Important limitations
- Individual claims and source links have not yet completed editorial verification.
- Evidence level, applicable study model, formulation, route and population remain unassigned.
Glutathione
Glutathione is a potent anti-oxidant and regulator of a number of biochemical processes.
Dosing & scaling, explained
The moderated mass amounts below are retained for comparison. Near-duplicates, mix-dependent volumes and device markings are excluded. This is educational source context, not a protocol or recommendation.
Mass amounts available for comparison
- Lower range100 mgDose (per administration)
Recorded example with no verified study backing; shown for amount literacy only.
- Mid range600 mgDose (per administration)
Recorded example with no verified study backing; shown for amount literacy only.
Only mcg or mg amounts are retained. The calculator derives mL, syringe units or pen clicks from the current vial strength, water volume and device.
No independently verified schedule
Evidence context
No clinical amount or schedule is inferred from this material. Source verification is pending, and every displayed amount remains educational context rather than guidance.
Storage, handling and interpretation
Product identity
Verify the exact compound, formulation and amount against the product label or certificate before calculation.
Storage & handling
Follow the product label, certificate and validated laboratory SOP; no universal storage assumption is applied here.
Prepared solutions
Label concentration and preparation date, use sterile technique where applicable, and follow a validated stability protocol.
Reported protocols for Glutathione
What published studies and recent community write-ups report about amounts, timing and course length. 8 clinical and 3 community-reported rows, each linked to its source. These are descriptions of what others report, not instructions, and nothing here is medical advice.
| Context | Dose | Frequency | Route | Course | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clinical8 rows | |||||
| Randomized placebo-controlled intravenous pilot in Parkinson's disease21 adults with Parkinson's disease not adequately controlled on medication (11 glutathione, 10 placebo) | 1,400 mg | 3 times a week | Intravenous | 4 weeks, with 8 weeks of follow-upNot applicable | Movement Disorders (PubMed)2009 |
| Glutathione was well tolerated with adverse events similar to placebo, but UPDRS scores did not differ significantly: a 2.8-point advantage during treatment (P = 0.32) was followed by a 3.5-point relative worsening over the next 8 weeks. The authors called the result a possible mild symptomatic effect needing a larger study. | |||||
| Open-label intravenous course in early Parkinson's disease9 patients with early, untreated Parkinson's disease | 600 mg | Twice daily | Intravenous | 30 days, then follow-up at monthly intervals for 2-4 monthsTreatment stopped after 30 days; effect reported to fade over 2-4 months | Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry (PubMed)1996 |
| All nine patients improved, with a 42% decline in disability scores that persisted 2-4 months after stopping, before levodopa was started. The study was open-label, unblinded and tiny, and the later placebo-controlled trial above did not confirm a significant effect. | |||||
| Intranasal phase 2b trial in Parkinson's disease45 adults with Hoehn and Yahr stage 1-3 Parkinson's disease | 100 mg or 200 mg per dose (placebo saline comparator) | Three times daily | Intranasal | 3 months, then a 1-month washoutNot applicable | Journal of Parkinson's Disease (PubMed)2017 |
| All groups improved, including placebo, and neither glutathione dose beat placebo on total or motor UPDRS despite within-group gains in the 200 mg arm. One participant on the high dose developed cardiomyopathy, and the authors judged a longer, larger trial would be needed. | |||||
| Placebo-controlled intravenous skin-lightening studyWomen aged 25-47 at a Pakistani dermatology department; 32 of 50 enrolled completed | 1,200 mg glutathione (with ascorbic acid and 35 mg hydrolyzed collagen in the same injection) | Twice a week | Intravenous over 30 minutes | 6 weeks (12 injections), followed up to 6 monthsNot applicable | Journal of Pakistan Association of Dermatologists2016 |
