Cardiovascular disease remains the biggest cause of deaths worldwide. The
risk factors for cardiovascular disease have traditionally been
considered age, high cholesterol, smoking, family history, poor diet and
a lack of exercise. Many doctors are now realizing the importance of
underlying inflammation and oxidative stress, and are using blood levels
of inflammatory markers to predict coronary risk.
Recent
research (see below) has shown that low glutathione levels are a strong
predictor of heart disease. Patients with low glutathione activity in
combination with low HDL cholesterol levels were found to be six times
more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (CVD).
"Individuals with both
low HDL cholesterol and low glutathione peroxidase activity are at
markedly increased risk for death from CVD." ~ Buijsse et al, PloS ONE June 2012
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Low Glutathione Predicts Heart Attack
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Oxidative Stress is First Step in Cardiovascular Disease
Oxidative
stress is now recognised as a key event in the development of
atherosclerosis. An initial oxidative injury to a blood vessel triggers
the artery to form a cholesterol cap over the area of injury. Over time,
this can build up into a fatty plaque which can grow large enough to
stop the flow of blood. Thrombus (blood clot) can form over the plaque
and break off, blocking supply to blood to vital organs such as the
brain (resulting in a stroke) or heart (resulting in a heart attack).
Since oxidative injury is the first step in cardiovascular disease, it
makes sense that sufficient antioxidant defence is required to stop the
damage.
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia encountered in
clinical practice. Oxidative stress is now known to play an important
role in the pathogenesis and perpetuation of AF. Studies have shown that people with atrial fibrillation have significantly depleted glutathione levels.
Glutathione precursors have been found to markedly reduce the incidence of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and may also attenuate the associated electrophysiological remodelling. (Ref: Liu et al, Antioxidant Therapies in the Prevention and Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation, February 2013)
"Total glutathione content was evaluated in left atrial
tissues from cardiac surgery patients with no history of AF and compared
with that of persistent AF patients or patients with a history of
paroxysmal AF but in normal sinus rhythm at the time of surgery. Fig. 1A
shows that relative to control patients with no history of AF, left atrial glutathione content was 65% lower in patients with persistent AF. Tissue
from patients with a history of paroxysmal AF but in sinus rhythm at
the time of surgery had glutathione levels 45% lower than controls." ~ Carnes et al, Journal of Biol.Chem., July 2007
"Deficiency in systemic glutathione in cardiac patients occurs well before the drop in cardiac tissue glutathione. Several studies provide evidence for a close relationship between blood glutathione decrease and the pathogenesis of different inflammatory chronic diseases. In the cardiac myocyte, glutathione deficiency fuels a vicious TNF / sTNFR1/ oxidative stress / neutral sphingomyelinase/ apoptosis cycle. Accordingly, early deficiency in systemic glutathione is likely to contribute to the progression of the cardiac disease.
...In agreement with the previous observation made by Carnes et al, we found a 50% decrease in atrial glutathione content in patients with permanent atrial fibrillation compared to other patients with sinus rhythm, which is also consistent with the decreased incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation observed after intravenous supplementation with the glutathione precursor, N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Taken together, these results suggest that glutathione deficiency impinges on the whole damaged heart. They also suggest that glutathione supplementation may improve cardiac cell preservation in cardiac diseases, and be a complement to contemporary treatments." ~ Damy et al, Glutathione Deficiency in Cardiac Patients, PLoS ONE, March 2009
"It is widely held that oxidative stress is a major factor in the vascular injury that leads to atherosclerosis and CVD. If oxidized lipoproteins are a major factor in the development of atherosclerosis, then endogenous systems that reduce the levels of these toxic products may be important in the prevention of CVD. The glutathione peroxidases (GPx) are a family of enzymes which reduce oxidized lipids to their nontoxic metabolites and may thereby decrease vascular injury. Previous studies have suggested that low levels of both GPx1 and GPx3 are associated with the development of vascular disease." ~ Buijsse et al, PLoS ONE, June 2012
Glutathione precursors help to prevent and treat atrial fibrillation
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia encountered in
clinical practice. Oxidative stress is now known to play an important
role in the pathogenesis and perpetuation of AF. Studies have shown that people with atrial fibrillation have significantly depleted glutathione levels.Glutathione precursors have been found to markedly reduce the incidence of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and may also attenuate the associated electrophysiological remodelling. (Ref: Liu et al, Antioxidant Therapies in the Prevention and Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation, February 2013)
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| click to enlarge |
"Deficiency in systemic glutathione in cardiac patients occurs well before the drop in cardiac tissue glutathione. Several studies provide evidence for a close relationship between blood glutathione decrease and the pathogenesis of different inflammatory chronic diseases. In the cardiac myocyte, glutathione deficiency fuels a vicious TNF / sTNFR1/ oxidative stress / neutral sphingomyelinase/ apoptosis cycle. Accordingly, early deficiency in systemic glutathione is likely to contribute to the progression of the cardiac disease.
...In agreement with the previous observation made by Carnes et al, we found a 50% decrease in atrial glutathione content in patients with permanent atrial fibrillation compared to other patients with sinus rhythm, which is also consistent with the decreased incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation observed after intravenous supplementation with the glutathione precursor, N-acetylcysteine (NAC). Taken together, these results suggest that glutathione deficiency impinges on the whole damaged heart. They also suggest that glutathione supplementation may improve cardiac cell preservation in cardiac diseases, and be a complement to contemporary treatments." ~ Damy et al, Glutathione Deficiency in Cardiac Patients, PLoS ONE, March 2009
Advanced Glutathione and Antioxidant Support
Glutathione
is able to neutralise oxidative stress and is also a powerful natural
anti-inflammatory. Studies have shown that optimised glutathione levels
are beneficial for cardiovascular health, but in practice it can be
difficult to effectively increase systemic glutathione levels,
as glutathione (GSH) is a fragile molecule that is quickly broken down
in the digestive system if taken by mouth. Glutathione must be
synthesised within the cell because it cannot be transported into cells.
The glutathione prodrug RiboCeine™ delivers the essential precursor nutrients (ribose and cysteine) to the cell where they can then be turned into glutathione and cellular energy in the form of ATP. RiboCeine™ has received extensive scientific validation in published peer-reviewed studies and has been shown to increase intracellular glutathione far more effectively than the synthetic glutathione precursor NAC (n-acetyl cysteine).
Advanced nutritional supplement Cellgevity™ contains RiboCeine™ in combination with a selection of synergistic antioxidant and flavonoid ingredients, including resveratrol, quercetin, alpha lipoic acid, selenomethionine and curcumin. Cellgevity has been clinically proven to effectively raise cellular glutathione levels.
The glutathione prodrug RiboCeine™ delivers the essential precursor nutrients (ribose and cysteine) to the cell where they can then be turned into glutathione and cellular energy in the form of ATP. RiboCeine™ has received extensive scientific validation in published peer-reviewed studies and has been shown to increase intracellular glutathione far more effectively than the synthetic glutathione precursor NAC (n-acetyl cysteine).
Advanced nutritional supplement Cellgevity™ contains RiboCeine™ in combination with a selection of synergistic antioxidant and flavonoid ingredients, including resveratrol, quercetin, alpha lipoic acid, selenomethionine and curcumin. Cellgevity has been clinically proven to effectively raise cellular glutathione levels.
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