Description
Why Should I Take S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione?
If you have ever been interested in trying out glutathione, or perhaps you have already been taking reduced glutathione, then S-Phenylacetyl Glutathione is a very interesting option! This form of glutathione has been stabilized with a phenylacetyl group, which makes it act like a precursor to glutathione. This has some distinct advantages. For example, various enzymes that can break down glutathione now lose the ability to break down glutathione and instead go to work cleaving off the phenylacetyl group from S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione. This then yields glutathione, and has the distinct advantage of being able to get into cells in higher concentrations as S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione is protected from premature breakdown in our stomach, intestines and plasma.
If you are not familiar with glutathione, you may be asking yourself, why would I want high bioavailability glutathione? The answer to this is very simple, glutathione is regarded as the body's master antioxidant, and is crucial for controlling oxidative stress. It is an endogenous compound of which we have large stores throughout the body, and many environmental and lifestyle stressors can deplete glutathione. In addition to this, as we age, glutathione levels start to plummet. With this in mind, it is a good idea for practically anyone to be topping off their glutathione levels, and what better way to do this than with an optimized version of glutathione?
What is S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione?
S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione is a phenylacetylated version of the endogenous tripeptide glutathione. Through the addition of a phenylacetyl group, S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione achieves higher bioavailability as it can reach cells in higher concentrations than regular reduced glutathione can achieve.
S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione Benefits & Uses
Enhances oxidative status
Promotes cognitive function
Supports liver and respiratory function
S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione: The Master Antioxidant’s Saga
It goes without saying that glutathione is one of the most important endogenous compounds in our bodies. It is found in high concentrations practically in every tissue and cell, and is particularly high in our livers, lungs and brains. Due to its importance, we also burn through large amounts of reduced glutathione on a daily basis, especially when we really need it, for example in cases of increased oxidative stress and under conditions of increased strain on the immune system. This is quite a lot of responsibility for a single compound, but luckily this mighty molecule is up to the task! However, despite the prowess of glutathione, it could use a bit of a helping hand replenishing some of its fallen comrades!
Two of the most common ways of increasing glutathione stores, is by supplementation with cysteine containing compounds or simply supplementing with reduced glutathione. If we utilize the correct dose of reduced glutathione (500-1,000 mg), then we can quite reliably increase our glutathione stores. However, we have to utilize a fairly high dose, because reduced glutathione does not have the best bioavailability. This is where S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione comes in! By attaching a phenylacetyl group to glutathione, we essentially create an enhanced precursor for glutathione. This means that S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione doesn’t have direct effects, it first needs to be converted to regular glutathione. However, the phenylacetyl group also pulls off a nice little trick, it allows itself to become hydrolyzed by the same enzymes that would normally break down glutathione. This means that S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione has a much better chance of getting glutathione into the cells before it is broken down extracellularly. Research studies have backed this up, and indicate much higher cellular uptake of glutathione when utilizing S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione.
So we have great bioavailability locked down, now what about the S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione benefits you can expect to experience? S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione will provide all of the glutathione benefits we are used to, but with the distinct advantage of higher bioavailability. By enhancing glutathione status with S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione, you can expect higher concentrations of glutathione primarily in your liver and lungs, which is where glutathione is often needed the most as a protective factor. With this in mind S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione can be a great strategy for helping to enhance liver and respiratory function.
The more straightforward benefit we need to look at however, is glutathione ability to manage oxidative stress. Since glutathione is often seen as the body’s master antioxidant, it is no surprise that topping off its levels positively impacts oxidative status. When oxidative stress is under control, our mitochondria have an easier time producing energy, our cells are happier, our skin looks smoother, we are protected a little bit more from oxidation and our brains are nice and protected too! This actually brings us to another interesting glutathione benefit, enhanced cognitive function! While there is no specific research looking at S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione and cognitive function, it does seem logical that the phenylacetyl group would help shuttle glutathione to cells in the brain. In addition to this, we have seen some famous nootropics sporting this same phenylacetyl group, so perhaps S-Phenylacetyl L-Glutathione has some undiscovered cognitive benefits up its sleeve!