Antioxidants

Antioxidants are miracle weapons against illness and old age. Those who take them regularly and in sufficient quantities are more likely to stay fit, healthy and beautiful longer than someone who hardly consumes any antioxidants. The reason for this lies in the way the antioxidants work.

What are Antioxidants?

Antioxidants are of course ingredients in various foods that can protect human body cells from all possible negative influences.

Antioxidants - that's a plural, because these substances include not only vitamins and minerals, which are absolutely vital for the body, but also phytochemicals. But how do antioxidants work and why are they so important? Our body is exposed to psychological and physical stress on a daily basis - influences that make us ill that we or our environment cause.

This ranges from cigarette smoke to too long sunbathing, which is harmful to the skin, to unhealthy food. These things or activities trigger oxidation processes in our body. And this oxidation creates something in the body that, in large quantities, leads to skin aging, illness and all kinds of symptoms: free radicals.

On its own, an organism is only able to fend off a certain amount of negative influences and the free radicals that arise from them. At a certain point our body needs help. This is where antioxidants come into play.

Antioxidants such as vitamins C, E, beta-carotene, trace elements such as zinc and selenium but also valuable secondary plant substances from polyphenols to phytoestrogens are also referred to as "radical scavengers". No wonder, because antioxidants render the free radicals in the body harmless.

Pharmacological effect

Free radicals, the antagonists of the Antioxidants, are responsible for an endless series of health problems, the onset of which they can accelerate or cause in the first place.

Because they attack our cells, i.e. the basic building blocks of our life, and in the worst case can make them completely inoperable. If a large number of cells in a particular organ are affected, it no longer works optimally and disease is often the result. But how do antioxidants work? Free radicals are molecules that contain oxygen. They are very unstable because in their chemical structure they have one electron too few.

This is a real problem in the body because the free radicals immediately go in search of such an electron to complete them - in a very ruthless way. You simply take such a molecule away from somewhere else - regardless of loss, be it from a cell membrane or from DNA - wherever it comes from. It is this electron robbery that is known as oxidation. If it occurs too often, medicine speaks of oxidative stress.

This can arise very quickly, because free radicals trigger a veritable chain reaction in the body. This is where antioxidants come into play as saviors in an emergency, because they can interrupt the chain reaction. They voluntarily give up an electron so that one is not stolen from the cell membrane or from a body protein in the first place. This means: as long as there are enough antioxidants in the body, the cells are protected.

Medical application & use

Antioxidants are a preventive miracle weapon against oxidative stress, which is associated with a number of diseases.

Since they occur in foods such as fruit and vegetables, but also in grains and, for example, in coffee, we can ensure sufficient care for the little protectors ourselves, without a doctor, by designing our menu accordingly. Fresh vegetables, salads, fruits and sprouts, nuts and the like should be consumed often.

In addition, many medical professionals consider it increasingly important not only to supply enough antioxidants, but also to contain the formation of free radicals. Quitting smoking, reducing alcohol consumption, reducing stress and getting enough exercise can all help.

Risks & side effects

The best about Antioxidants is: They do not involve any risks or side effects.