Antioxidants are vitamins, minerals, enzymes, or plant-derived nutrients called phytonutrients, found in food. They do what their name implies: ANTI-OXIDATION.
Why anti-oxidize?
To protect our system against disease and aging.
Oxidation is a natural process of aging: the browning of an apple core exposed to air, or rust on metal.
According to Dr. Ray Strand , a world's authority on cellular nutrition and nutritional medicine, "our body is no different. We age mostly because we 'oxidize'. Our bodies 'rust' on the inside due to oxidation."
Antioxidants resist that process by neutralizing free radicals. They protect the body from wear and tear by strengthening the immune system, muscles, bones, and skin.
Free radicals are molecules with a missing (unpaired) electron.
Free radicals scavenge around and 'steal' an electron from a 'healthy' molecule. This process is known as oxidation.
Free radical activity accompanies ALL DISEASE.
Any form of disease is preceded by high free radical activity that is not effectively controlled by antioxidants. See the right side bar for details.
There are a certain number of free radicals produced when we simply metabolize our food. However, there are many other things that spur free radical production:
* Processed, overcooked, leftover foods
* Sugar, and sugary foods
* Stress
* Excessive exercise
* Pollutants in our air, food, and water
* Alcohol
* Extended sun exposure
* Radiation
* Medication
* Cigarette smoke
Because of our stressful lifestyles, polluted environment, and over-medicated societies, this generation must contend with more free radicals than any previous generation.
This leads to a problem known as oxidative stress, which is another phrase for Oxidation.
This is when we produce more free radicals than we can manage to neutralize. Oxidative stress is literally the dark side of oxygen.
We need to have enough antioxidants available to handle the number of free radicals produced.
The more antioxidants present in our body and diet, the less damage free radicals can cause.
Get a daily surplus
of antioxidants in your food
Our body has the ability to make some of its own antioxidants.
However, many of them (like Vitamin C) have to be supplied by the diet. Most antioxidants are found in fruits and vegetables.
The major vitamin antioxidants are vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene, while selenium is the major mineral antioxidant.
Other commonly mentioned antioxidants are:
- Alpha Lipoic Acid;
- Grape Seed Extract;
- Gingko Biloba;
- Green and White Tea;
- Trace minerals: zinc, copper, magnesium, potassium;
- Co-Enzyme Q10.
However, a thorough examination of antioxidants and their importance to human health must include a much larger list of compounds potentially present in a healthy, varied diet (see the tables below).
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If you feel that you may not get enough on a daily basis, adding nutritional supplements to your diet can be critical to your sense of well-being and overall health.
Take antioxidant supplements
if you don't get enough of them from food,
or have a high degree of oxidative stress
Remember it is all about balance. To avoid oxidative stress, you want enough antioxidants to handle the free radicals produced.
Make sure that the supplements are of high quality: The manufacturer adheres by the GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) standards, or better yet, by pharmaceutical standards, which ensures the quality, purity, and dissolution of the supplements.
Free radical protection is the main reason to take nutritional supplements, but not the only reason. View the page on
Detoxification, where Antioxidants also play a big role.
1. Free Radical Protection;
2. Detoxification;
3. Nutritional deficiencies due to dietary choices, depleted soil and food, green harvesting (fruits and vegetables are picked way before ripe), and long-distance shipping, poor storage, processing, and poor food preparation methods.
4. Reduce Inflammation (allergies, etc.)
5. See the side bar for other health conditions benefiting from Antioxidant intake.
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