Glutathione Levels Affected by Asthma Drugs

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Glutathione Levels Affected by Asthma Drugs

A new study shows that glutathione levels are also adversely

influenced by asthma drugs.

HJ Pennings and colleagues reported in 1999, that antioxidant defence

in asthmatic patients is decreased.

Although inhaled corticosteroids decrease asthmatic inflammation and

modulate reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, little was known

of their effect on cellular antioxidant levels.

Their study was to evaluate the effect of inhaled beclomethasone

dipropionate (BDP) on erythrocyte antioxidant levels in stable

asthmatic patients.

Forty patients with stable, mild asthma were treated in a double-

blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study with BDP 250 microg,

two puffs b.i.d. for 6 weeks.

At entry and every 2 weeks during treatment, erythrocyte antioxidant

levels, haematological parameters, pulmonary function tests and

asthma symptoms were determined.

The results showed that during treatment with BDP, erythrocyte

catalase levels increased over 25% in comparison with the placebo.

Erythrocyte total glutathione levels significantly decreased after 6

weeks treatment with BDP.

In the BDP-treated patients, blood eosinophil counts were higher in

patients who responded with an increase in erythrocyte catalase

levels during BDP treatment, as compared to those not responding.

This study showed that treatment with inhaled bedomethasone

dipropionate results in changes in antioxidant levels in erythrocytes

of patients with stable, mild asthma.

This reduction of glutathione in asthma patients using BDP suggests

that supplementation with glutathione may offset the negative effect

of BDP.

(Glutathione doesn't get absorbred by the body, or something like

that. The best way to raise glutathione levels is by taking NAC. I

know many of you know this, but there are new members joining all the

time, so they might not realize.)

http://www.asthmaworld.org/SeGluPer.htm

Alana