What are free radicals? The normal activity of every healthy cell in our bodies creates damaging by-products called free radicals. Free radicals are increased by mental and physical stress, environmental pollution and pesticides in foods. It is increasingly evident that the oxidation that produces free radicals is a prime factor in the degenerative diseases of aging. Antioxidants mop up free radicals.
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What if I ignore free radicals? If left unchecked, free radicals can cause extensive damage in all cells, can speed up the ageing process and may contribute to a wide range of diseases including heart damage, cancer, cataracts, a weak immune system, the many symptoms of aging and, eventually, death. Antioxidants can help avoid this.
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| An extract from Pine bark, Pycnogenol is one of the most powerful antioxidants due to its high Flavonoid content |
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Pycnogenol can be used to treat many inflammatory and degenerative conditions. Pycnogenol is among a new generation of antioxidant phytonutrients which research is showing can offer enormous health benefits, especially in the prevention of a whole host of degenerative conditions. more... |
What do Antioxidants do? Antioxidants bind with free radicals before they can cause damage; transforming them into non-damaging compounds & repairing cellular damage. Taking antioxidant supplements can have an antiaging effect.
How do I get more antioxidants in my diet? A diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables supplies a good amount of anti-oxidants that mop up the damaging free radicals. The highest concentrations of antioxidants are found in the most deeply or brightly colored fruits and vegetables (spinach, carrots, red bell peppers, tomatoes). Eating a raw food diet or including sprouts in your diet can help too. However many of us need to supplement our diet with antioxidants.
What are antioxidant supplements? Types of antioxidants
There are numerous antioxidants. Some of the better known include beta-carotene, the antioxidant vitamins: vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, zinc, glutathione, co-enzyme Q10, flavonoids like cranberry and pycnogenol, sulfur-containing amino acids and Ginkgo Biloba.
Some antioxidants exist in the water phase of the body such as vitamin C and B6, whereas others are fat soluble, such as beta carotene, vitamin E and co-enzyme Q10, protecting cell membranes and lipid molecules containing cholesterol.
How do I take them? Antioxidants are best taken in combination, since single antioxidants, such as vitamin E may become pro-oxidant in the body, without the adequate presence of vitamin C to convert it to its reduced form.Compound antioxidant products range from a simple ensemble of a few vitamins and minerals to complex formulas that include antioxidant herbs such as ginkgo and milk thistle.
Antioxidant Supplements
Antioxidants become oxidized in the body as they perform their protective function. Other substances are required to restore their anti-oxidant status, such as the need for vitamin C to reduce vitamin E back to its' anti-oxidant form.
This leads to concern regarding the possible pro-oxidant potential of supplementation with large amounts of a single anti-oxidant.
Studies, in fact, demonstrate that supplementation with beta-carotene or vitamin E antioxidents alone may lead to an increase in several types of cancer. This is not unexpected considering the well established data that antioxidants work together, such as vitamin C and vitamin E noted above.
The conclusion then is that antioxidants are best taken together as supplements, rather then individually.
Scientific Research: Antioxidants Slow down Aging
There is increasing evidence that the use of antioxidants can prevent oxidative damage in the body. Multiple studies demonstrate an increase in life-span of experimental animals fed antioxidants, at times 22% longer, along with improvement in their physical and mental condition.
The level of antioxidant enzymes appears to determine the life span of mammals, and dietary antioxidants increase the length of life. It is also well established that reduced serum levels of antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E and selenium may correlate with an increased incidence of cancer, vascular disease and other conditions of aging. In general, it is thought that taking anti-oxidant supplements can slow the aging process by 15 to 20 percent. Glutathione, a key intra-cellular antioxidant, appears in more than 10,000 scientific publications, and is essential in the prevention of cancer in humans. An essential antioxidant in the body is superoxide dismutase(SOD), which converts the oxygen radical called superoxide to hydrogen peroxide. SOD is not absorbed orally, but levels in the body can be increased by supplementing with the nutrients required for its production, copper, manganese and zinc.anti-oxidant antioxident |
