Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

3

Glutathione is known as the mother of all antioxidants and a super liver detoxifier.

In addition to folate and vitamin b6 and b12 sulfur is an important precursor.

You can supplement folate (especially as 5-methyl-folate NOT folic acid), b6 and b12 but what about sulfur? Many people do not eat nearly enough cruciferous vegetables that provide the highest amount of sulfur. Can you safely/effectively supplement sulfur? Have you done it?

I have never seen a sulfur supplement in capsules. Only in powdered form I would imagine it is pretty stinky.

edited Jul 19 at 3:10

asked Jul 19 at 3:04

ThinnerStrength
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Eat some eggs. Much better than powders and pills. – Karen Jul 19 at 9:51

Elemental sulfur and even the sulfur found in cruciferous veg isn't able to be utilized for cystine production, and won't enhance glutathione production. – Matt Jan 5 at 17:22

lisa loo · Answer 1 · 2012-07-19 03:33:16Z UTC

N Acetyle Cystine, or NAC is a great way to supplement for Glutathione production. I take it twice a day. Other than that, my sister get injections of Glutatione that she swears by, if you can find a doctor that will prescribe it. Some links on NAC:

http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1550-2783-2-2-38.pdf

http://www.advance-health.com/nacetylcysteine.html

CJ · Answer 2 · 2012-07-19 04:59:05Z UTC

The three amino acids necessary for glutathione production are cysteine, glutamic acid and glycine...with cysteine being the rate limiting factor for intracellular glutathione synthesis (because it is rare in our food).

A whey protein concentrate is an excellent source of cysteine, and actually contains more than you will find in any other food. I would stick with consuming foods that actually contain the precursers necessary for GSH production before I would look into increasing my sulfur intake.

Here's some more info about whey protein and glutathione if you're interested:)

http://www.wellwisdom.com/pages/Whey-Facts.html#5tharticle

Good luck!

Matt · Answer 3 · 2012-07-19 13:33:04Z UTC

To figure out what to supplement to get enhanced glutathione production, you need to know what glutathione consists of and how it's biosynthesized. Glutathione is a tripeptide of glutamic acid, cysteine and glycine. It's not your typical peptide linkage as the glutamic acid is linked through its side chain. As others have pointed out, cysteine is the limiting point in glutathione production, meaning that's what you'll need to target for supplementation. Glycine and glutamate are common amino-acids, both non-essential.

Cysteine is non-essential, is made from the amino acid methionine, another sulfur containing amino acid. Methionine is essential, meaning we cannot biosynthesize it and it must be obtained via diet.

So any supplementation/feeding strategy to enhance endogenous glutathione production should target increased cysteine and methionine production. Inorganic sulfur (sulfides, sulfites, sulfates, etc...) cannot be used in humans (plants do).

In other words: eat meat.

Happy Now · Answer 4 · 2012-07-19 07:16:13Z UTC

Sorry to answer your question with a question, I'm too tired to research this right now, but isn't Epsom Salt magnesium sulfate? If the magnesium can be absorbed transdermally, wouldn't the sulphate also be taken up and act as supplemental sulfur?

Crowlover · Answer 5 · 2012-07-19 16:10:08Z UTC

2

I just happened to see this article today on the Weston A. Price Foundation website.
It may be useful to you.

Sulfur Deficiency
Written by Stephanie Seneff, PhD
July 2 2011

http://www.westonaprice.org/vitamins-and-minerals/sulfur-deficiency

Edited for spelling

edited Jul 19 at 16:10

answered Jul 19 at 5:31

Crowlover
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Eh, I've read that before and though the assumptions and suppositions made were shaky. The more I read WAP articles, the more I get disappointed by the poor science in them. – Matt Jul 19 at 12:01

paleo12 · Answer 6 · 2012-07-19 04:11:43Z UTC

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MSM Milk Thistle Vitamin C and E (indirectly) Selenium (indirectly) Eggs are also rich in sulfur

answered Jul 19 at 4:11

paleo12
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garlic, onions, and cruciferous veggies all have sulfur too for people who are looking to up their intake. – Team Oberg Jul 19 at 14:47

John Zehr · Answer 7 · 2012-07-19 15:39:36Z UTC

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Protandim, a patented herbal supplement, increases glutathione production by 300%: http://bit.ly/LA7pB0

answered Jul 19 at 15:39

John Zehr
1

ken · Answer 8 · 2013-01-05 01:11:20Z UTC

we do not get enough sulfur from our diet,in most cases. actually the sulfur you get in powder form does not taste bad at all.i took sulfur when i was young and came to this site wondering if i should resume taking it.i haven'tyet found the answer.i know you get it from the cruciferous vegetables,such as:kale,cabbage,cauliflower,brocoli,radishes and etc.onions and garlic also are sources of sulfur. so,would you recommend supplementing with it or not ?

Anondson · Answer 9 · 2013-01-05 04:32:32Z UTC

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Do Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) provide sufficient sulphur?

answered Jan 5 at 4:32

Anondson
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Sulfur supplementation for Glutathione production?

9 Answers