Unlocking the Potential of Beta Glucan

[T_Nation]

Immunity, Fat Loss, and Much More

It definitely boosts immunity and helps with fat loss, but what else could this natural substance do? Here's the new science.

Ask a strength coach what creatine does, and he'll talk about pumps and performance. Ask a neurologist and he'll talk about the brain benefits, while a rheumatologist will tell you about how creatine helps with fibromyalgia. The same is true if you ask various experts about beta glucan (Buy at Amazon).

You probably know beta glucan as either a powerful immune booster or a stimulant-free fat-loss supplement. It does both, but that's not all. Here's what else this natural substance appears to do according to some fresh studies:

1. Beta Glucan and Muscular Dystrophy

When patients with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (the most common and severe form of muscular dystrophy) were treated with oral beta glucan for six months along with their usual treatments, the majority showed improved mobility and muscle strength.

These improvements seemed to be triggered by increased dystrophin levels (up to 32%). Dystrophin is a protein that maintains the structural integrity of muscle cells. People with muscular dystrophy have a gene mutation that causes no or low dystrophin levels.

Researchers want more studies of course, but they think beta glucan could help safely slow down the progression of this devastating disease.

2. Beta Glucan and the Common Cold

To further test out beta glucan's immune-boosting powers, researchers gathered up several subjects who caught colds at least four times yearly. After 90 days of taking just 30 mg of beta glucan, the subjects caught fewer colds. When they did get sick, the symptoms were less severe and didn't last as long.

3. Beta Glucan and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

We aren't entirely sure what causes CFS (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis). The underlying causes may involve immune dysfunction, chronic inflammation, and possibly viral infections. CFS sufferers supplemented with beta glucan (100 mg to 500 mg per day) in several studies experienced less fatigue and improved immune system regulation.

How does that work? Well, beta glucan works by activating macrophages, dendritic cells, and neutrophils, essential for a proper immune response. This may help correct the immune dysfunction observed in CFS.

Likewise, systemic inflammation is often elevated in people with CFS. Beta glucan has anti-inflammatory effects that appear to reduce systemic inflammation. (These same anti-inflammatory benefits may help with arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease.)

Finally, beta glucan is a prebiotic, feeding beneficial gut bacteria and restoring a healthy gut microbiome. This is very beneficial for CFS patients, who typically have imbalanced microbiomes.

Put those findings together and this could explain why CFS sufferers experience less physical and mental fatigue when taking beta glucan.

4. Beta Glucan and COVID-19 Recovery

Research indicates that an inhalable form of beta glucan helps in lung function recovery in patients with post-COVID-19 complications by reducing fibrosis and enhancing the immune response in the lungs. Lung fibrosis involves excessive scar tissue formation, causing a stiffening of the tissues which makes it hard to breathe.

This same beta glucan technology may help treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and other lung diseases by reprogramming immune cells to reduce fibrosis.

5. Beta Glucan, Fat Loss, and Metabolic Health

Several new studies show that beta glucan promotes weight loss and improves metabolic health. The fat loss appeared to be triggered by beta glucan's ability to enhance satiety (reducing calorie intake) and alter the gut microbiota in a way that favors energy expenditure over storage. Beta-glucan also slows the absorption of carbs and improves glycemic control.

Where To Get Beta Glucan

Most oral beta glucan studies use a form derived from oats, barley, or yeast. However, those sources aren't very bioavailable (and yeast is a common allergen). Algal beta glucan is the best source.

Algal beta glucan's cell wall is much thinner than oat or yeast, making it easy to digest. Plus, the concentration of beta glucan in the cell walls of algae is over 95%, much higher than other sources. Each serving of Biotest Beta Glucan (Buy at Amazon) contains 600 mg derived from Euglena gracilis algae.

References

1. Meglio, Supplementing N-163 Beta Glucan Shows Disease-Modifying Effects as Adjuvant in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Neurology Live, 2023.
2. NBR Nutraceutical Business Review, Study reveals beta-glucan ingredient to aid immune-support, 2023.
3. Beta-Glucan and ME/CFS: The Microbiome Fixer, 2024
4. Bruson, Pressure-Treated Yeast Fiber Compounds May Benefit IPF Patients, Pulmonary Fibrosis, 2021.

[MartinL]

A lot of the Beta Glucan supplements available contain both 1,3 and 1,6 glucans. Does one have any particular benefit over the other, and is the whole greater than the sum of its parts?

[Chris_Shugart]

Beta-1,3-glucan is better than beta-1,6-glucan because of its stronger immune-modulating properties and its more direct involvement in triggering immune responses. Beta-1,3-glucan is more bioactive.

Beta-1,3-glucan forms the main backbone of most β-glucans. Its linear structure and accessibility make it more effective in interacting with immune cell receptors like Dectin-1. Beta-1,6-glucan typically acts as a branching structure in β-glucan molecules. It plays a supportive role, but it’s not as directly involved in immune activation.

So, why do some supplement makers include the 1,6 form? It’s cheaper to make. It’s actually more of a byproduct of the extraction process used to make the more effective 1,3 form.

[antiquity]

Okay, I love this stuff. Glucans are polysaccharides; actually D-glucose molecules linked together. Beta glucans refer to the stereochemistry of the anomeric cabron in the glucose ring - this also differentiates cellulose and starch (although both of these are 1,4 polysaccharides while glucans are 1,3). The 1,3 or 1,4 or 1,6 denotes the linking positions of the D-glucose monomers to each other. The 1,3 and 1,4 glucans result in linear structures; the 1,6 position is where branching occurs.

When we talk about 1,3/1,6 beta glucans, this means we have D-glucose monomers linked together in a chain at the 1,3 position, with the anomeric carbon existing as the “beta” stereo-isomer. The 1,6 means there are short branches off beta-glucan of the main chain. The branches are still 1,3, chains themselves but are at the 1,6 position of the main linear glucan.

I am a PhD organic chemist and have taught Organic Chemistry at the University level for 22 years, but I am not a nutrition expert by any stretch so I will leave that to @Chris_Shugart. We teach biomolecules like these in Organic Chemistry III, and I really like teaching this topic. Obviously we are not using structure here and I am oversimplifying to not bring in other stereochemical terms, but you get the gist of it.

From my understanding, these are not typically “made” in the lab, although enzymatic processes can produce them in-vivo, but instead isolated from plants and fungi. Depending on the source and purification method, you’ll get differences in the 1,3/1,6 ratios.

[CARUSO99]

Are any of these studies in a peer review periodicals?