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Beta 1,3/1,6 Glucan

Immune Health
The carbohydrate
polymers known as
beta-1,3-d-glucans
exert potent effects
on the immune system stimulating
antitumour and
antimicrobial activity, for example by
binding to receptors
on macrophages
and other white
blood cells and
activating them.
Sir William Dunn,
School of Pathology,
University of Oxford

taying healthy depends on one

thing the health of your immune
system. Studies show that yeast
beta 1,3/1,6 glucan is one of the
most powerful supplements for
supporting the immune system.*
Unfortunately, we live in a toxic world.
Chlorine in drinking water, air pollution,
pesticides, herbicides, poisons and other
pollutants of all types enter our food chain
through water, soil and air all these create
significant stress to our immune systems.
Each year in the U.S, approximately 260
million tons of 700,000 different toxic
chemicals are released into the air, water and
ground thats roughly a ton per year for
every person! The evidence of severe health
risks from all this pollution is compelling.
Numerous studies have shown links between
chemical exposure and numerous health
problems, including cancer, depression, mood
swings, diabetes, asthma, heart disease and
other chronic conditions.
The best thing we can do, faced with
these unavoidable health threats, is to

strengthen our bodys immune system to

guard against harmful influences.
Fortunately, there is a completely natural
supplement which has proven to be one
of the most effective agents to support the
human immune system.
Beta glucan is a supplement derived and
purified from the cell wall of common bakers
yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Research
has shown that critical cellular components
of the human immune system, macrophages,
neutrophils and natural killer (NK) cells
actually have specific receptors for the beta
glucan macromolecule. It seems that Nature
has designed beta glucan to provide support
for our immune systems.
A recent human study demonstrated
that a beta glucan supplement significantly
increased the number of immune cells that
were actively engulfing and destroying one
or more foreign particles or intruders. After
10 days of treatment, the supplement had
increased the percentage of immune cells
able to phagocytose (or eat) one particle
from 63.8% to 83.2%. The number of highly
phagocytic cells increased from 37.3% to more
than 50%. These results show that taking
beta glucan enhanced the human immune
system to defend the body against a challenge.
Additionally, the numbers of several important cytokines (proteins which support
immune function) were increased as well.

How beta glucan works

Beta glucan provides protection against
diseases by enhancing four key immune
responses.*
First, it primes macrophages, neutrophils
and natural killer (NK) cells to defend the
body against a broad range of foreign challenges. These cells are chiefly responsible for
destroying pathogens and tumor cells.
Second, it enhances the ability of these
cells to move from the peripheral circulation
of the body to the site of the challenge or
attempted invasion by a pathogen.

Beta glucan increases the

capacity of human immune cells
to engulf and kill pathogens.

100
90

%
Phagocytic
Cells

are created equal.

Beta glucan needs to be highly purified in
order to be effective. Essentially, the outer
layers of the yeast cell need to be removed to
expose the beta glucan, so that it can bind to
the receptor sites of the innate immune cells.
The purification process should also
remove mannoproteins and yeast residues.
These can cause adverse effects in many
people, and also reduce the overall effectiveness of the beta glucan. This purification
process is costly, however, so unfortunately,
some of the inexpensive brands of beta
glucan take some short cuts in this area, and
are minimally purified, at best. In fact, some
manufacturers simply buy and package
unprocessed bakers yeast as a supplement.
Accordingly, its important that you do
some of your own research when investigating beta glucan products and look at the
research thats been performed using the
supplements to make sure that you get as
pure a form as possible. Be sure that independent studies were performed using the
specific brand youre considering, and beware
of borrowed research and other misleading
marketing tactics. If youre not sure youre
getting a good brand of beta glucan supplement, you could be paying for an almost
completely ineffective powder placebo.

Who should take beta glucan?

Anyone who wants to maintain or enhance
the effectiveness of their immune system;
anyone who experiences daily stress (which

70
60

64%

57%

50

37%

40
30
20

hird, beta glucan enhances the ability of

these innate immune cells to phagocytize,
or eat pathogens.
Finally, beta glucan enhances the production of oxygen intermediates and other agents
that act to destroy the disease challenge.
The end result is an enhancement of the
bodys ability to fight against pathogenic
challenges whether microbial, fungal, viral
or cancer-related.

Not all beta glucan supplements

83%

80

10
0

Day 0

Day 10

Cells Consuming
1 Particle

lowers the immune response); those who

want to slow the effects of the aging process;
people who are susceptible to infectious
diseases, slow and incomplete healing; and
those who suffer from HIV/AIDS or cancer.
Ideally, beta glucan should be taken as
a daily supplement, because the immune
systems viability fluctuates from day to day,
due to direct and indirect environmental
conditions. When the immune system is
suppressed, weakened, or under stress, we
will be more prone to illness. Also, the billions of innate immune cells which protect
us have a life-span of only a day or two, so
a daily intake of beta glucan will help to
support the immune system on a constant
basis. After all, the challenges to the immune
system are constant, so we need to provide
consistent support.
The following conditions are known to
compromise immunity:
AIDS and HIV
Allergies
Athletic Training
Bacterial Infection
Bronchitis
Cancer
Candidiasis
Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome
Chronic Infection
CMV Virus
Common Cold
Diabetes
Emphysema

Epstein-Barr
Virus
Fungal Infection
Herpes
Mononucleosis
Old Age
Parasitic Infection
Pneumonia
Poor Nutrition
Radiation
Stress
Surgery
Viral Infection
Wound Healing

Day 0

Day 10

Cells Consuming
3 Particles

*REFERENCES:
Williams, Mueller, Browder:
Glucan-based macrophage
stimulators. Clinical
Immunotherapy 1996
DiLuzio, Williams, et.al.n
Comparative tumor-inhibitory
and anti-bacterial activity
of soluble and particulate
glucan. Int J. Cancer.
Ljungman AG, Leanderson P,
Tagesson P. (1-3)-beta-Dglucan stimulates nitric oxide
generation and cytokine
mRNA expression in
macrophages. Environ Toxicol
Pharmacol 1998; 5: 273-281.
Suzuki I, Hashimoto K, Ohno
N, Tanaka H, Yadomae T.
Immunomodulatory by orally
administered beta glucan in
mice. Int J Immunopharmacol
1989; 11: 761-769.
Kulicke WM, Lettau AI,
Thieking H. Correlation
between immunological
activity, molar mass, and
molecular structure of
different (1-3)-beta-D-glucans.
Carbohydr Res 1997; 297:
135-143.

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