Immunocal Features

Immunocal is a patented, GRAS-approved, whey protein isolate designed to optimize glutathione levels. This isolate has been the subject of over 35 years of research with studies demonstrating its efficacy and is protected by numerous North American and international patents. Eligible for Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement in the U.S., it is listed in the U.S. Physicians’ Desk Reference (PDR) and the U.S. Pharmacist’s Red Book. Safe and natural, Immunocal has less than 1% lactose.

Immunocal Benefits

You may want to add Immunocal to your daily health regime if:

• You want the health-supportive benefit of having optimal antioxidant function
• You seek to maintain a healthy immune system
• You desire to support the detoxification ability of your body
• You wish to have a heightened sense of energy and well-being

Immunocal Science

The human body is one of nature’s finest miracles and researchers are still unlocking many of its secrets. Recent discoveries have shed important light on the role that glutathione plays in maintaining health and fighting disease.

What Is Glutathione?

Glutathione (GSH) is the body’s own health “AID to Energy”– Antioxidant, Immune Booster, Detoxifier and Energy enhancer. This small protein, produced naturally in the body, supports these four crucial functions. In fact, your life depends upon glutathione. Without it, your cells would disintegrate from unrestrained oxidation, your body would have little resistance to bacteria, viruses and cancer, and your liver would cease functioning from the accumulation of toxins.

The Role of Glutathione

Medical science has described literally dozens of roles that glutathione plays in your body. However, the four most important roles of glutathione can be summarized by the acronym:

A I D = E²
These letters stand for:

• Antioxidant
• Immune support
• Detoxifier
• Energy

Let’s look at these four critical processes driven by glutathione:

A – “Your Master Antioxidant”
Over the past thirty years, advances in the study of antioxidants have grown to the point that a whole new branch of medicine has developed called “Free Radical Biology” which focuses on oxidant/antioxidant balance. Scientists have elaborated upon several hundred different disease processes where antioxidants play a vital role. The shelves of natural food stores and pharmacies are laden with a large array of different antioxidants offered. However, although these antioxidants, including vitamin C and vitamin E, are usually “natural”, they are not natural to your body. If you do not ingest these vitamins, they will not be found in your cells naturally. Given the importance of antioxidation in hundreds of different disease processes, one poses the question – “What antioxidant does the body manufacture to ward off these processes?” Glutathione is the most abundantly produced antioxidant in the body. In fact, the presence of this small protein is crucial for the functioning of all of the other known antioxidants, gaining the title “Master Antioxidant”.

I– “Food for the Immune System”
Your immune system is constantly on the prowl for pathogens and foreign antigens—agents of cellular damage, toxicity and disease. These antigens include viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and even pre-cancerous cells. To neutralize these pathogens, the body needs a ready supply of glutathione. If it doesn’t have enough, some of the invaders will get through, infecting the body and/or contributing to aging, long-term accumulative damage—even eventual cancers. We can’t avoid illness and aging altogether, but by keeping our intracellular glutathione levels elevated, we also keep our immune system on full alert and fully armed. Dr. Gustavo Bounous, discoverer of Immunocal, has focused on glutathione as support for the immune system. “ The limiting factor for the proper activity and multiplication of our lymphocytes (white blood cells) is the availability of glutathione”, he states. Dr. Bounous’ research at McGill University has spawned countless other research papers worldwide examining this phenomenon.

D– “Detoxification System”
Hundreds of toxins are eliminated by the GSH enzyme system, including drug breakdown products, pollutants, carcinogens and radiation damage. It’s no surprise that GSH concentrations are highest in the liver, the body’s major detoxifying organ. We inhale and ingest natural and synthetic toxins every day of our lives and can’t possibly avoid them, especially in our technological era with congested and polluted cities and bio-engineered food supplies. Experimental studies have shown that low glutathione levels lead to poor liver and kidney function, and result in unnecessarily large quantities of toxins circulating through the body. There, they continuously damage individual cells and organs. The list of toxins eliminated include cigarette smoke, automobile exhaust and heavy metals. Physicians regularly use drugs to elevate glutathione levels in critical illnesses like acetaminophen overdose and severe liver failure.

E2-“Energize Yourself”
Our cells are like little machines, running 24 hours a day. Where does the energy to fuel this constant activity come from? The answer is quite complicated but science had identified tiny structures within our cells called “mitochondria” which serve as tiny batteries inside the cell. Like any source of fuel, inevitably burning and waste products are a result. The mitochondria literally burn up oxygen and as a result are prone to overload and damage and are limited in their ability to continue working unless these breakdown products like oxyradicals are removed. The major substance produced by the cell to keep these mitochondria “cool” and efficient is glutathione. This translates into more energy and more strength. Raising glutathione has become a focus for many studies from sports medicine to anti-aging for this reason.

What Causes Us to LOSE Glutathione (GSH)?

