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Does Glutathione Make You Look Younger? What Was Measured
No trial has measured whether glutathione makes anyone look younger. The one placebo-controlled trial that looked at skin ageing, 60 women taking 250 mg a day for 12 weeks, found lower instrument wrinkle readings at some skin sites, an elasticity trend that was not significant, and no difference in the women's own ratings of their skin; two withdrew after raised liver tests. Glutathione has no authorised health claim in the UK; what follows is what the trials measured.1 The molecule itself is explained on what does glutathione do in the body.
- Measured in a trial: wrinkle depth by instrument at four, eight and twelve weeks; elasticity; moisture; the women's own scores
- Not measured in any trial: how old a face looks, "glow", anything beyond 12 weeks
- Claim: none authorised in Great Britain for glutathione, for skin or anything else
What have the skin trials of glutathione measured?
One trial measured skin ageing. In 2017, 60 healthy women aged 20 to 50 were randomised to 250 mg a day of reduced glutathione, 250 mg of the oxidised form, or placebo for 12 weeks, with skin instruments read at baseline, four, eight and twelve weeks; 57 completed (20, 18 and 19).2 The primary measure, a pigment index, tended lower in both glutathione groups but did not differ from placebo overall. The secondary measures are the ones this page is about.2
| Measure | Instrument | Result against placebo | Significant? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wrinkles | Surface scanner | Lower in the reduced-glutathione group on the sun-protected left arm; in women over 40, also on the sun-exposed left forearm | Yes at those two sites (p = 0.006 and 0.043); not elsewhere |
| Elasticity | Suction probe | Trend upwards in both glutathione groups | No (closest p = 0.082) |
| Moisture | Capacitance probe | Lower in the reduced-glutathione group on the sun-protected left arm | Yes, in the wrong direction (p = 0.031) |
| The women's own ratings of wrinkles, smoothness and general skin condition | Questionnaire | No difference between the three groups | No (p > 0.05) |
Three women left the trial, two because liver function tests rose, which the authors say returned to normal within a few weeks; a few women in every group reported itching or red spots, and there were no serious adverse effects.2 That liver finding, and everything else reported in the oral trials, is set out on glutathione side effects. The authors called the wrinkle result novel and asked for larger trials.
Does glutathione make you look younger?
The question has not been tested. "Younger" would mean a blinded observer guessing an age from a photograph, or a face rated against its own baseline, and no glutathione trial has done either. What exists is a fraction-of-a-millimetre change on a skin scanner at two sites on the arm, and the same women, asked to rate their own crow's feet, forehead lines and general skin condition, scoring no differently from placebo.2 Nothing has been measured beyond 12 weeks.
The ageing biology behind the question is real, and it is about blood, not skin. In 169 healthy adults, red-cell glutathione in the 60 to 79 age group was 17% lower than in 20 to 39-year-olds.3 In 122 healthy adults, the balance of reduced to oxidised glutathione in plasma held steady until about 45 and then became more oxidised each year.4 In eight older adults the reason looked like supply: they made glutathione at about half the rate of eight younger people, and two weeks of extra cysteine and glycine brought their levels and synthesis rate to young values.5 The two trials that followed belong together: a 16-week placebo-controlled trial in 24 older adults, from the same US group, found that glycine plus NAC corrected low glutathione and several ageing markers measured in blood and in physical function, and the largest trial, 114 healthy adults with a mean age of 65 taking up to 7.2 g a day for two weeks, found no rise in total glutathione overall (903.5 against 959.6 mg/L, p = 0.278), with a rise only in a post-hoc subgroup with high oxidative stress and low baseline levels.6, 7 Neither trial measured skin or appearance, and none of this shows what happens to a face if blood levels rise.
Does glutathione make skin glow or look brighter?
"Glow" and "brighter" are the words buyers use most, and neither is a measurement. The nearest measured relatives are moisture and surface smoothness, and in the 12-week trial moisture was lower, not higher, in the glutathione group at the one site where it differed; smoothness was not reported as different.2 A reviewer who says friends told her she looked fresh after a month is describing something no instrument in the trial detected; that does not make her wrong, and it is not evidence. The one thing a trial can say is that the women taking glutathione did not rate their own skin any differently from the women taking placebo.2
Does glutathione help acne, eczema or dry skin?
