Cysteine and Glycine Supplementation Can Boost Antioxidant Defenses in Aging & Diabetes

The key antioxidant enzyme in cells is called glutathione. Antioxidant reserves decline with age and are typically depleted in individuals with metabolic problems such as type 2 diabetes. The core cellular antioxidant system for every cell centers on the status of cellular glutathione. Many antioxidants work synergistically with glutathione to try to keep it at optimal levels. Additionally, glutathione as a dietary supplement does not cross cell membranes, so it is an antioxidant that must be synthesized from within the cell. Two new studies show that this key antioxidant can be dramatically boosted in aging and diabetes by supplementing with N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) and glycine, building block nutrients for glutathione formation within cells.

Researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, have conducted several interesting studies, one comparing diabetics to non-diabetics and the other comparing young to old. 

Patients who are diabetic and suffering from higher-than-normal blood sugar levels induce considerable oxidative stress that uses up their glutathione. This leaves them vulnerable to increased inflammation and tissue damage, sending their health on a downward spiral. This first study showed that supplementation with NAC and glycine in diabetic patients could restore their glutathione levels to those of non-diabetic patients while drastically reducing free radical damage.

The second study showed that older adults lacked glutathione simply as a result of the decline associated with aging. Again, supplementation of NAC and glycine restored the glutathione levels in older adults back to the level of younger adults.

These studies show that even in health situations reflecting low levels of glutathione, the ability to synthesize healthy amounts of glutathione still exists, as long as the raw material nutrients are provided. 

The health implications of this study are profound and can be generalized across a broad spectrum of health problems, since almost all health problems of aging, age-related disease, or compromised immune function involved depleted antioxidants. Supporting healthy levels of glutathione appears relatively easy to do—and this is the first time that has been demonstrated in controlled human trials.