Glutamine & Candida

[Emme999]

Okay, anyone who's been on the board for as long as I have will know that I'm a HUGE proponent of glutamine to help our little villi grow. So, lately I was wondering how it affected Candida. Here is a little research that I found in the British Journal of Anaesthesia (2000, Vol. 84, No. 5 690-691):

Among 52 patients who were receiving parenternal nutrition (25 patients receiving glutamine, 27 controls). Of these patient gastrointestinal disease accounted for 12 of 25 of those who receive glutamine and 10 of 27 the control group. (Of course, these are people who are critically ill - parenternal means injected, infused, or implanted: describes drug administration other than by the mouth or the rectum, e.g. by injection, infusion, or implantation. So, they weren't receiving the glutmanine through their mouths!) But anyway - I thought this might be helpful to many of us who -a- have gastrointestinal disease and -b- have fungal infections.

Reduced fungal infection in critically ill patients randomized to a glutamine containing parenteral nutrition

Candida infections are an important cause of nosocomial infection that increase with time in intensive care. This may be related to a progressive state of hypo-immunity. Glutamine (gln) is an important nutrient for the immune system and has been shown to enhance the helper T subset 1 (Th1) lymphocyte responses and cell-mediated immunity.1 We report the incidence of bacterial and fungal infection that occurred during a randomized treatment study of glutamine supplemented parenteral nutrition (PN)

Data on those patients who received at least 5 days of parenteral nutrition were later extracted and analysed blind to the randomisation by one of the authors.

There was no difference in the total number of Gram-positive or Gram-negative organisms isolated. Only four patients in the glutamine group developed Candida infections and none died while nine control patients developed Candida infections and six died

Any post hoc sub-group analysis must be interpreted with caution, especially with small numbers. However selecting a minimum of 5 days we believe is valid to show a nutritional effect. Immune dysfunction is a feature of a prolonged ICU stay and therefore any effect will only be shown in such patients. These clinical observations with a reduction in incidence and death among the patients with Candida infections suggest that glutamine may exert profound immune benefits in long stay critically ill patients who are dependent on parenteral nutrition.

Sorry if this is difficult to read I'm just trying to cut & paste the relevant information. I mean, I'm not saying that any of us are more likely to die if we don't receive glutamine - but I do believe that glutamine can help immunity (including prevention / assistance with Candida).

- Michelle

p.s. Sorry about all the research article stuff. But my major is "Health Promotion & Education" and I'm practicing on you