What is Glutathione IV Used For?
Glutathione IV. IV vitamin and mineral drips have become a very popular trend in recent years with everything from B complex and immune support concoctions to NAD boosters and hangover cures. Glutathione IV therapy is one of them, and it’s due to its incredible health benefits that more and more people are asking for treatments.
What is Glutathione?
Glutathione is an extremely powerful antioxidant largely composed of three non-essential amino acids: glutamine, glycine, and cysteine. It can be found in large amounts in the majority of cells in our body which showcases the great role it plays in all processes in the body. Even moreso, the glutathione levels in our cells equal the levels of glucose, potassium, and cholesterol, only strengthening the importance it has on the human body.
Unfortunately, its levels are often lower than they should be and the factors contributing to it are mostly poor diet and malnutrition, chronic stress, age, toxins, and overall inflammation. Luckily, it’s easy to obtain in supplement form, whether in a pill, intravenously, topically, or as an inhalant.
The Benefits of Glutathione
Numerous studies show the great health benefits one could have from taking a glutathione supplement. Some of the most important include:
1. A Potential Reduction of Cell Damage in Alcoholic and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Fatty liver occurs when fat builds up around the organ, making it swell up and cause damage to the tissue and cells. A lack of antioxidants, and with it glutathione, exacerbates this damage, causing scarring of the tissue and an even more serious condition called cirrhosis.
Supplementing with high IV doses of glutathione have shown to improve protein, enzyme, and bilirubin levels in those suffering from fatty liver even several months after treatment interruption. Another great testament to glutathione’s efficacy is shown in the reduction of malondialdehyde, a marker of hepatic cell damage.
2. A Potential Reduction of Oxidative Stress
Antioxidants are extremely important in the human body as their main role is to help the body fight oxidative stress created by damaging, free radicals. When a person lacks antioxidants, the body activates its immune system and increases inflammation, finding it harder to fight diseases. According to an article in the Journal of Cancer Science and Therapy, glutathione deficiency elevates the oxidative stress which may then lead to cancer. On the other hand, higher levels of glutathione reduced the oxidative stress in cancer cells.
3. May Help Fight Against Autoimmune Diseases
Autoimmune diseases are conditions where the body fights against itself, mistaking its own cells for toxins. The immune system gets activated and starts treating healthy cells as bacteria or viruses, trying to fight them off and kill them. This causes major oxidative stress and raising glutathione levels may help lower the inflammatory response, lessening the impact of autoimmune disease reactions in the body.
4. May Potentially Improve Psoriasis Symptoms
Psoriasis is a common, chronic skin disease which tends to be on the autoimmune side, with flares coming and going throughout a person’s lifetime. To this day, there isn’t an efficient cure, but there’s plenty of therapies and treatments designed to help reduce the symptoms. A small study showed a significant improvement when glutathione levels were elevated.
5. May Potentially Increase Mobility in People with Peripheral Artery Disease
Peripheral artery disease is a blockage of vessels in the peripheral areas of the body (most commonly legs) and it’s usually caused by the buildup of fatty plaque in the arteries, or atherosclerosis. Studies show how glutathione IV treatment can help improve circulation and increase mobility, allowing the patients to walk pain-free for longer distances.
6. A Potential Improvement in Insulin Resistance Amongst Older Population
As levels of glutathione lower with age, with it comes a reduced rate of burning fat and higher rates of fat storing in the body. Research shows a potential improvement in insulin resistance as well as a promotion of fat burning when glutathione deficiency is corrected.
7. A Potential Reduction of Type 2 Diabetes
With lower levels of glutathione and potential issues with glucose metabolism, diabetes type 2 causes extreme oxidative stress and damage. Research shows a direct link between glutathione IV therapy and improved metabolic rates in those suffering from diabetes even though the exact mechanisms responsible for glow glutathione levels in type 2 diabetes have not been fully established.
8. May Reduce the Symptoms of Asthma and Other Respiratory Diseases
One of the most popular medications used to treat asthma and other respiratory diseases is N-acetylcysteine, another powerful antioxidant. It helps disintegrate the mucus accumulation in the respiratory pathways and reduce overall inflammation, causing the swelling. Interestingly enough, N-acetylcysteine is a byproduct of glutathione.
9. May Reduce Oxidative Damage in Autistic Children
Children with autism have higher levels of oxidative damage and apparently, lower levels of glutathione in their brain. A study that tackled this specific correlation and increased glutathione levels showed improvement in the amino acid cysteine, plasma sulfate, and whole-blood glutathione levels.
10. May Reduce the Symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease is a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement. It often causes rigidness and tremors, slow movement, and loss of balance. In a placebo-controlled clinical trial, glutathione IV therapy showcased mild improvements with tremors and rigidness, potentially improving the quality of life in those suffering from this disease.
What is Glutathione IV Therapy Used For Additionally?
In addition to treating fatty liver disease, oxidative damage in autoimmune disease and autism, respiratory disease, and other serious medical conditions, many clinics nowadays offer glutathione IV therapy as an antioxidant boost without the need of prescription or a serious diagnosis.
Even though it’s naturally produced by our bodies, glutathione levels decline with age, even without other additional external toxins. A glutathione IV therapy delivers this powerful combination of three amino acids straight into your bloodstream, bypassing the digestive tract where there’s a potential for lower absorption.
Benefits of taking this treatment include:
Glutathione is an extremely powerful antioxidant that is key to almost all body functions, including:
- Reducing overall inflammatory processes in the body
- Skin lightening by erasing hyper-pigmentation and preventing the production of melanin in cells
- Boosting the immune system, reducing oxidative stress markers, and helping fight free radicals
- Providing anti-aging properties and improving skin health
- Improving sleep quality
- Promoting flushing out toxins in a more efficient way
- Improving focus, mental clarity and energy levels
Many clinics add vitamin C into their glutathione IV due to the fact it helps elevate and protect glutathione levels in the tissue, increasing the absorption, and helping improve the efficacy of the treatment.
When compared to oral supplements of glutathione, a straight IV injection is much more likely to get better absorbed by your body as digestion can slow down, and even impair this process. Once glutathione hits the bloodstream, it’s carried throughout the entire body, reaching all of the important organs such as the brain, heart, lungs, and muscle tissue. This way, all of your cells can benefit from glutathione’s powerful detoxifying and protective properties.
In Conclusion
Glutathione is a master antioxidant which can be found in almost every cell in our body and plays an important role in our overall health and longevity. Unfortunately, its levels decline with age, but even more so with stress, toxins, poor diet, and other causes of oxidative damage, leaving us prone to disease and chronic inflammation.
Glutathione supplements, specifically IV therapy, is an amazing and minimally invasive way of increasing the levels of this powerful combination of amino acids and helping us fight off disease and fight against oxidative stress and its damage.