Parkinson Disease: Avoiding glutathione
Like any serious disease, a diagnosis of Parkinson Disease often makes people desperate for anything that will halt the progress or even reverse it. Extensive scientific studies over many years have shown that several medications and treatments help to relieve the symptoms of PD. None of these treatments have been shown to effectively slow it down, though several very good, well-designed placebo-controlled studies have been conducted at great expense of time and money. Some of these studies have been driven by the pharmaceutical industry, some by university research centers, and some by private physician clinics. The unifying feature of the treatments currently offered by Parkinson’s Disease Clinics and specialists is that they are based on scientific evidence.
Several unapproved, unproven, and potentially harmful treatments have been offered over the years; unfortunately they continue to be offered. Glutathione is a small molecule, made up of three peptides, that has anti-oxidant properties in the test-tube.
Theoretically, it could reduce oxidation in brain cells, which might help preserve the power-producing organelles called mitochondria. If one could reduce oxidative damage to mitochondria, brain cells could potentially live longer and be healthier. If one follows this line of reasoning, neurodegenerative diseases could be slowed down. An effect such as this would take many years to investigate and hundreds or even thousands of human subjects. It certainly would not cause an immediate improvement or reversal of symptoms. To date, there is no good evidence whatsoever that glutathione either treats or slows the progression of PD. In fact, there is good evidence that GLUTATHIONE DOES NOT WORK. See the following review http://tinyurl.com/7w5huq5
Dramatic videos of immediate improvement in PD signs and symptoms within 20 minutes of infusion demonstrate a placebo effect that is well-known in PD studies. Just reviewing the proposed mechanism for treatment (anti-oxidation), one can see that dramatic improvement makes no sense; the best one could hope for would be slowed progression. As they are currently marketed and provided, treatments with IV glutathione should be avoided. http://tinyurl.com/6vpce4u
All patients should be very cautious about starting any treatments that have not been studied scientifically, unless they are part of a bonafide scientific trial. There is an excellent way to get involved in PD studies by going the Michael J. Fox Foundation website and entering information into the Trial Finder portal at http://tinyurl.com/75o2c8x
2 Responses to “Parkinson Disease: Avoiding glutathione”
Hi,
Your article makes the statement that glutathione doesn’t help Parkinson’s patients. One thing that is not made clear is that you are discussing IV glutathione treatments.
Glutathione that is given intravenously is not able to be transported inside the cell where it is primarily needed by the body. Therefore, the problem lies with the delivery system of the glutathione, and not necessarily with the glutathione itself. There are new products that offer delivery systems for glutathione that support the body to make glutathione inside the cell.
Before making conclusions about glutathione and Parkinson’s, please review the studies that focus on intra-cellular glutathione. It would be a shame to make a conclusion on incomplete information.
Passia
2.
Hi,
I agree with the previous post by Passia. But, I have a few things I would like to add.
We all can watch the YouTube videos of Parkinson’s patients before and after IV Glutathione. I do not believe this is a placebo effect…or a terrible hoax on the Parkinson’s community.
Fact:
*Oral Glutathione is a protein and will be broken down in the GI tract.
*The IV Glutathione molecule is too large to penetrate the cell wall.
*If the body is given the correct components to make Glutathione, the body will.
How do we increase Glutathione:
*We can use Whey protein and increase our Glutathione about 35%.
*Cold showers daily will raise Glutathione about 20-25%.
*Lipoic acid increases Glutathione about 30-50%.
*Milk Thistle will raise Glutathione about 35%.
*N-Acetyl Cysteine will raise Glutathione about 85%, but requires 8,000 milligrams a day.
*We can educate ourselves on the research on supplements that is being done to enable our bodies to make more Glutathione…up to 300% more.
(www.Max.com/101381)
Don’t take my word for it… Go to http://www.PubMed.org and search Parkinsons (or any other disease) and Glutathione. You will find over 103,000 studies have been done on the benifits of increasing Glutathione in our bodies.
Educate yourself and make your own best decision.
Respectfully,
Sally
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