One newly appreciated group of natural medicinal substances from foods is a "family" of nutrients known as antioxidants and free radical quenchers.

The antioxidants and free radical quenchers have generated a lot of excitement in scientific circles, for they appear to be powerful yet natural substances that help the body resist heart disease, stroke, cancer, arthritis, and other debilitating diseases. They do so by controlling oxidation within the body.

Oxidation, or damage caused by oxygen, is a curious phenomenon. Although the oxygen we constantly inhale gives us life, it is also a highly reactive substance that severely damages the body if allowed to "run wild". Imagine what would happen if you left a bicycle outside for a long time. Eventually, the metal would react with oxygen in the air, and the bicycle would rust into uselessness. A similar process occurs within the body. Highly toxic forms of oxygen arise within the body as the byproducts of normal metabolism, or are introduced by exposure to air pollution, cigarette smoke, industrial chemicals, drugs, pesticides, and certain artificial food components added by the industry. These dangerous particles are called oxidants. Left alone, the oxidants would sweep through the body, "rusting" DNA, cells, and everything else they touch. Little by little over the years, the oxidants attack the nervous system, the circulatory system, the immune system, organs, individual cells, and even the DNA within the cells. It is believed that many diseases, and much of the general deterioration we suffer as we age, are caused by accumulated oxidative damage to the body.

Free radicals, unstable molecules that have lost electrons, are powerful oxidants. Desperately seeking to "balance" themselves, free radicals steal electrons from other molecules. And now that these molecules are missing electrons, they may turn around and snatch electrons from still other molecules. It is like a game of tag, where whoever is touched becomes "it" and must touch some one else. But the free radical touch is dangerously destructive, leading, in the long run, to disease, distress, and aging.

The body protects itself with its own natural antioxidants and free radical quenchers, such as SOD (superoxide dismutase) and glutatione peroxidase. Unfortunately, some people's natural defenses are just not strong enough to control the oxidants and free radicals, especially as the body ages.

Fortunately, the body is assisted by the naturally occurring antioxidants and free radical quenchers found in foods. These include beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, the mineral selenium, and more recently identified phytochemicals such as glutathione, lycopene, and quercetin. Many researchers now believe that maintaining high levels of antioxidants and free radical quenchers are the key to preventing heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and other diseases, and to preventing the early onset of aging. And since these substances are found in foods, the healthful diet may be the preferred medicine of the future.

Para obtener mayor información acerca de cómo los antioxidantes contenidos en los alimentos protegen a nuestro organismo de la oxidación y de los radicales libres, y nos ayudan a recuperar, conservar y mejorar la salud, te recomiendo leer mi libro

COMA MEJOR Y AHORRE, de la colección VIVA MÁS Y MEJOR,