Glutathione Benefits for Skin

Article Summary:

  • Glutathione is an antioxidant that promotes skin health by eliminating free radicals and limiting oxidative stress.*
  • The most common routes of glutathione supplementation to support skin health include nutritional supplements, topical application, and intravenous injection.  
  • Glutathione is a difficult-to-absorb molecule. Nutritional supplements engineered for targeted delivery of glutathione molecules exhibit enhanced absorption.   to optimize absorption and achieve turmeric supplement benefits.  

Glutathione, the ‘master’ antioxidant that plays a key role in the body’s ongoing defense against reactive oxygen species (ROS), has been gaining increasing popularity in the worlds of dermatology and skincare.* In this article, we discuss what ROS are, the benefits of glutathione for skin health, glutathione’s defense mechanism to protect your skin from ROS-induced damage, and the different ways to incorporate this ‘master’ antioxidant into your daily skincare regimen.*

What are reactive oxygen species (ROS)? 

ROS, including free radicals, are independently existing molecules that are the natural by-products of normal cellular activities. However, imbalanced levels of ROS due to external factors like pollution, radiation, and toxins can result in oxidative stress. This negative imbalance diminishes the cell’s ability to fight free radicals with an antioxidant response. 

Free radicals cause damage to the basic building blocks of the cell, including DNA, proteins, and lipids, resulting in a wide range of undesirable health conditions and accelerated signs of aging. Glutathione comes into play as it is critical in shielding the body’s cellular components from reactive oxygen species and supporting healthy cell functions.*   

What are the causes of skin damage?

Oxidative stress can lead to visible skin damage, resulting in a  dull, uneven skin tone, fine lines, wrinkles, increased dark spots, and reduced skin elasticity. This  damage is often driven by several external and internal factors, including, 

  1. Direct exposure to air and environmental pollutants 
  2. Ultraviolet (UV) and other forms of solar radiation 
  3. Nutritional deficiencies and poor dietary habits
  4. An unhealthy lifestyle 

These factors collectively contribute to the generation of free radicals, which accelerate skin aging and damage. 

What are glutathione benefits for skin? 

Melanin and enzymatic antioxidants like glutathione are the body’s primary natural protection against free radicals.* Although the therapeutic benefits of glutathione have been known for quite some time, research into its benefits for skin health is still relatively new.* Although glutathione exerts its therapeutic benefits on the skin in multiple ways, the two most prominent are:

  • Preventing oxidation of protein thiols: Thiols (or sulfhydryl groups) are a class of organic compounds that have a sulfur atom bonded to hydrogen atoms. Thiols have a relatively high reactivity level compared to similar compounds in the body and are responsible for triggering tissue damage. Glutathione prevents thiol groups from causing oxidation, thereby protecting skin cells from oxidative stress.* 
  • Protection from UVB-induced damage: A study found that by reducing oxidative stress and supporting the synetheis of barrier proteins, oral glutathione helps maintain the integrity and function of skin barrier. This contributes to improve skin resilience and repair to offer protection against environmental stressos like UVB radition.1

What are commercially available glutathione supplements for skin health?

The tremendous potential of glutathione’s benefits for the skin has led to the development of various intake strategies for glutathione supplementation. The three most common modes of glutathione delivery are:

  • Oral intake 
  • Topical application 
  • Intravenous therapy 

The following table summarizes different routes of glutathione intake for supporting skin health:

Delivery Routes for Glutathione

 

Oral Supplements

Topical Application

Intravenous Therapy

Usage

Available in capsule and tablet forms.

Topically applied in the form of creams and ointments. 

Directly injected into the upper arms or buttocks. 

Absorption

Primarily in the upper intestine.

Bypasses degradation in the GI tract. 

Bypasses degradation in the GI tract. 

Convenience 

The most convenient and popular method.

Convenient and widely used.

Needs to be performed under medical supervision, making it an expensive process. 

Glutathione is well-known for its difficulty for the body to absorb, and findings that suggest its enhanced absorption through topical application and IV injection remain inconclusive. Because oral glutathione supplements are widely preferred over the other two alternatives, ongoing research is focused on enhancing its absorption through oral formulations. 

Selecting an advanced glutathione supplement for skin health 

An advanced glutathione supplement formulation is characterized by enhanced absorption and bioavailability to achieve glutathione’s benefits. 

SafeCell® — is an acetylated form of oral glutathione developed by Tesseract Medical Research for optimized absorption and efficacy.* Tesseract’s proprietary CyLoc® – DexKey® technology enhances glutathione’s bioavailability, making SafeCell® a superior nutritional supplement formula. 

This innovative nanomolecular nutrient delivery technology delivers acetylated glutathione molecules directly into the intestinal tract — one molecule at a time. The CyLoc® technology encases each glutathione molecule to protect it from early degradation during its transit through the GI tract. The DexKey® technology ensures targeted delivery of each molecule at the desired point in the intestinal tract for maximum absorption. With SafeCell®, you have a potent glutathione nutritional supplement for supporting healthy skin.*

The power of Tesseract supplements lies in enhancing palatability, maximizing absorption and bioavailability, and micro-dosing a single or multiple nutrients in a single, highly effective capsule. Shop products on our website and learn more about how they can support your healthy skin.*

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Citations:

1 Cui X et al. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2024;38 Suppl 3:12-20. doi:10.1111/jdv.19718

Al Czap, Founder | Tesseract

Al Czap has more than four decades of professional experience in preventative medicine. He founded Thorne Research in 1984 (sold in 2010) and he published Alternative Medicine Review for 17 years beginning in 1996. AMR was a highly acclaimed, peer-reviewed, and indexed medical journal. Al was the first to recognize the need for hypoallergenic ingredients and to devise methods of manufacture for and delivery of hypoallergenic products to underserved patient populations. His work has greatly impacted those with impaired immune and digestive systems and compromised health due to environmental exposures.

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