Beta-glucan is a family of complex carbohydrates that serve as structural elements in the cell walls of plants, yeasts, and
mushrooms. LifeLink’s beta-glucan comes from baker’s yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The yeast beta-glucan molecule consists of a single chain of glucose subunits connected at their -1,3- positions, and has
side-chains consisting of glucose subunits connected at their -1,6- positions.
What we can’t tell you
In the U.S. and some other industrialized countries, government agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have adopted
censorship as a method for intensifying their control over the supplement industry and its customers. Thus, FDA regulations
prohibit us from telling you that any of our products are effective as medical treatments, even if they are, in fact, effective.
Accordingly, we will limit our discussion of beta-glucan to a brief summary of relevant research, and let you draw your own
conclusions about what medical conditions it may be effective in treating.
Beta-glucan has been the subject of extensive scientific research since the 1960s because of its ability to stimulate immune
function, to improve cholesterol profiles, and to inhibit (or even reverse) cancer progression and metastasis. Since beta-glucan
is a nonspecific immune stimulator, its immune effects are broad and can be directed at many health problems.
Among the medical conditions for which beta-glucan appears to be applicable are:
- cancer
- high cholesterol
- hypertension
- allergies
- diabetes
- wounds
- over-eating, obesity
- gene damage due to radiation
- viral infections, such as hepatitis B, HIV
- bacterial infections, including anthrax
- parasitic infections
Immune system modulation
The body’s first-lines of defense against infections involve physical barriers and the destruction of invading microorganisms
by antibodies. Pathogens that manage to evade these defenses will (one hopes) trigger further defensive processes known as
“cell-mediated immunity”. Beta-glucan operates at both of these stages of immunity.
Beta-glucan acts in very complex ways upon the immune system. It stimulates the production of various signaling molecules,
such as interleukins, tumor necrosis factor, and interferon-gamma. These, in turn, activate lymphocytes, macrophages, dendritic
cells, and natural killer cells. In this way, beta-glucan activates a wide variety of immune defenses, protecting the body against infections by viral, bacterial,
fungal and protozoal pathogens, and even defending it against cancer.
Cancer-fighting properties
Beta-glucan’s anti-cancer effects are thought to depend upon its ability to modulate the immune system. And its immune effects derive from its activation of macrophage cells. Macrophages are immune cells that trap and engulf
foreign cells and particles, scavenge cellular debris, and destroy infectious agents such as viruses, parasites, bacteria,
and fungi.
Studies in cell-culture, in lab animals, and in humans have shown that the anti-tumor activity initiated by beta-glucan can
be long-lived and can occur even when beta-glucan is given orally one month prior to the presence of a tumor. Some of the
cancer types that have been shown to be sensitive to beta-glucan supplementation include:
- breast cancer
- lymphoma
- colon cancer
- sarcoma
- liver cancer
- lung cancer
Evidence exists suggesting that cancer treatment with beta-glucan can be enhanced by using it in combination with vitamin
C.
Improvement of cholesterol profile
The ability of beta-glucan to lower serum cholesterol levels was realized in the 1980s and many studies have demonstrated this ability. For example, in a study at the University of Lund (Sweden) one group of
men were provided with an oat milk drink containing 3750 mg/day of beta-glucan while another group received a similar drink
containing less than 150 mg/day of beta-glucan. After 5 weeks, LDL cholesterol levels in the first group had decreased 6%
more than those in the second group.
Similarly, a study at the Chicago Center for Clinical Research (U.S.) gave one group of subjects low-saturated-fat foods (cereal,
snack bar and beverage) containing 2.8 g/day of beta-glucan plus 1.8 g/day of certain phytosterols (antioxidants) and gave
another group similar-looking control foods. After 6 weeks, the LDL cholesterol scores of the treated group had decreased
by 3.7%, while those of the control group had increased 0.4%.
Infections
Since beta-glucan is a broad-spectrum immune modulator, one might expect it to be, indirectly, an infection-fighter. Indeed,
this turns out to be true.
In a clinical study coordinated by the University of Washington School of Medicine (Seattle, USA) it was found that when beta-glucan
was administered to patients receiving noncolorectal gastrointestinal surgery, the rate of serious infections or death was
reduced by 36%.