| Six of 16 treated women (37.5%) versus 3 of 16 on saline (18.7%) showed improvement on the Taylor hyperpigmentation scale (P = 0.054), and the gain faded after stopping so that only one woman retained it at 6 months. Eight treated women developed deranged liver function tests and one had anaphylactic shock, leading the authors to call the treatment ineffective and unsafe for this purpose. | |||||
| Neuroprotection during cisplatin chemotherapy, randomized trial50 patients with advanced gastric cancer on weekly cisplatin | 1.5 g/m2 intravenously before each cisplatin dose, then 600 mg intramuscularly on days 2-5 | Weekly with chemotherapy cycles | Intravenous infusion over 15 minutes, then intramuscular | Up to 15 weeks of chemotherapyNot applicable | Journal of Clinical Oncology (PubMed)1995 |
| After 15 weeks, 4 of 24 assessable glutathione patients had neuropathy against 16 of 18 on placebo, nerve conduction was preserved and tumor response was not reduced. This is the only controlled intramuscular glutathione dosing in the literature, and it was an adjunct to chemotherapy rather than a stand-alone treatment. | |||||
| Intravenous pharmacokinetics in healthy volunteers10 healthy volunteers | 2 g/m2 | Single infusion | Intravenous | Single dose with 90 minutes of urine collectionNot applicable | European Journal of Clinical Investigation (PubMed)1991 |
| Plasma glutathione rose from about 18 to 823 micromol/L and fell with a half-life of 14.1 minutes, while plasma cysteine rose more than tenfold and urinary glutathione excretion rose 300-fold. The authors interpreted parenteral glutathione as a way of delivering cysteine to cells rather than as a drug with its own sustained level. | |||||
| Oral supplementation trial on body stores54 healthy non-smoking adults | 250 mg or 1,000 mg per day | Daily | Oral | 6 months, then a 1-month washoutLevels returned to baseline within the 1-month washout | European Journal of Nutrition (PubMed)2015 |
| At 6 months the high dose raised glutathione 30-35% in erythrocytes, plasma and lymphocytes and 260% in buccal cells, the low dose raised blood and erythrocyte levels 17-29%, and natural killer cytotoxicity more than doubled on the high dose at 3 months. It is the only controlled evidence that any glutathione regimen raises body stores, and it was oral rather than injected. | |||||
| FDA compounding alert after endotoxin reactionsOutpatient clinic patients receiving compounded intravenous glutathione (7 in one cluster, 1 in another) | 1,400 mg (7 mL of 200 mg/mL) and 2,400 mg (12 mL of 200 mg/mL) | Single infusions as reported | Intravenous | Not applicableNot applicable | U.S. Food and Drug Administration2019 |
| Within minutes of a 1,400 mg infusion, seven patients developed nausea, vomiting, chills, body aches and in one case hypotension and breathing difficulty requiring hospital transfer; a 2,400 mg infusion from a second pharmacy caused chills, fever and shaking. FDA testing found the repackaged L-glutathione powder contained up to five times the appropriate endotoxin limit and was labeled as a dietary supplement. | |||||
| Community-reported3 rows | |||||
| Starter and standard injection tiers (community chart) | 100 mg (starter, 50 units at 200 mg/mL) or 200 mg (standard, 100 units) | 2 times a week (starter) or 2-3 times a week (standard), at least 48 hours apart | Subcutaneous or intramuscular; 600 mg vial in 3 mL bacteriostatic water | 4 weeks (starter), then 8-12 weeks (standard)4 weeks off after 8-12 weeks | Community resource2026 |
| This 2026 chart is unusually candid: it states that no controlled trial has tested injected glutathione below 600 mg, that the 100 and 200 mg tiers are compounder and community convention sized to fit a U-100 syringe, and that a self-mixed solution is acidic and stings unless pH-adjusted. It lists 600-1,400 mg intravenous doses as the only tier with trial data and flags asthma, pregnancy and non-sterile powder as reasons not to inject. | |||||
