Free Radicals...The Destructive Force In Our Bodies
Free radicals (FR) are unstable and highly reactive molecules which cause oxidative damage in our bodies.
To illustrate the point, it's similar to leaving a lump of iron in a glass of water, eventually it will rust up, and that's exactly what
oxidative stress
does to our bodies. These molecules are unstable because they are missing an electron. So, to try and stabilise themselves, they steal electrons from any molecule that comes into contact with them. Quite a battle going on there!
Success...our free-radical molecule is now balanced, all is ok.......Hmmmm, not quite!
You see, the molecule that has been robbed now mutates into a new free-radical.... and so the whole process begins again.
Fact...up to a 100,000 free-radical molecules can be created in our bodies within a few seconds (scary stuff)!
Oxidants play many normal roles in our body, it's only their overproduction (or failure of antioxidant defenses) that result in harmful oxidative stress (i.e disease).
New research has shown oxidative damage can be the trigger for a variety of serious and often deadly diseases including...
- Breast Cancer
- Prostate Cancer
- Parkinsons Disease
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Alzheimers Disease
- Heart Disease and Strokes
- Diabetes
The majority of
cancers
are probably caused by free-radical damage to key molecules and delicate genetic materials (DNA).
We are open to free-radicals from our environment through...
- Pollution
- Radiation
- Unhealthy Foods
- Bacteria
- Viruses
- Cigarette Smoke
- UV Light
The question is do we
have any control over free radical production?
Enter
Antioxidants,
our knights in shining armour, known affectionately as free-radical scavengers. They seek the enemy out, donate the missing electrons and put the brakes on the damaging oxidative chain reaction.
There are many different types of free-radicals in the body, so a wide range of antioxidants are necessary to protect against them.
The most powerful and dangerous of the free-radical is called Superoxide. As we know, free-radicals need only one electron from a stable molecule to stabilise itself. But a greedy superoxide free radical requires as many as three electrons to balance itself.
Black seed oil,
apparently, acts as a potent free-radical scavenger of superoxide.
So now you understand and can clearly see how vital antioxidants are in
controlling free-radicals.
Check a 'rain check' your current diet, does it consist of
food high in antioxidants?
If it does then brilliant, keep it up, but if not then you are lacking in those crucial, life saving antioxidants. A diet change is in order..and fast!
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