It’s very likely you’ve heard of free radicals and antioxidants.
It’s also quite likely that you don’t know exactly what they are.
So it’s about time we get a better understanding of these terms because they’re at the core of our health.
Free radicals
Don’t let the name fool you. They sound fun. Like the life of the party.
But they’re not so much.
In fact, free radicals are central to many of our modern health issues as well as the ageing process.
Free radicals have both a natural and an artificial origin. They’re created:
- Internally – as a by-product of our metabolism
- Externally – from pollution, tobacco smoke, radiation, heavy metals, industrial solvents, pesticides and certain medications
The natural production of free radicals isn’t usually an issue. In fact, free radicals are essential for various aspects of cell function, most notably our immune response.
Unfortunately, this benefit is largely outweighed by the destruction they wreak.
To better appreciate why, we need to quickly dip into a little science. As always, we’ll keep the chemistry to a bare minimum. And a handy little diagram follows if you like to put things together visually.
The issue with free radicals comes down to electrons. Specifically, it’s the fact that free radicals are missing an electron. This means they have an uneven number of them. And since electrons like to hang out in pairs, it becomes highly unstable.
Even a free radical doesn’t like to be unstable so they actively rectify the situation – they steal an electron from some other unsuspecting nearby molecule.
Which is obviously great for the free radical. It becomes balanced and stable.
But of course, it’s not so great for that victim molecule. In having lost that electron, it’s become a free radical. Or more technically, it’s been oxidised.
So the issue with free radicals is they’re basically tiny little thieves. And they’re kind of contagious. They trigger a chain reaction of electron theft that creates a wave of new free radicals – and destruction.
Antioxidants
Fortunately, free radicals are only on side of the coin. We have a way to combat them on the other side of the coin – with antioxidants.
If free radicals are the villain then antioxidants are the hero. Our knight in shining armour. Our defender and protector.
Or more humbly, a mop or scavenger as they’re often described. That’s because antioxidants actively hunt down and clean up free radicals.
It’s their job to prevent the accumulation of free radicals and the damage they inflict.
They’re able to achieve this because they possess as extra electron. And being such a knight in shining armour, they donate it to a free radical.
So really antioxidants are philanthropists.
Their good deeds transform free radicals into friendly normal molecules. It repairs them from having been oxidised (get it, anti-oxidant).
So how do we get our hands on some antioxidants?
- Internally – produced by our cells
- Externally – consumed through our diet
Yep, this is what a healthy diet is all about. It’s not just restriction of things like energy, fat and sugar. It’s about loading up on those foods that are rich in antioxidants (we’ll discuss this more shortly).
Oxidative stress
As with all things health, balance is king (or queen).
It’s a similar situation to the constant battle between positive and negative ions we discussed in Plug into nature and recharge. If the level of free radicals can be controlled by antioxidants then happy days. If not, then we start to run into trouble.
And that trouble is called oxidative stress. It happens when free radicals accumulate and cause damage to our cells, including the precious DNA within them.
It’s the result of an imbalance between free radicals and antioxidants. Whether it be the result of too many free radicals or not enough antioxidants – or a combination of the two.
In any case, it’s a constant and delicate balancing act. But a very important one because oxidative stress is a major contributor to chronic and degenerative illnesses such as:
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cancer
- Metabolic disorders such as diabetes
- Autoimmune disorders
- Neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s
- Cataracts
- Rheumatoid arthritis
Basically, our lifestyle diseases. But oxidative stress is also a contributor to plain old ageing.
So it’s certainly in our body’s interest to have some sort of way to control the spread of free radicals and the damage they inflict.
Eat your antioxidants
On the free radical side of the coin, we can try to control numbers by:
- Maintaining good health and leading a balanced lifestyle to curtail free radical production
- Minimising exposure to external sources such as tobacco smoke, radiation and pesticides.
However, it’s a far more effective strategy to focus your efforts on the antioxidant side of things.
A diet rich in natural foods will bolster your antioxidant levels and ability to keep a lid on free radicals and oxidative stress. As a general rule, plenty of fruits and vegetables across the range of colours, along with whole-grain cereals will do the trick.
But if you want to get a bit more specific about certain antioxidants, then key ones to include are:
- Vitamin E – vegetable oils, whole grains, nuts, cereals, fruits, eggs, poultry, meat
- Vitamin C – acid fruits, green vegetables
- Beta-carotene – fruits, grains, oil and vegetables (particularly carrots, green plants, squash, spinach)
- Lycopene – tomatoes (cooked tomatoes, tomato juice and tomato sauce is actually even better than raw tomatoes)
- Selenium – vegetables (garlic, onion, grains, nuts, soybean), seafood, meat, liver, yeast
- Flavonoids – green tea, grapes (red wine), apple, cocoa (chocolate), soybeans, curcuma, berries, onion, broccoli
- Omega-3 fatty acids – oily fish (salmon, tuna, halibut, sardines, pollock), walnuts, nut oils, flaxseed
- Omega-6 fatty acids (linoleic acid) – vegetable oils, nuts, cereals, eggs, poultry
The recommended quota of these foods has shown to provide enough antioxidants to reduce oxidative stress and your risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, various cancers and premature ageing.
So look to incorporate as many antioxidants into your diet as possible. Because those foods really are medicine.