| Functional-medicine injection and infusion ranges | 200-600 mg (injection); 600-2,000 mg (clinic infusion) | 2-3 times a week (injection); weekly or every other week (infusion) | Intramuscular (deltoid or gluteal) or subcutaneous; intravenous push or 30-60 minute infusion in clinics | Continuous; some users run 8-12 week coursesNone required according to the guide; oral precursors used between courses by some | Community resource2026 |
| Published May 2026, this guide tabulates 200 mg as the community starting dose, 200-400 mg as standard functional-medicine practice and 400-600 mg for liver-support protocols, with clinic infusions of 600-1,200 mg weekly and 1,400 mg three times weekly from the Parkinson's trial. It notes that a 200 mg dose at 200 mg/mL fills an entire insulin syringe and that doses above that need a larger syringe. | |||||
| Wiki protocol summary across routes | 200-600 mg per injection (IM or SC); 600-1,400 mg per session (IV); 250-1,000 mg daily (oral) | 1-3 times a week (injection); daily (oral) | Intramuscular deltoid or gluteal, subcutaneous abdomen, or intravenous in clinic | 4-12 weeks (injection); ongoing (oral)Not specified; cycles repeated as needed | Community resource2026 |
| Updated February 2026, this wiki states that it could find no human pharmacokinetic study of subcutaneous glutathione and that expectations for that route rest on general principles about parenteral absorption and rapid oxidation. It frames the injection numbers as reported practice rather than FDA-approved dosing. | |||||
How a course is commonly described
- Week 1Community-reported
Community charts open at 100 mg subcutaneously or intramuscularly twice a week to learn how the injection feels: self-mixed glutathione is acidic and stings, and a brief sulfurous taste is commonly reported. Nothing systemic is expected this early.
- Weeks 2-4Community-reported
Dosing moves to 200 mg two or three times a week, the tier most people run, or 200-400 mg in functional-medicine practice. This is where anecdotal reports of brighter skin or more energy cluster, and also where the 4-week, 1,400 mg intravenous Parkinson's trial failed to separate from placebo.
- Weeks 4-8Clinical
The only measurable skin change in a controlled trial came from 1,200 mg intravenously twice a week for 6 weeks, and over the same window 8 of the treated women developed abnormal liver tests. Community guides place liver and kidney blood checks here.
- Weeks 8-12 and breakCommunity-reported
Injection courses are described as 8-12 weeks followed by 4 weeks off, or as continuous twice-weekly maintenance with oral precursors between courses. Guides describe the break as a cost and reassessment step rather than a physiological need, since glutathione is endogenous and nothing is suppressed.
- Months 3-6 (clinical comparison)Clinical
The only regimen shown to raise body glutathione stores was oral: 1,000 mg a day lifted red cell, plasma and lymphocyte levels 30-35% by 6 months, and the gain washed out within a month of stopping. No injectable protocol has equivalent body-store data, and intravenous glutathione leaves plasma within about 14 minutes.
- Every dose with trial support is intravenous (600 mg twice daily, 1,200 mg twice weekly, 1,400 mg three times weekly, 1.5-2 g/m2) or oral (250-1,000 mg daily). The 100-600 mg subcutaneous and intramuscular tiers are community and compounder convention, and the one controlled intramuscular dose (600 mg) was an adjunct to cisplatin.
- Injected glutathione has a plasma half-life of about 14 minutes and cannot enter cells intact, so there is no blood level to maintain; guides describe each dose as a brief cysteine delivery. Cycling is not a recovery requirement because the body makes glutathione continuously.
- No injectable glutathione is approved by the FDA. Reactions traced to endotoxin-contaminated dietary-supplement-grade powder prompted FDA warnings in 2019 and 2026, and the one placebo-controlled skin-lightening study recorded liver test derangement in half the treated women and one anaphylaxis. The rows above record what sources report, not recommendations.
