Glutathione, an antioxidant, consists of three amino acids: cysteine, glycine and glutamine. Your liver manufactures glutathione, but the toxins produced daily both inside and outside your body can use up the available store quickly, according to author Mark Hyman, M.D., who calls glutathione the "master detoxifier." A diet high in foods containing glutathione can help boost your levels, which can help reduce the risk of chronic disease, Dr. Hyman states. However, you don't absorb glutathione well from foods, pharmacist Samuel Uretsky cautions in the Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine.
Meats and Other Proteins
Most fresh or unprocessed meats serve as good source of glutathione. Cysteine, the amino acid with the highest sulfur content, is found in many meats and protein sources, including beef, pork, chicken, duck, turkey, goat and cheeses such as ricotta or cottage cheese. Cooking meats reduces the glutathione content. Walnuts also serve as a good source of glutathione.
Vegetables
Vegetables with a high sulfur content supply large amounts of glutathione. Vegetables with the highest sulfur content include cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, greens, such as collard greens and kale. Onions, garlic, potatoes, asparagus, avocados, Brussels sprouts, spinach and squash also have a high sulfur content. Cooking vegetables reduces their glutathione levels. A nutritional analysis conducted by researchers from Emory University and reported in the "Journal of Food composition and Analysis" in 1989 noted that measurable levels of glutathione in green beans and potatoes dropped 25 to 50 percent after cooking.
Fruits
Some fruits are high in glutathione. These fruits include citrus fruits like grapefruits, tangerines and oranges, as well as raw tomatoes, strawberries, peaches, watermelon and bilberries.
Spices, Vitamins and Minerals
Some spices help improve glutathione levels, including curcumin, found in turmeric, cinnamon and cardamom. Selenium, a mineral, helps produce the glutathione-based enzymes needed for detoxification. Brazil nuts and other nuts grown in soil high in selenium, most seafood, meats and grains supply selenium. Foods high in alpha-lipoic acid, another antioxidant, also increase the manufacture of glutathione in your body; foods high in ALA include vegetables such as spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, peas, Brussels sprouts, and rice bran. Vitamin C and E, both antioxidants themselves, and whey protein can also increase glutathione levels. Folic acid and B-12 can also boost levels. Talk with your doctor before taking large amounts of over-the-counter vitamins or minerals. Nutritional supplements of glutathione are not well absorbed enough to raise glutathione levels, Dr. Uretsky states. Because glutathione is a protein, it's digested when taken orally.
References
- DrHyman.com; Essential Glutathione: The Mother of All Antioxidants; Mark Hyman, M.D.
- Nutrition Advisor: Dietary Sources of Glutathione
- "Journal of Food Composition and Analysis"; Glutathione in Food; G. Wierzbicka, et al.; 1989
- Rheumatoid-Arthritis-Decisions; Foods That Boost Glutathione; Katherine L. Molnar-Kimber, Ph.D.
- Y2K Health and Detox Center; GSH(Glutathione) Complex; Deborah Baker, D.C.
- Gale Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine; Glutathione; Samuel Uretsky, Pharm.D.; 2005
