C
Tier
Master antioxidant tripeptide.
Longevity & Cellular Health
Tripeptide
WADA Status:
Not prohibited
Human Trial Scoreboard
Completed human RCTs
Count not verified
Largest Human Study
Size not verified
Longest exposure
Duration not verified
Most Recent Trial
Year not verified
Description
Glutathione is a small peptide made of just three amino acids, produced by your own cells, and it is one of the body's principal antioxidants, particularly important in the liver for neutralising harmful compounds. Its levels do fall with age and in various illnesses. The complication is delivery. Taken by mouth it is broken down in the digestive tract before it can be absorbed intact, which is why oral supplements have consistently disappointed. The intravenous form bypasses that problem and is sold widely for skin lightening and general wellness, neither of which is an approved use anywhere, and regulators in several countries have issued safety warnings about injectable skin-lightening products specifically.
What Are The Claims
Claims made for this compound: Antioxidant; Detox support; Skin brightening (claimed)
Evidence
Oral and inhaled glutathione have a legitimate if limited research context. The intravenous skin-lightening use, which drives most of the actual demand, is both unapproved and the specific subject of regulatory safety warnings including a reported death. This is one of the few entries where a regulator has connected the marketed use to a fatality.
Evidence Strength
Preliminary (limited human data; poor oral absorption)
Caveats
Available as a dietary supplement OTC; not FDA-approved as a drug; IV and injectable forms require a prescription and compounding pharmacy; no FDA-standardized medical indication for systemic supplementation; evidence for oral bioavailability is limited.
Safety
Alternative Measures
Legal Status
US
Dietary supplement (oral); intravenous cosmetic use not approved
UK
Supplement
EU
Supplement
AU
Supplement
WADA
Not prohibited
Not FDA-approved for injection or intravenous use for any of the purposes it is marketed for. The FDA has warned compounders against using dietary-ingredient glutathione to produce sterile injectables following adverse events linked to endotoxin contamination, and has stated that no injectable skin-lightening product is FDA-approved. A federal court ordered Flawless Beauty LLC to halt sales and recall glutathione-containing injectables. The most explicit skin-lightening warnings come from the Philippine FDA, whose Advisory 2019-182 and associated Department of Health statements linked a death to intravenous glutathione.
Citations
FDA compounding warning regarding dietary-ingredient glutathione in sterile injectables; endotoxin contamination adverse events. | Philippine FDA Advisory 2019-182 and Department of Health statements. | Federal court order, Flawless Beauty LLC recall.