Every day consumers are bombarded with dire warnings about their health. They are urged to buy a host of supplements that will help reduce their risk for contracting heart disease, cancer, asthma and a host of other scary conditions. Among many other modern phrases, more and more people want to know exactly what is an antioxidant. It seems that this is a key to good health.
No living organism can survive without oxygen. Oxygen plays a vital role in providing the body with the ability to metabolize, thus providing energy that is essential for existence. However, oxygen can have a dangerous side. Because it is highly reactive, it can easily become part of molecules that are damaging and that may lead to disease. These damaging molecules are called free radicals.
The human body has billions of cells. A molecular bond sees to it that the cells are held together, but if the bond becomes weak, the molecules can split apart. In the process, free radicals are created. Free radicals are unstable molecules that miss an electron. This happens during extreme exercise, during times of stress, and when the body is exposed to pollution and certain medicinal drugs.
Unfortunately, free radicals try to compensate for the missing electron by attacking healthy cells, and in this way a chain reaction is created when the cell that was attacked loses an electron. A new free radical is created and the process repeats itself over and over again. In this way millions of molecules can be destroyed. In humans, this can lead to a host of diseases such as cancer, arthritis and heart disease, to name just a few.
Fortunately, there is a solution to the problem. Antioxidants are miracle workers that will remain stable whether they have an extra electron or not. This means that they are able to donate an electron to a free radical without perpetuating the chain reaction by becoming a free radical after losing an electron. In this way the free radicals can be neutralized and the process of destruction stopped.
It is lucky that there are many foods that are rich in this miracle substance that can neutralize free radicals. Not all foods are equally rich, however. Scientists use the ORAC test to score different foods but it is necessary to consume a variety of food types in order to gain full advantage. In general, all colorful fruit and vegetables are valuable in this respect.
Health experts and dieticians advise that everybody should try and consume more foods that are able to neutralize free radicals. Natural foods, preferably fresh, is considered to be more valuable to supplements in the form of tablets or syrups. This body produces this substance necessary but because food is so highly processed it cannot produce enough. Pollution and high levels of stress also makes it difficult for the body to cope.
The short answer to what is an antioxidant must be that it is a miracle substance that occur naturally in many foods and that it plays an important role in the health of human beings. Consumers should be careful, however, to be careful when buying supplements. The health and wellness industry often makes extravagant promises that cannot be substantiated by science.
No living organism can survive without oxygen. Oxygen plays a vital role in providing the body with the ability to metabolize, thus providing energy that is essential for existence. However, oxygen can have a dangerous side. Because it is highly reactive, it can easily become part of molecules that are damaging and that may lead to disease. These damaging molecules are called free radicals.
The human body has billions of cells. A molecular bond sees to it that the cells are held together, but if the bond becomes weak, the molecules can split apart. In the process, free radicals are created. Free radicals are unstable molecules that miss an electron. This happens during extreme exercise, during times of stress, and when the body is exposed to pollution and certain medicinal drugs.
Unfortunately, free radicals try to compensate for the missing electron by attacking healthy cells, and in this way a chain reaction is created when the cell that was attacked loses an electron. A new free radical is created and the process repeats itself over and over again. In this way millions of molecules can be destroyed. In humans, this can lead to a host of diseases such as cancer, arthritis and heart disease, to name just a few.
Fortunately, there is a solution to the problem. Antioxidants are miracle workers that will remain stable whether they have an extra electron or not. This means that they are able to donate an electron to a free radical without perpetuating the chain reaction by becoming a free radical after losing an electron. In this way the free radicals can be neutralized and the process of destruction stopped.
It is lucky that there are many foods that are rich in this miracle substance that can neutralize free radicals. Not all foods are equally rich, however. Scientists use the ORAC test to score different foods but it is necessary to consume a variety of food types in order to gain full advantage. In general, all colorful fruit and vegetables are valuable in this respect.
Health experts and dieticians advise that everybody should try and consume more foods that are able to neutralize free radicals. Natural foods, preferably fresh, is considered to be more valuable to supplements in the form of tablets or syrups. This body produces this substance necessary but because food is so highly processed it cannot produce enough. Pollution and high levels of stress also makes it difficult for the body to cope.
The short answer to what is an antioxidant must be that it is a miracle substance that occur naturally in many foods and that it plays an important role in the health of human beings. Consumers should be careful, however, to be careful when buying supplements. The health and wellness industry often makes extravagant promises that cannot be substantiated by science.
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