the subject of health comes up, many think about diet and exercise. What you are now reading doesn’t throw that off in the slightest. Introducing antioxidant intake into the diet is a great idea, and will make your efforts even more effective in physical fitness. Antioxidants are found in fruit and vegetables; with red, orange, or yellow skin. Some suggested antioxidant sources include Mangoes, carrots, capsicums, various nuts, which are heavy in antioxidant content with its health benefits. These are strategic in fighting free radicals within your body.

Often, many have used an antioxidant supplement in the hope that this easier softer way would help their health. Any supplements are just that, they are intended to add a little to other sources. Good health comes from actual nutrients. Making sure your antioxidant intake in this form is strong will help you to attain good long-term health.

Some antioxidant supplements can even become carcinogenic in the body and negatively affect your health. One such example is too much intake of Vitamin E and A that are often stored in the liver. This can cause both liver damage and possibly birth defects as well. It’s advised to have an antioxidant intake of about 9 servings a day by some recent research. When it comes to your health, you should to do a little more research of your own and find the right balance of antioxidant for your needs.

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Free radicals and oxyradicals play an important role in the development and progression of many brain disorders such as brain injury, neurodegenerative disease, schizophrenia and Down syndrome.

Glutathione is the brain’s master antioxidant and plays an important protective role in the brain.

According to Dr. Jimmy Gutman, “The brain is particularly susceptible to free radical attack because it generates more oxidative by-products per gram of tissue than any other organ.”

Many neurological and psychiatric disease processes are characterized by… abnormalities in glutathione metabolism and antioxidant defenses.”

Generation of reactive oxygen species (free radicals) and oxidative damage are an important cause of neuron (brain cell) death from brain injury.

Chemicals that cause toxicity to certain brain cells are known to decrease cerebral glutathione (GSH), making the cells more vulnerable to reactive oxygen species (ROS). (1)

On the other hand, over-expression of the glutathione peroxidase (GPX) enzyme potently decreases cell death from brain injury. (2)

Brain Injury and Glutathione - The Gender Difference

Researchers at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh have found that males and females respond differently to brain injury. (3)

In animal models, levels of glutathione remain constant in females who have suffered a brain injury, but drop by as much as 80 percent in males with the same injury.

When glutathione levels drop, brain cells die much more quickly. This suggests that boys with brain injuries may require different life-saving treatments than girls.

N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC), a precursor of glutathione, already approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat people who have overdosed on acetaminophen, may be an effective treatment for brain injury in boys whose brains are deprived of oxygen.

Brain Disorders and Glutathione - A Genetic Cause?

Genetics researchers have found that the glutathione S-transferase gene controls the onset of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease and determines, not if we get these diseases, but when. (4)

The glutathione S-transferase gene has previously been linked to the risk for Parkinson’s disease among people who used pesticides.

A previous article covered the importance of glutathione in Parkinson’s Disease.

Alzheimer’s Disease and Glutathione

Free radicals and oxidative damage in neurons is known to be a primary cause of degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease.

Amyloid-ß peptide (Aß) accumulation in senile plaques, a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), has been implicated in neuronal degeneration.

Amyloid plaques encroaching on the brain increase the production of free radicals, or oxidative stress. Antioxidants, such as vitamin C and E “mop up” the damaging free radicals.

Glutathione (GSH) precursors can prevent death of brain cells induced by amyloid plaques in Alzhiemer’s disease, while substances that deplete GSH increase cell death. (5)

Evidence has been piling up over the link between the amount of an amino acid called homocysteine in the blood and the chance of developing Alzheimer’s.

For people not genetically predisposed to developing Alzheimer’s, cholesterol and homocysteine, largely caused by an unhealthy lifestyle, are the core causal factors.

Welsh GP, Andrew McCaddon, showed that the more homocysteine that patients with Alzheimer’s had, the worse their mental performance, and the worse their “cognitive impairment,” the less they had of the antioxidant glutathione. (6)

Glutathione and Mood Disorders

Studies have found that the mood stabilizing drug, valproate, used to treat epilepsy and bi-polar disorder, regulates expression of the genes that make glutathione-S-transferase (GST).

In addition, chronic treatment with lithium, another commonly prescribed mood stabilizer used in treating manic-depression, also increased levels of GST.

These findings led researchers to conclude that glutathione S-transferase may be a novel target for mood stabilizing drugs. (7)

Alcohol Consumption and Glutathione

Alcohol abuse is known to impair memory and other brain functions and increase brain cell death. A new study in rats has shown that alchol consumption causes fewer new brain cells to form and results in greater cell death. (8)

But rats that were fed alcohol along with Ebselen - a glutathione peroxidase mimic that acts as a free radical scavenger - showed no similar reduction in brain-cell formation and no increase in cell death.

Substances that Boost Glutathione Levels and Protect Brain Cells

Taking glutathione itself as a supplement does not boost cellular glutathione levels, since it breaks down in the digestive tract before it reaches the cells.

However, intravenous glutathione therapy and glutathione precursors or dietary supplements are effective in boosting intracellular levels of glutathione.

Intravenous Glutathione Injections: Intravenous glutathione injections have been shown to produce amazing and rapid results, in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Following even a single dosage of intravenous glutathione, many of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease rapidly improve, often in as little as 15 minutes.

Glutathione Precursors: In the Alzheimer’s study conducted by Welsh GP, Andrew McCaddon, adding the glutathione precursor, N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) to a protocol that lowered homocysteine levels by simple supplementation with B12 and folate, resulted in prompt, striking, and sustained clinical improvement in nearly all the patients. (9)

Cucurmin (turmeric):Studies have shown that the Indian curry spice, cucurmin, has neuroprotective effects because of its ability to induce the enzyme, hemeoxygenase-1 (HO-1), which protects neurons exposed to oxidant stress. Treatment of brain cells called astrocytes, with curcumin, increases expression of HO-1 protein as well as glutathione S-transferase. (10)

Ebselen: Ebselen is a glutathione peroxidase mimic and potent synthetic antioxidant that acts as a neuroprotective agent and an inhibitor of free-radical induced apoptosis (cell death). It can protect brain cells from the neuro-toxic effects of alcohol consumption. (8)

Undenatured Whey Protein: Undenatured whey protein provides glutathione precursors, has been shown to raise intracellular glutathione levels in clinical trials, and has anecdotally been reported to improve the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

References:
1. Journal of Neurochemistry, Vol. 88, No. 3, 2004 513-531
2. Journal of Neurochemistry, Vol. 87, No. 6, 2003 1527-1534
3. Researchers Find Brain Cells Die Differently in Males and Females; Pediatric Academic Societies Press release; 21-Apr-2004
4. Human Molecular Genetics, 2003, Vol. 12, No. 24 3259-3267
5. The Journal of Cell Biology, Volume 164, Number 1, 123-131; 5 January 2004
6. Biol Psychiatry. 2003 Feb;53(3):254-60
7. Journal of Neurochemistry, Vol. 88, No. 6, 2004 1477-1484
8. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Jun 24;100(13):7919-24. Epub 2003 Jun 05.
9. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2003 Mar-Apr;11(2):246-9
10. Can Curry Protect Against Alzheimer’s?; American Physiological Society (APS) Press Release; 16-Apr-2004

Copyright © 2004 Priya Shah

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This article was first published in the May 2004 issue of The Glutathione Report, a newsletter featuring regular updates on the health benefits of glutathione. Get a Free report on Glutathione in Health and Disease
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