Beta Glucan Cure for Fungus

Fungal infections occur when your body’s resistance is weakened. With a compromised immune system, fungal infections may be difficult to get rid of and may recur. The best way to deal with fungus is to boost the body’s natural defense against invaders. Beta glucan can do just that. It is natural cure and arguably the best immune system activator ever discovered.

Beta Glucan: An Overview

• Beta glucans are naturally occurring long chains of polysaccharides that consist of glucose molecules linked by beta-type glycosidic bonds. They are commonly found in foods like oats, barley, wheat and yeasts, and certain types of mushrooms, including shiitake, reish, and maitake.

Beta Glucan: Immune Booster

• Oriental herbalists have known for thousand of years that yeasts and mushrooms have the ability to boost the immune system. In the 1960’s, Dr. Nicholas DiLuzio discovered this immune-activating compound as the long chains of polysaccharides called beta glucan. He discovered it while conducting a follow-up study on the immune activating capability of zymosan, a drug that consists of yeast cell wall materials.

  Research in the 1980’s by Dr. Joyce Czop at Harvard University revealed how beta glucan works to enhance the immune system. According to Dr. Czop, beta glucan works by attaching itself to macrophages and stimulates them to produce free radicals. The stimulation signals the immune cells to overcome and destroy foreign substances, including those that cause viral and bacterial infections. The end result is that of an amplified immune response against the “invaders” until they are defeated.

  The immune system-enhancing capability of beta glucan is supported by studies conducted at many prestigious universities, including Harvard, Tulane, and the Baylor College of Medicine. In particular, researchers at the Alpha-Beta Technology in Worcester, Massachusetts, tried to examine the effects of beta glucan on the human blood. They discovered that beta glucan enhanced the growth of immune cells and triggered the production of free radicals in white blood cells, which in turn enhances the cells’ immune response to foreign bodies. They’ve also established that the cells’ antibacterial and anti-infection capabilities increased with an increase in the beta glucan dose.

  Aside from stimulating the immune system, beta glucan is also found to be effective in treating cancers, radiation exposure, ulcers, trauma and infections.

Cure for Fungus

• The immune system is the body’s best defense against foreign bodies. Fungi are essentially foreign bodies that live in and outside the body. Those that are found inside the body usually don’t cause harm as the immune system keeps their growth in check. Hence, the best way to protect ourselves from fungus and fungal infection is by keeping a healthy immune system.

  A weakened immune system allows fungi to grow unchecked and cause infection. Beta glucan can help the body fight off these infections simply by stimulating the immune cells' foreign-body-killing capabilities and helping prevent the infection from coming back.

  Research conducted at the State University of São Paulo in Brazil provides evidence of the effectiveness of beta glucan in resisting and treating fungal infections. The study tested the response of nine patients with serious fungal infections to a weekly intravenous dosage of beta glucan for one month; then it was given once a month for a period of 11 months. After a year, the researchers found lower residual traces of the infection in the test subjects’ blood.

Beta Glucan Sources

• The foremost sources of beta glucan are yeast, mushrooms, barley and oats. Beta glucan derived from yeasts and mushrooms show greater support for immune system functions, while beta glucan derived from barley and oats are excellent sources of dietary fiber that help in lowering levels of cholesterol.