Health and wellness is becoming more important to most of us now than ever before.
Learning about your health and taking proper care to maintain physical wellness are wonderful endeavors to embark on! Unfortunately, there is a lot of (mis)information out there, even when it comes to taking care of yourself.
The human body, as many of us experience, is complex, wonderful, and sometimes frustrating to figure out. Starting at square one on a health journey can feel overwhelming.
The food that we eat, the activities we participate in, how we feel, and other environmental factors all affect our bodies. Some changes might result in physical pain, pleasure, or chemical changes in the body that we can feel. Other changes are more subtle, but can have long term positive or detrimental effects.
A factor that has one of the biggest negative effects, but is rarely talked about, are free radicals. Free radicals are unseen offenders that can wreak havoc on our bodies, and their unchecked activity can lead to long-term health challenges.
What Are Free Radicals?
A free radical is a type of molecule that contains oxygen, and is produced as a byproduct of the normal changes that occur in cells [1]. Your metabolism, the natural aging process, or outside environmental elements are some of the changes that can cause free radicals to form.
Some of the environmental factors that contribute to free radical production are:
- Alcohol
- Fried Foods
- Radiation from sun exposure or x-rays
- Cigarette smoke
- Ozone
- Pesticides
- Environmental pollutants
Simply put, free radicals are unstable molecules roaming around your body. In many typical molecules, electrons exist in pairs and balance each other out. A free radical, however, has lost one of its electrons.
Without one of its electrons, a free radical becomes extremely reactive. It will try to pair up with a neighboring molecule in order to steal an electron.
When a free radical is able to grab another electron, it creates a new free radical from the molecule it just stole from. This newly created free radical seeks out another molecule to steal. This cycle continues, creating reaction after reaction throughout your body.
Are Free Radicals Harmful?
Some free radical activity is 100% normal.
At lower levels, free radicals can have beneficial effects on immune function and cellular responses; the body produces them naturally and has its own mechanism to deal with them. However, if free radicals go unchecked they can cause oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress is the imbalance of free radicals to antioxidants, and can have profound effects on your long-term health. The rapid spread of oxidative stress due to free radicals can cause damage to your cells, tissues, and organs.
The most common example of free radical damage is skin wrinkling. But oxidative stress has been linked to the development of chronic illnesses such as arthritis, premature aging, autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases [1,2].
The damage that free radicals can do to DNA is thought to contribute to the growth of cancerous cells. When these damaged cells begin to replicate at rates faster than the body can combat, there is an increased potential for oxidative stress-related illnesses. [2].
How To Fight Free Radicals
Antioxidants are the body’s frontline defense in the war on free radicals. Known as “free radical scavengers”, antioxidants scour the body for damage caused by free radicals.
These defenders of health can stop free radicals because they’re able to give up an electron without turning into a free radical themselves. By giving away a spare electron, the cycle of rapidly multiplying free radicals is broken.
The antioxidants repair or destroy any cells damaged by free radicals. By removing potentially harmful cells, antioxidants improve the immune system’s ability to respond to threats.
Many foods are a common source of antioxidants. Some of the most well-known antioxidants are Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E, glutathione, lycopene, beta-carotene, and curcumin [2].
Another major antioxidant that is becoming popular with researchers in the last few years is COQ10.
CoQ10 is a powerful antioxidant that your body produces naturally. It can help you body’s immune response, energy production, growth, and cell maintenance.* As we age, the body produces less CoQ10, which has been linked to physical fatigue, muscle weakness, and chronic disease.*
While a properly balanced diet is the foundation for any healthful pursuit, sometimes it’s difficult to get the suggested amounts of vitamins and minerals from just the foods that we eat.
Supplementing your diet with vitamins and antioxidants is one of the easiest ways to boost your nutrient intake in the fight against free radicals [2]. *
Free radicals are always present in our bodies because they occur naturally as a byproduct of normal bodily functions. The key to keeping free radicals in check is to make sure that they don’t run amuck and overburden the body. Maintaining a healthy balance of free radicals and antioxidants can help your body reduce oxidative stress and improve your ability to fight off illnesses.*
- Free radicals, antioxidants and functional foods: Impact on human health. Pharmacogn Rev. 2010 Jul-Dec; 4(8): 118-126
- Dietary Antioxidants, Circulating Antioxidant Concentrations, Total Antioxidant Capacity, and Risk of All-Cause Mortality: A Systematic Review and Dose-Response Meta Analysis of Prospective Observational Studies. Adv Nutr. 2018 Nov1;9(6):701-716