Patients suffering from Paracoccidioides brasiliensis infections (a serious fungal disease of the tropics) were treated with
beta-glucan and an anti-fungal drug for 11 months by researchers at the State University of Sao Paulo (Brazil); a control
group received only the anti-fungal drug. The relapse rate among the beta-glucan users was 10% as compared with 62% for the
control group.
Another interesting experiment conducted in Brazil (this one at the Faculdade de Cincias Mdicas da Santa Casa de So Paulo)
studied the use of beta-glucan in victims of multiple trauma — injuries that often lead to serious infections. In addition
to their other antibiotic treatments, 21 patients received beta-glucan and 20 received no beta-glucan. Infections from sepsis
and pneumonia occurred in 65% of patients in the control group and 14.4% in the beta-glucan group. The mortality rate related
to infection was 30% percent in the control group and 4.8% in the beta-glucan group.
Infections of the gums and teeth are caused by Gram-negative bacteria such as Porphyromonas gingivalis and Prevotella nigrescens. If the body’s immune system allows these bacteria become established, they will destroy connective tissue, bone, and teeth.
It has been found that immune cells known as neutrophils and monocytes are stimulated by beta-glucan, resulting in increased
killing of these dental pathogens. A clinical study reported in 2008 that gingival crevicular fluid (a marker for gum disease) decreased in patients who used
an oral rinse containing beta-glucan.
Clinical studies like these are few and far between — thanks to the medical profession’s reluctance to try anything new unless
it’s backed by lots of money and political power — but even the existing studies demonstrate the surprising power of beta-glucan
to improve immune responses to infection.
The veterinary world is far more open to new methods and has made far more use of beta-glucan as an immune-booster. For example,
beta-glucan has been used in pigs to control E. Coli infections, Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome, and Swine Flu.
Pollen allergies
Although beta-glucan, when inhaled, is known to exacerbate pollen allergies, when consumed orally it ameliorates them. At Meiji University of Oriental Medicine, sufferers of pollen allergies were treated
with finely-powdered beta-glucan taken orally. The researchers concluded that “… orally taken beta-1,3-glucan prepared in
a form easily absorbed by intestinal mucosa is able to alleviate cedar pollen-induced allergic symptoms.”
Over-eating and obesity
Despite popular resistance to the concept, it is well-established that obesity and over-eating go hand in hand — but knowing
this does not solve the problem. The problem is how to control the appetite. A number of studies have shown that beta-glucan
helps in this regard. One such study, performed in Finland, gave experimental subjects drinks — some containing, and others
devoid, of “fibre” (i.e., beta-glucan). They then measured the subjects’ satiety-related perceptions for two hours. The conclusion:
“…dietary fibre in beverages can enhance their perceived satiety and decrease the desire to eat more than a beverage without
fibre.”
Protection from anthrax
Anthrax infections are highly unlikely unless deliberately caused by a bioterrorist attack, such as occurred on small scale
in the U.S. in 2001. A research group in the U.S. and Japan reported in 2002 that oral pre-treatment of mice with beta-glucan
protected 10 out of 10 mice from an anthrax infection that killed 50% of untreated mice. For mice, an effective dose was 2 mg/day/kg bodyweight. If scaled up linearly this would lead to large doses of about 7 g/day
for a human — however, generally speaking, linear scaling yields drug dosages that are much larger than necessary. A more
sophisticated scaling method, gives a dose in the range of 40-140 mg/day for a person weighing 70 kg (154 lbs). Note that to protect against anthrax,
the user must already have been using beta-glucan for a period prior to the anthrax exposure.
Toxicity
The toxicity of beta-glucan is too low to measure. A 2003 study in rats showed no ill effects when rats were fed diets containing
7% beta-glucan, which would be about 150 g/day for the average human — i.e., 600 capsules/day of LifeLink’s beta-glucan product!
Enhancement with vitamin C
The potency of beta-glucan can be substantially increased if it is taken with vitamin C.
Reviews
We recommend the review by Mark Mayell in Alternative Medicine Review. It deals with beta-glucan extracted from Maitake mushrooms rather than from yeast, but the conclusions are nevertheless
relevant. This review also has the merit of being accessible for free rather than requiring the reader to pay an exorbitant
fee to a parasitic journal publisher.
Conclusion
Are beta-glucan supplements useful for the conditions and purposes mentioned above? We aren’t allowed to tell you, so you
should take a look at some of the references cited here, and then decide for yourself.