Anti-Oxidants
for
Disease Prevention
by
Chuck Balzer, MS RD
Regardless of what media outlet you receive your
health and medical information from, it is likely that the term
"antioxidant" is a familiar one. In fact, since the 1980's,
antioxidants have been the indisputable star topic in the field of nutritional
biochemistry.-?
What exactly are these compounds, and how do they function in the
body?
Oxygen
is obviously essential for life on earth, including the survival of humans. The
utilization of oxygen does come with a price though. In the process of our use
of oxygen, unstable molecules known as free radicals are created at the cellular
level. These free radicals act in a "chain reaction" fashion, stealing
stable electron partners from other cells, thus launching more free radicals and
instability.-?
The damage occurring as a result of these compounds have been
associated with over 100 disease processes, including heart disease, cancer, and
aging.-?
It
is estimated that each of the 60 trillion cells in the human body take 10,000
oxidative "hits" per second! If it were not for the ability of our
bodies to scavenge these radicals, our bodies would degenerate at an extreme
rate.-?
Antioxidant
nutrients play a key role in our ability to protect against this oxidative
damage. The most popular nutrients in this category are vitamins E & C,
along with beta-carotene.
Our bodies also naturally produce antioxidant
compounds such as lipoic acid, CoEnzymeQ10, and glutathione. However recent
research findings have shown that human production of these naturally produced
antioxidants is insufficient for optimal defense against oxidative damage.-?
Scientists
are also extensively studying plant and seed production of antioxidants, which
protect them from the effects of sunlight and oxygen. For example, lycopene from
tomatoes, polyphenols from grapes, and lutein from plant sources, have been
found to be much more protective than even vitamin C, when tested in human cells.-?
It
is clear that a plant based diet, along with supplementation with a
multi-nutrient formula containing a well-researched balance of antioxidant
compounds, is an ideal approach to physical wellness and disease prevention.-?
Recommended
book:
Formula For Life;
The Anti-Oxidant, Free-Radical Detoxification
by Eberhard & Phyllis Kronhausen
Info/order this book
About The
Author
Chuck Balzer is an
adjunct faculty member at Brookdale College in Lincroft, NJ, and a
Scientific Advisor and Marketing Representative for NutRx Natural
Therapies in Princeton, NJ. He can be reached at (732) 793-3782 or
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