Why the Hype???  What’s up with Antioxidants?  What is a Free Radical?

 Antioxidants (Good guys) are chemicals that break down or neutralize the damaging effects of free radicals. 

Free radicals (Bad guys) are chemicals produced as a byproduct of normal cellular metabolism.  They are destructive and cause oxidative damage to tissues  as rust damages pieces of iron left outside in weather.  They damage proteins, fats, and even our DNA.

“Normally”, there is a balance between the rate at which free radicals (bad guys) are produced and the rate at which they are eliminated by the action of antioxidants (good guys).  

So - what’s the problem?  

Keep reading!

“Normally”  would be the way our bodies functioned way back before any of us were even considered.  Fresh produce, fresh meat, fresh fish, fresh poultry, no fast-food, clean air, few cars producing exhaust, lots of wide open spaces and tons of movement in our day gave our bodies most of what we needed to function optimally.  We don’t live in these “normal circumstances” any longer.  We live in big cities, and most of our food isn’t what it once was. 

Free radicals (Bad guys) are not only produced by what we eat, but by the air we breathe, and stressors in our lives . . . wait . . . none of us have any stress, do we?

Thus the need for more antioxidants (Good guys).  

The good news is that there is supplementation available to us and we can choose to eat better and exercise to provide our bodies with more good guys.  Better news is that there are foods that will signal our DNA to turn on the production of protective antioxidants, and these will be far more powerful than any supplement.  

These foods are broccoli and other cruciferous veges (cauliflower, brussels sprout, cabbage), green tea, coffee, turmeric www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=78‎, and resveratrol www.doctoroz.com/vp-videos/resveratrol-animation‎.

Let's eat up and help our bodies do what they were designed to do - have good guys fight off the bad guys : ))