Calcium D-glucarate --- also called calcium glucarate --- is a supplemental form of glucarate, a compound that occurs in small amounts in your body and also appears in a variety of fruits and vegetables. Some scientists have proposed glucarate as a treatment for various types of cancer and as a detoxifier that can help eliminate cancer-causing compounds. While there are reasons to support these uses, no one has conducted human trials to verify glucarate's effects as of 2011.
Basics
Food sources of glucarate include broccoli, apples, Brussels sprouts, grapefruit, potatoes, oranges, lettuce, grapes and bean sprouts. Calcium D-glucarate is the most widely used supplemental form of this compound, according to the American Cancer Society, or ACS. Inside your body, the glucarate content of the supplement gets converted into a substance called d-glucaro-1,4-lactone. In turn, this substance appears to repress the effects of a liver enzyme called beta-glucuronidase. Normally, beta-glucuronidase slows your body's ability to eliminate certain hormones and chemicals that may trigger the onset of cancer.
Potential Benefits
People with cancer tend to have higher levels of beta-glucuronidase than people without cancer, the ACS reports. By blocking this enzyme's effects and speeding up your body's ability to eliminate dietary and environmental substances linked to cancer formation, glucarate can potentially detoxify your body and lower your cancer risks. Specific forms of cancer that glucarate may help prevent include cancers of the skin, liver, prostate, lung and colon. In addition, glucarate may slow or limit the growth of uterine and breast tumors.
Lack of Human Studies
The effects of glucarate have been studied in a number of peer-reviewed animal studies, and it is the evidence from these studies that supports the legitimacy of glucarate's anti-cancer properties, the ACS says. Human studies have begun, but no study has advanced far enough to get published in a medical journal or undergo the normal level of scientific review and scrutiny. For this reason, the ACS considers glucarate a promising supplement but cannot confirm its effectiveness in human beings.
Considerations
Calcium D-glucarate comes in forms that include tablets and capsules. Doctors have not established a proper dosage for the supplement. While there is no clear evidence that glucarate supplements harm your health, they may interfere with the normal effects of hormone replacement therapy, oral birth control products and a Parkinson's disease medication called entacapone. Supplements that contain glucarate are also available in forms that include calcium saccharate and calcium d-saccharate. To protect your health, consult your doctor before you take calcium D-glucarate or any other glucarate-based supplement.
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