Now Foods Glutathione 500mg - Reduced Glutathione Antioxidant Master

What is Now Foods Glutathione 500 mg?

Now Foods Glutathione 500 mg is a supplement in vegetable capsules that brings together three ingredients. One capsule provides 500 mg of glutathione in its reduced form, 100 mg of milk thistle extract standardised to 80 mg of silymarin, and 50 mg of alpha-lipoic acid. The 120-capsule bottle covers four months.

Glutathione is a tripeptide, meaning a small molecule made up of three amino acids: cysteine, glycine and glutamic acid. The body produces it itself, in all of its cells, and it plays a central role there in oxidation-reduction reactions. The so-called “reduced” form is the active form of the molecule, as opposed to its oxidised form.

The formula is built around a simple idea: rather than supplying glutathione on its own, it is paired with two ingredients that act in the same biochemical environment. Milk thistle is a plant traditionally associated with the liver; alpha-lipoic acid is a compound involved in cellular oxidation-reduction reactions. The rest of the American range can be browsed in our Now Foods aisle, and alpha-lipoic acid, like glutathione, overlaps with the logic behind our coenzyme Q10 aisle.

What does one capsule of Glutathione 500 mg contain?

We have to start with the point that decides everything, and it is almost never written down: glutathione taken orally is very poorly absorbed. It is a tripeptide, and the digestive tract handles peptides the way it handles proteins: it breaks them apart. A significant share of the 500 mg swallowed is therefore split into amino acids before reaching the bloodstream. This is not a criticism of this product in particular, it is the problem faced by the entire category, and you deserve to know it before you buy.

That is also why another route exists and is favoured by many: supplying the body with the raw material it lacks so that it can make its own glutathione. That raw material is cysteine, and the supplement that provides it is called N-acetylcysteine. Our NAC aisle covers this approach, often for a smaller budget.

From a regulatory standpoint the situation is clear-cut: no health claim is authorised in Europe for glutathione, nor for alpha-lipoic acid, nor for milk thistle. Not for the liver, not for detoxification, not for oxidative stress, not for the skin. The dossiers submitted came to nothing. So we describe three molecules, their doses and how to use them, without announcing any outcome — and the word “detox”, which you will come across everywhere in this aisle, means nothing at all in regulatory terms.

The milk thistle strength is worth highlighting: 80 mg of silymarin per 100 mg of extract, i.e. 80%. That is a high strength, and it is the only line that allows two extracts of this plant to be compared. A product advertising “500 mg of milk thistle” without stating its silymarin content may contain ten times less.

Ingredients list

Glutathione (reduced form), milk thistle extract (Silybum marianum, fruit and seeds) standardised to 80 mg of silymarin flavonoids, alpha-lipoic acid, hypromellose (vegetable capsule), microcrystalline cellulose, magnesium stearate of vegetable origin, silicon dioxide.

Free from wheat, gluten, soya, milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts and sesame. Produced in a facility that handles other ingredients containing these allergens.

How should Glutathione 500 mg be taken?

Dose: 1 capsule. Liquid: a large glass of water. Timing: in the morning on an empty stomach, 30 minutes before breakfast or 2 hours after a meal. Frequency: one intake per day. Duration: a course of 3 to 6 months, with periodic breaks.

Taking it on an empty stomach is the essential instruction on this page, and it follows directly from what we have just explained. The less dietary protein there is in the stomach at the time of the intake, the less the digestive machinery is busy breaking peptides apart, and the better the chances of glutathione getting through intact. Thirty minutes before breakfast is the easiest slot to keep to day after day.

It is also the most demanding instruction: if you already take several supplements with meals, this one calls for a slot of its own. A routine you can sustain is worth more than a perfect routine abandoned after three weeks.

The manufacturer suggests pairing it with 250 to 500 mg of vitamin C. That is a biochemically coherent recommendation, since vitamin C and glutathione are involved in the same cellular cycles. Our vitamin C aisle offers doses suited to this pairing.

Keep up a decent level of hydration through the day. The three-to-six-month course with periodic breaks is the schedule chosen by the manufacturer; the 120-capsule bottle covers four months in one go, which corresponds to a complete course with no need to reorder along the way. The product combines without any overlap with a turmeric or an omega 3, those being taken with meals.