Every day our bodies are exposed to factors that drain our levels of glutathione: Stress, pollution, radiation, infection, drugs, poor diet, aging, injury and fatigue. These all contribute to glutathione depletion which, in turn, leads to cellular aging, disease and death. “Concern about maintaining one’s glutathione level will eventually be on par with other health maintenance issues.” says Dr. Bounous.

Glutathione Research

In the last twenty years the volume of research into GSH has grown immensely. A huge variety of theoretical papers, bench-top laboratory experiments, epidemiological studies, animal projects and—most importantly—clinical trials on humans, has linked glutathione to an extraordinary variety of illnesses. Skeptics might doubt the length of the list were it not for the strength and credibility of the research.

Glutathione Pioneers

Much of the research on glutathione and the immune system was pioneered by Dr. Gustavo Bounous (the discoverer of Immunocal) and Dr. Wulf Dröge (developer of Immunocal® Platinum) who combined, have published hundreds of medical articles. A significant number of these papers have served as the foundation for many other studies and clinical trials on glutathione and immunology.

Eating Glutathione Will NOT Raise Your Body’s Glutathione Level

It is vital to clarify one particular aspect of the glutathione story. When people find out about GSH, they want to go to their health store, buy some and “take” it. Although it can be purchased as a supplement, eating glutathione has negligible effects on your health. It is quickly broken down in your digestive tract and eliminated. GSH must be manufactured within your cells, which is exactly where it is found—in every cell of your body. The only way to accomplish this effectively is to give your body the building blocks (precursors) it needs to manufacture glutathione for itself.

How to Raise Glutathione

Some pharmaceutical drugs such as N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC)have been developed to provide these precursors but there are also natural ways to raise glutathione levels. Vitamin C, E and selenium indirectly support glutathione function. Milk thistle (silymarin), alpha-lipoic acid and L-cysteine may have moderate effects. However, medical research indicates that the most effective natural way to raise glutathione is by feeding the individual specific cysteine and cystine-rich proteins as found in undenatured whey protein isolates. Through its unique formulation and proprietary manufacturing process, Immunocal is a nutraceutical containing undenatured whey proteins designed to raise glutathione. In fact, it is the only protein patented to raise glutathione levels naturally.

This type of natural approach to addressing health concerns is a welcome complement to conventional medicine, which has historically marginalized nutritional therapy. The key in bridging this gap between traditional medicine and natural medicine lies in appropriately formulating supplements based on solid research.

Meet the Scientists Behind Immunotec

Behind Immunotec and Immunocal is a stellar team of researchers and doctors, including world-renowned scientists Dr. Gustavo Bounous and Dr. Wulf Dröge, who are internationally respected and recognized as the top in their fields of study. Along with them is a team that insures that Immunotec’s products are tested and proven to give you the benefits you want and need.

Dr. Gustavo Bounous, MD

Educated at the University of Turin and the University of Genoa in his native Italy, Dr. Gustavo Bounous’ distinguished career in medical research began as a Research Fellow in surgery at the Indiana Medical Center, Indianapolis. In 1963, he moved to Canada and began an academic career that led him to become Professor of Surgery, first at the University of Sherbrooke (1973-1985) and then at McGill University (1985-1993).

Dr. Bounous was awarded the 1965 medal of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He pioneered the use of elemental diets in the prophylaxis and treatment of intestinal lesions associated with shock, intestinal ischemia, radiation, cancer chemotherapy and Crohn’s disease. In 1968, he was named Career Investigator of the Medical Research Council, an award that was reconfirmed until 1993, the year of his retirement from McGill University.

In 1978, Dr. Bounous initiated a novel research program in conjunction with a colleague from the McGill University Faculty of Medicine to search for a dietary protein source that would boost the immune system. Their research led to the discovery of an undenatured serum milk concentrate that sustains normal glutathione levels and promotes immuno-enhancing and anti-carcinogenic activity. Subsequent identification of the active ingredients present in this protein mixture led to the development of a high-quality bioactive product given the name and trademark Immunocal in 1993.

Dr. Wulf Dröge, Ph.D.

Dr. Wulf Dröge is actively engaged in the design of clinical studies and organizes research activities in cooperation with colleagues at McGill University and other leading scientific institutions. He continues to write articles in the field of redox physiology, cancer and aging research and teaches at McGill.

After his doctorate at the University of Freiburg, Dr. Dröge conducted research at the Max-Planck Institute of Immunobiology in Freiburg, Germany, and the University of Minnesota, with renowned immunologist Dr. R.A. Good. Afterwards, he served for three years as a research fellow at Harvard University and for four years as a scientific member at the world-renowned Basel Institute for Immunology.

What followed was an almost thirty-year career as a professor of immunology and cell biology at the University of Heidelberg and head of the Department of Immunochemistry at the National Cancer Center of Germany (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum). His international reputation in the field of redox physiology and aging research is based on more than 250 publications in international scientific journals. His research has been focused on the areas of redox regulation and signaling pathways, pathogenesis of HIV infection, the mechanisms of disease-related wasting and aging, and the action of tumor necrosis factor.

Source: Immunotec.com