When seeking out an effective product for healthy weight loss, Isagenix customers look no further than Isagenix IsaLean Shake, Soup, or Bars. These complete meal replacements provide the right combination of high-quality protein, energy-boosting carbohydrates, good fats, vitamins and minerals to help fuel fat burning and muscle maintenance, while maintaining healthy blood sugar levels. What customers may not know is that with each sip, they are also helping to boost levels of a vitally important age-fighting antioxidant—glutathione (GSH).
Glutathione is the body’s most abundant antioxidant. It’s at its highest levels when we’re younger, but its synthesis abates with age, and with declining levels comes increased oxidative stress, a problem that is compounded by obesity. Three essential amino acids required to synthesize GSH—which are concentrated in whey protein in IsaLean Shake—are glycine, cysteine and glutamic acid.
GSH is both a direct defender against the free radical-targeted harm to our cells as well as its intracellular components (cell membranes, proteins, DNA and telomeres). GSH is also a necessary cofactor for detoxification enzymes such as GSH-peroxidase and GSH-transferases.
Now, new research (1) from the Baylor College of Medicine is showing that because older individuals have less ability to make their own GSH, they may be more susceptible to oxidative stress and age-associated poor health outcomes. The researchers also compared the effect of supplementing GSH precursor amino acids (glycine, glutamic acid and cysteine) on levels of plasma precursors, GSH and oxidative stress markers in eight elderly men (ages 60 to 75). They compared their findings with levels found in eight younger adults (ages 30 to 40). At baseline the elderly had significantly less of the GSH precursors and GSH itself in their red blood cells compared with the younger adults. Not surprisingly, with less GSH in their cells, the older adults also had a greater level of oxidative stress markers in their plasma compared with younger adults.
Could these low levels of GSH be corrected? Could they be restored to youthful levels? To find out, the researchers supplemented these individuals with high doses of GSH precursors glycine and cysteine (in the form of N-acetylcysteine, an antioxidant in many Isagenix products). After two weeks of supplementation, the elderly subject’s red blood cell GSH nearly doubled and their level of oxidative stress indicators in their plasma decreased significantly. Supplementation was so effective that all of their measurements resembled the data found in the younger subjects!