Sources for this section (13)
- Randomized, double-blind, pilot evaluation of intravenous glutathione in Parkinson's disease
- Reduced intravenous glutathione in the treatment of early Parkinson's disease
- Phase IIb Study of Intranasal Glutathione in Parkinson's Disease
- Efficacy of intravenous glutathione vs. placebo for skin tone lightening
- Glutathione for skin lightening: a regnant myth or evidence-based verity?
- Neuroprotective effect of reduced glutathione on cisplatin-based chemotherapy in advanced gastric cancer: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial
- High-dose intravenous glutathione in man. Pharmacokinetics and effects on cyst(e)ine in plasma and urine
- Randomized controlled trial of oral glutathione supplementation on body stores of glutathione
- FDA highlights concerns with using dietary ingredient glutathione to compound sterile injectables
- FDA reminds compounders not to use dietary supplement grade glutathione for injectables
Plus 3 community resources (dosing guides, forum threads and vendor write-ups), reported above but not linked.
Overview
Glutathione is the tripeptide gamma-glutamyl-cysteinyl-glycine, made in every cell and present at millimolar concentrations as the main intracellular antioxidant and a cofactor for detoxification; the gamma-linkage between glutamate and cysteine makes it resistant to ordinary peptidases and a substrate for gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, so injected glutathione is cleared from plasma in about 14 minutes and acts largely as a cysteine source. Reduced glutathione has been infused intravenously in small trials for Parkinson's disease, as a neuroprotectant alongside cisplatin and, in one placebo-controlled study, for skin lightening, where liver test abnormalities and an anaphylactic reaction were recorded. No injectable glutathione is FDA-approved; it is dispensed as a compounded 200 mg/mL preparation and sold as a research chemical, and the FDA warned in 2019 and again in 2026 about serious reactions traced to dietary-supplement-grade powder with excess endotoxin being compounded for injection. The 200-600 mg intramuscular or subcutaneous doses in community use have never been tested in a controlled trial, whereas oral glutathione at 250-1,000 mg a day raised body stores in a 6-month randomized study.
What researchers are exploring
These themes organize the educational information currently available. Individual claims remain under source review and are not treatment claims.
- 1
Antioxidant Function
Glutathione's powerful antioxidant properties
- 2
Regulation of Inflammatory Responses
Glutathione's role in immune and inflammatory regulation
- 3
Cellular Metabolism
Glutathione's role in biochemical reactions
- 4
Potential Neuromodulator
Glutathione's influence on neurotransmitter regulation
- 5
Aging and Disease
Glutathione deficiency and disease associations
- 6
Role in Aging
Glutathione's impact on the aging process
What is known and what still needs verification
Available context is organized without assigning unsupported study models or evidence grades.
- Not graded
Antioxidant Function
Glutathione's powerful antioxidant properties
- Not graded
Regulation of Inflammatory Responses
Glutathione's role in immune and inflammatory regulation
Amounts recorded for Glutathione
These amount records are independent from vial strength, reconstitution volume and measuring device. A recorded source is not the same as study backing, and these values are not recommendations.
- 1Dose (per administration) · lower endpointSign in for schedule, duration and source context.100 mg
- 2Dose (per administration) · upper endpointSign in for schedule, duration and source context.600 mg
Chemistry identifiers
Sequence, synonyms and registry identifiers as recorded in PubChem, the National Library of Medicine's open chemistry database. Formula, mass and CAS number are summarized at the top of the page.
Sequence
gamma-Glu-Cys-Gly (glutamate joined through its side-chain gamma-carboxyl)
Also listed as
L-Glutathione reduced, GSH, gamma-L-Glutamyl-L-cysteinylglycine, Glutathione-SH, Tathion, Isethion, UNII GAN16C9B8O, NSC-400639
InChIKey
RWSXRVCMGQZWBV-WDSKDSINSA-N
IUPAC name
(2S)-2-amino-5-[[(2R)-1-(carboxymethylamino)-1-oxo-3-sulfanylpropan-2-yl]amino]-5-oxopentanoic acid
Limitations and unknowns
Sources
1 link carried over from the earlier page, awaiting verification.