Detoxify the Body with Glutathione

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http://blog.drdavidwilliams.com/blog/dr-david-williams/0/0/detoxify-the-body-with-glutathione

courtesy of David Williams Blog

Published 06/09/10

Glutathione (pronounced "glue-tah-thi-on") is an extremely important compound that naturally occurs in the body. It is composed of three amino acids, namely glycine, glutamic acid, and cysteine. It is particular useful in detoxifying the body.

Research has shown that glutathione levels decline as we age, and there seems to be a corresponding decline in our health and longevity. Its possible in many instances that the drop in glutathione levels may be related to exposure to heavy metals like mercury, lead, and cadmium.

These metals are sulfhydryl-reactive metals. In simple terms, this means that they steal sulfur groups from enzymes, protein compounds and/or peptides such as glutathione. Once these compounds lose their sulfur component, they lose their ability to detoxify the body.

Much of glutathiones ability to improve your longevity and overall health comes from its role in detoxifying various chemicals, thereby preventing them from damaging your cellular DNA. When you increase glutathione, you in turn increase glutathione S-transferase, a naturally occurring enzyme in the body that neutralizes several different carcinogens. It keeps these toxins from damaging the cells DNA, thus preventing cancer and other cellular damage.

Choose Glutathione–Rich Foods

There are several ways you can help to raise your glutathione levels and help increase the production of the GST enzymes:

Eat cruciferous vegetables. This family of vegetables is one of the richest food sources of glutathione. The most potent vegetable is Brussels sprouts. Others include: cauliflower, broccoli (particularly the flowers, not the stem), cabbage, kale, bok choy, cress, mustard, horseradish, turnips, rutabagas, and kohlrabi.
Eat garlic.
Use rosemary when cooking. At the University of Illinois, researchers found that including the herb rosemary in the diet could increase GST enzyme activity.

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