Plasma total glutathione in humans and its association with demographic and health-related factors

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Abstract
The tripeptide glutathione is proposed to be protective against a number of chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease and cancer. However, there have been few studies of plasma glutathione levels in humans and in those studies the numbers of participants have been very small. In an exploratory analysis the determinants of plasma total glutathione (GSHt) were investigated in a group of 100 volunteers aged 18g/l, with a standard deviation of 451 2889 g/l. Men had significantly higher levels of plasma GSHt than women (924 v. 692 006). Seventh-day Adventists participating in the present study had higher plasma GSHt levels than other subgroups defined by race and/or religion. Among Seventh-day Adventists consumption of a vegetarian diet was associated with increased plasma GSHt concentration (P = 005). Few other factors were associated with plasma GSHt concentration, although use of oral contraceptives (P = 0·10) was somewhat associated with decreased plasma GSHt levels. These findings suggest that plasma GSHt levels may vary with several demographic and health-related attributes and support the need for further research on this potentially important disease-preventive compound.