Acne has one trial. In 2025, 40 people with mild to moderate acne took 500 mg of glutathione or placebo daily for four weeks; the two inflammatory markers measured fell in the glutathione group but not significantly (p > 0.05), seven of the 22 on glutathione (31.8%) improved from moderate to mild, no placebo figure is reported for comparison, and no adverse reactions were reported.8 Acne is a condition the NHS says a pharmacist can help with, and that needs a GP if you have tried treating it yourself and it is not getting better, if the spots are deep, painful or scarring, or if it is affecting your mental health; a GP can refer you to a dermatologist.9
Eczema has no trial of oral glutathione at all. The NHS says to see a GP if you or your child have symptoms of atopic eczema, and to ask for an urgent appointment or NHS 111 if it is blistered, leaking, painful, swollen or comes with a high temperature.10 Dry skin has not been an outcome in any trial; the only moisture reading in the record, above, went the other way.2
Collagen or glutathione for skin?
They answer different questions, and "better" does not apply. Collagen peptides have been tested for skin hydration and elasticity in 26 placebo-controlled trials with 1,721 people, pooled in 2023, and both improved against placebo (p < 0.00001 for each), with no difference between collagen sources for elasticity; those trials are on does collagen make you look better.11 Glutathione has the one 12-week trial above. Neither has an authorised skin claim in Great Britain; the authorised skin wording in this area belongs to vitamin C, which "contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin", and it says nothing about glutathione.1 Taking both is covered on can I take collagen and glutathione together.
Is glutathione better than retinol, and do glutathione creams work?
No trial compares them, because they are not the same kind of thing: retinol is a topical retinoid, the family the NHS lists among prescription acne medicines, and glutathione here is a swallowed supplement.9 For creams the record is one trial, by a manufacturer, in which 30 women aged 30 to 50 applied a 2% oxidised-glutathione lotion to one side of the face and placebo to the other twice daily for 10 weeks; the treated side showed higher moisture, less wrinkle formation and better smoothness in the second half of the study, with no follow-up after stopping.12 UK border checks have found creams sold under glutathione names that contained banned hydroquinone and prescription steroids, so a glutathione label is no guarantee of what a cream contains.13 Injections and drips are a separate question, answered on the safety and legal side only on are glutathione injections and drips safe in the UK.
Frequently asked questions
How long does glutathione take to improve or clear skin?
The wrinkle readings were taken at four, eight and twelve weeks and the trial stopped there, so no timeline beyond 12 weeks exists; "clear skin" was not an outcome anywhere, and the acne trial ran four weeks and found no significant change in its markers.2, 8
Can I rub glutathione on my face, and what should I not mix it with?
The only cream trial is the 10-week sponsor study above, and no trial has tested a glutathione cream alongside any other skincare active, so there is no evidence either way on mixing; a pharmacist or dermatologist is the person to ask about a routine.12
Can glutathione help dark spots, pigmentation or melasma?
Melasma and other pigmentation changes are for a GP or dermatologist to look at, and the pigment trials, together with what is and is not licensed in the UK, are on does glutathione lighten skin.
Can glutathione grow hair?
No trial has measured hair growth, shedding or grey hair with glutathione; what has been measured, and the nutrients with authorised hair wording, are on collagen for hair and nails.
Which glutathione is best for skin?
The one trial compared the reduced and oxidised forms at 250 mg each: the significant wrinkle readings were in the reduced-form group, the elasticity trend appeared in both, and with 20 and 18 women per arm the trial is too small to rank one form above the other.2 Forms, doses and timings across the oral trials are on how to take glutathione.
Sources
- GOV.UK. Great Britain nutrition and health claims register. gov.uk.
- Weschawalit S, et al. Glutathione and its antiaging and antimelanogenic effects. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol, 2017. PubMed 28490897.
- Lang CA, et al. Low blood glutathione levels in healthy aging adults. J Lab Clin Med, 1992. PubMed 1431500.
- Jones DP, et al. Free Radic Biol Med, 2002. PubMed 12398937.
- Sekhar RV, et al. Am J Clin Nutr, 2011. PubMed 21795440.
- Kumar P, et al. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci, 2023. PubMed 35975308.
- Lizzo G, et al. Front Aging, 2022. PubMed 35821844.
- Mawu FO, et al. Acta Dermatovenerol Alp Pannonica Adriat, 2025. PubMed 41014073.
- NHS. Acne. nhs.uk.
- NHS. Atopic eczema. nhs.uk.
- Pu SY, et al. Effects of oral collagen for skin anti-aging: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrients, 2023. PubMed 37432180.
- Watanabe F, et al. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol, 2014. PubMed 25378941.
- Office for Product Safety and Standards. Product Safety Report 2301-0119, 2023. gov.uk.
General information, not medical advice. For any skin change that worries you, see a GP or a dermatologist.
