Beta-glucan is a fiber-like polysaccharide (a complex sugar) that comes from the walls of baker's yeast, oats, barley and some mushrooms. Different varieties of beta-glucan come from different food sources.
Beta-glucan is used most often to strengthen the immune system and lower blood cholesterol levels. Research conducted as far back as the 1960s has shown that beta-glucan can stimulate the activity of white blood cells, particularly macrophages and neutrophils, which provide a first line of defense against foreign bacteria. However, since most studies of beta-glucan have been conducted in animals, its effectiveness in humans remains debatable. As for blood cholesterol, studies show that beta-glucan derived from oats or yeast is effective in reducing levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, while increasing levels of HDL ("good") cholesterol.
The amount of beta-glucan being taken depends on the condition being treated. To lower cholesterol levels, trials have used doses ranging from 2,900 milligrams to 15,000 milligrams per day. Effective amounts have yet to be determined to enhance one's immune system. However, many manufacturers (and some practitioners) usually recommend between 50 milligrams and 1,000 milligrams daily, taken on an empty stomach.
Beta-glucan can be derived from a variety of cereals and cereal fibers, including oats, wheat and barley. Supplements of beta-glucan are also available, usually in liquid, capsule and tablet form.
Because beta-glucan is not considered an essential nutrient, deficiency and toxicity levels have not been established. As of this writing, there are no well-known drug interactions with beta-glucan. As always, make sure to consult a licensed health care provider before taking beta-glucan or any other dietary supplement or herbal remedy.
References
Chronic pain afflicts over 20% of the adult population. Sadly, most MDs have essentially no education in treating pain, beyond offering a few toxic medications. Then they tend to steer people with pain away from those health practitioners who are trained. This puts the acupuncture community on the front lines for addressing this epidemic.
When the body is going through a stressful event, the sympathetic system is activated. This activation will help the body with a life-threatening situation. If this state is activated for prolonged periods of time, it starts to consume energy. These traumatic events that generate stressors in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) will eventually become internalized.
| Digital Exclusive
One of the things that makes acupuncture so difficult to measure is that the medicine actually does contain some esoteric aspects. There have been numerous studies that demonstrate the neurochemical reasoning behind why acupuncture points stimulate the autonomic nervous system to enact change However, not all the benefits of TCM can easily be measured by randomized, controlled trials. But does that make them fundamentally and definitively untrue?
| Digital Exclusive