Who is Glutathione 500 mg for, and who is it not for?

It is aimed at an adult who is looking for this molecule specifically and who knows its absorption limits. It is a niche product, not a general-purpose supplement, and it should not be a first purchase.

Two contraindications appear explicitly on the packaging. The first: allergy to Asteraceae, the botanical family of milk thistle, which also includes mugwort, chamomile and ragweed. The second: chemotherapy treatment, for which medical advice is essential before taking anything — high-dose antioxidants may interfere with certain protocols, and that question is not one to settle over the counter.

It is reserved for adults, and a healthcare professional must be consulted in the event of pregnancy, breastfeeding, medical treatment or a health problem.

What you should not expect from it, and this is the heart of the matter. It does not “detoxify” anything: the liver and kidneys do that work constantly, without outside help, and the word has no medical definition. It does not lighten the skin — that is a widespread use elsewhere in the world, with no authorised claim in Europe and no solid data by the oral route. It does not improve sporting performance. You will not feel anything when you take it, and that is normal. Any question concerning your liver is a matter for a blood test and a doctor.

Glutathione or N-acetylcysteine?

This is the comparison that genuinely matters in this aisle, and it deserves a straight answer even if it does not favour the sale.

Glutathione taken orally runs into an obstacle: it is a tripeptide, and the digestive tract breaks most of it apart before it reaches the bloodstream. You are supplying the finished molecule, but only a fraction arrives intact. That is the structural limit of this category.

N-acetylcysteine tackles the problem from the other end: it supplies cysteine, the amino acid that limits the body's own production of glutathione. It is well absorbed, it costs less, and the logic is more solid. For most situations, that is the choice we recommend first, and our NAC aisle covers it.

In which case does this product remain relevant? When it is this precise formula you are after, with the milk thistle and alpha-lipoic acid pairing, and the absorption question does not put you off. If your goal is more general, our multivitamins aisle covers a broad need, and our vitamin E aisle offers the only antioxidant approach in this catalogue to have an authorised claim.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly does one capsule contain?

500 mg of reduced glutathione, 100 mg of milk thistle extract standardised to 80 mg of silymarin, and 50 mg of alpha-lipoic acid. The shell is a vegetable capsule made of hypromellose. The bottle holds 120 of them, i.e. four months at one a day.

Is glutathione well absorbed by the oral route?

No, and that is the major limit of this category. It is a tripeptide, which the digestive tract breaks apart in large part before it reaches the bloodstream. That is why many people prefer N-acetylcysteine, which supplies the raw material for the body to make it itself.

Why take it on an empty stomach?

To limit competition with dietary proteins: the fewer peptides the stomach has to handle, the better the chances of glutathione getting through intact. Thirty minutes before breakfast, or two hours after a meal, are the two slots chosen by the manufacturer.

Does this product detoxify the body?

No, and the word has no medical definition. The liver and kidneys deal with the elimination of waste constantly, without outside help. No claim of this kind is authorised in Europe for glutathione, milk thistle or alpha-lipoic acid.

What is the milk thistle for in the formula?

It is a plant traditionally associated with the liver, standardised here to 80 mg of silymarin per 100 mg of extract, i.e. 80%. That is a high strength and it is the only line that allows two extracts to be compared. No claim is authorised in Europe for this plant, however.

Are there any contraindications?

Two appear on the packaging: allergy to Asteraceae, the family of milk thistle, and chemotherapy treatment, for which medical advice is essential. Also consult a healthcare professional in the event of pregnancy, breastfeeding or ongoing treatment.

Are the capsules suitable for vegans?

The shell is a vegetable capsule made of hypromellose and the magnesium stearate is of vegetable origin. The manufacturer declares the absence of wheat, gluten, soya, milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts and sesame, but points out that manufacturing takes place in a facility handling these allergens.

Where can you buy Now Foods Glutathione 500 mg?

The 120-capsule bottle can be ordered from this page, and we ship throughout France and Europe. At the Vendargues shop, about ten minutes from Montpellier, we always start by explaining the absorption question before selling this product. Many customers leave with N-acetylcysteine, which costs less and rests on more solid logic; those who stick with glutathione then know why. The rest of the aisle can be browsed in our sports nutrition selection.