In this study of patients with type 2 diabetes, blood levels of two vital nutrients - glutathione and vitamin E - were found to increase when glucose levels dropped and blood sugar became better controlled.
In addition, levels of both of these nutrients increased even further in patients who received four weeks of vitamin E supplementation.
Although most people know about vitamin E, glutathione is not quite so well-known. It is a peptide consisting of glutamic acid, cysteine, and glycine. It serves as a critical co-enzyme for many reactions in the body.
In addition to the increased glutathione and vitamin E levels, levels of malonaldehyde, a naturally occurring possible carcinogen, were reduced following the reduction of blood glucose levels. Malonaldehyde occurs as a natural metabolic byproduct of prostaglandin synthesis and as an end product of polyunsaturated lipid peroxidation. The CDC has reported that there was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity in rats administered malonaldehyde, particularly effecting the thyroid gland and pancreas.
Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism 2000; 44: 11-13
Some nutritional authorities recommend taking a form of cysteine known as N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC), but I would advise against using this supplement if you still have mercury amalgam fillings because it could interfere with the detoxification of the mercury. Personally I consume 300 mg of alpha lipoic acid and 5,000 mg of glutamine and 2,500 mg of vitamin C before I do my seven-mile run as I believe it will maximize the glutathione production to decrease the damage from the free radicals that I generate when I exercise. Controlling the damage from free radicals is one of the keys to slowing down the aging process.