Glutamine is a crucial Essential amino acid L-Glutamine that plays several vital roles in the body. Although the body can synthesize its own L-Glutamine, the need for L-Glutamine may increase under certain conditions, such as severe trauma, infection, or strenuous exercise; at this point, needs to be met through diet or supplements.
Physiological functions
* nitrogen transport and amino acid metabolism: L-glutamine is an important carrier of nitrogen transport in the body, helping to transport nitrogen between tissues. It plays a crucial role in amino acid metabolism and is involved in protein synthesis and decomposition.
* Gut Health: L-glutamine is an essential energy source for intestinal cells. It maintains the integrity and function of intestinal epithelial cells and promotes gut health and repair.
* The immune system: L-glutamine is an essential energy source for the immune cells. It helps maintain the normal function of the immune system and increases the body's resistance to infection and disease.
* Protein Synthesis: L-Glutamine plays a vital role in protein synthesis, particularly in muscle tissue, promoting muscle growth and repair.
Applications:
1. Exercise Nutrition.
* improves performance: L-glutamine supplements can reduce muscle fatigue after exercise and promote muscle recovery and growth.
* Promote muscle recovery: loss of L-glutamine after exercise may lead to muscle damage. L-glutamine can promote rapid muscle recovery and reduce discomfort and pain after exercise.
2. Clinical Nutrition.
* Trauma and surgery: the need for L-glutamine increases during trauma, surgery, or severe illness. L-glutamine helps support protein synthesis and promotes tissue repair and healing.
* Fight cancer-related malnutrition: cancer patients often suffer from malnutrition, and L-Glutamine can be used to support their nutritional status and reduce treatment-induced body wasting.
3. Gut health.
* Maintaining the gut barrier: the intestinal mucosa is highly L-Glutamine, significantly when the gut is damaged or diseased. Supplementation of L-glutamine helps maintain the integrity of the intestinal barrier and prevents increased intestinal permeability.
* relief of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) symptoms: L-Glutamine supplements may help relieve symptoms and disease progression in inflammatory bowel disease patients.
4. Boost your immune system.
* Boost your immune cells: L-glutamine is an essential energy source for your immune cells. L-glutamine supplements can boost your immune cell function and strengthen your body's defenses.
* Coping with immune suppression under stress: the immune function may be suppressed under severe infection, surgery, trauma, or other stress conditions. Taking L-glutamine supplements helps to relieve immune suppression and maintain the normal function of the immune system.
5. Older People's health fights muscle loss in old age: as people age, older people often face problems with muscle loss and decline in function. L-glutamine supplements help maintain muscle mass and function in older people.
Benefits:
1. Protein synthesis support.
* L-glutamine is a critical component of protein synthesis that helps promote muscle growth and repair.
* reduce muscle damage: L-Glutamine can reduce muscle protein breakdown after intense exercise or trauma and thus reduce muscle damage.
2. Improve performance and recovery.
* Reduce muscle fatigue: L-Glutamine helps slow the build-up of lactic acid in the muscles, thus reducing muscle fatigue after exercise.
* promote recovery: L-Glutamine can speed up muscle recovery after exercise, reduce recovery time, and improve exercise efficiency.
3. Supporting the immune system.
* One of the primary energy sources of immune cells is L-glutamine, which helps to enhance their function and strengthen the immune system.
* coping with stress: in stressful situations, such as infection, surgery, or severe trauma, L-Glutamine supplements can help maintain the normal functioning of the immune system.
4. Maintenance of gut health
* Gut barrier function: L-glutamine helps maintain the integrity of the gut barrier, preventing increased intestinal permeability and thereby protecting gut health.
* supporting intestinal cells: L-Glutamine helps maintain intestinal cells' function and structure as the primary energy source.
5. Support healthy aging against muscle loss: as we age, older people often face problems with muscle loss and loss of function. L-glutamine supplements can help maintain muscle mass and function in older adults.
6. Clinical Nutrition.
* dealing with trauma and disease: in a state of trauma, surgery, or severe illness, the body's need for L-Glutamine increases, and L-Glutamine helps to support recovery and recovery.
* Reducing Malnutrition: L-Glutamine supplements can help reduce malnutrition caused by cancer-related diseases.
Common side effects:
1. Digestive problems: L-glutamine supplements can sometimes cause digestive issues such as gastrointestinal upset, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, flatulence, and diarrhea.
2. Metabolic burden: excessive L-Glutamine may increase the metabolic burden on the kidneys and liver, especially in patients with liver and kidney dysfunction.
3. Allergic reactions: some people may be allergic to L-Glutamine, with symptoms such as rashes, itching, and difficulty breathing.
4. In rare cases, high levels of L-glutamine can cause anxiety, insomnia, and other neurological symptoms.
5. Water-electrolyte imbalance: since the metabolism of L-glutamine in the body involves the production of ammonia, excessive use may lead to the accumulation of ammonia, which affects the body's acid-base balance and electrolyte levels.
6. Drug Interaction: L-Glutamine may be associated with specific drug interactions that affect their efficacy or increase the risk of side effects. For example, it may affect the effectiveness of antiepileptic drugs.
For most healthy people, a L-Glutamine supplement is usually safe. However, patients with specific health problems such as kidney disease, liver disease, and encephalopathy, as well as pregnant and lactating women, should consult a doctor before using L-glutamine supplements. In conclusion, rational use of L-Glutamine supplements and following a doctor's or professional dietitian's advice can minimize the risk of side effects.
