Antioxidants first came into public attention in the 1990’s when scientists began to understand that free radical damage was involved in cancer and a host of other chronic conditions. Overnight antioxidants entered the public’s nutritional vocabulary.
Big advertising, always eager to make a buck off of our misunderstandings, targeted the population with new reasons to buy products that promised to solve all our health problems. Yet, for the most part, although hugely important to our health, antioxidants are seldom clearly defined.
So, if you don’t really know what they are or why you need them or how to safely get them, how can you dedicate yourself to providing them in your daily diet?
Or, even worse, misunderstanding may lead you to toss antioxidant supplements into your daily health regime, not realizing that the complexity of antioxidants can never be mimicked by a pill. Scientific research and human trials have found that antioxidant supplements can increase the risk of cancer. The only antioxidants truly usable by the body are found in fruits and veggies….and, as a rule, the deeper the color, the more antioxidant content…..
MY OWN CANCER
I am one of those people who had antioxidant confusion. I started to unravel antioxidants when I was attempting to heal myself from uterine cancer. Cancer causes rampant free-radical damage in the body.
Consuming pickup truck loads of veggies and fruits daily provides the body with antioxidants that defend the body against free-radial damage, but how does it really work….
SCIENCE MADE SIMPLE
To unfold a very, very complicated science I am going to work it down to a few components so that we can easily understand the relationship between chemicals in our food, free radical damage to our DNA, and antioxidant activity to the rescue…..
All humans are made up of trillions of cells. Deep in the center of the cell is the nucleus. Packed tightly in the nucleus is your DNA. DNA is your genetic information inherited from your parents, that they inherited from their parents…..and so on and so on. Laden with information, it is our most precious possession.
Half the DNA from your mother and half the DNA from your father, guided the construction of your body in the first nine months of your creation.
DNA is the body’s memory bank. A coded sequence for the color of your skin, the color of your hair…it’s texture, the color of your eyes, the size of your nose and ears…all from generations before you. In my case, I look nothing like my mom or dad. I’ve been told I look like my great-grandmother, Grammy Mac, a compliment I have always appreciated.
DNA also controls all your basic and complex functions throughout your life. Each of your cells is constantly checking in for information about how to control blood sugar levels and body temperature, how to digest different foods, and thousands of other important needs.
When DNA is damaged, it can tamper with your memory system for repairing and rebuilding, creating biological dysfunction, errors and breakdown to your health….
To guard the body’s priceless blueprints, the nucleus is circled by a shell of protection, eight paired electrons that orbit the nucleus faster then the speed of light, safeguarding the delicate DNA from harm.
FREE-RADICAL DAMAGE
Pre-free-radical damage is all about keeping the eight paired electrons stable, spinning without interruption. One of the conditions that can destabilize this paired electron relationship is presence of thousands of chemicals in our food. This is one of a multitude of reasons it’s so imperative that we need to consume 100% organic foods to prevent cancer and we need to consume 100% organic foods to fight cancer .
If the bond is broken between the paired electrons, it is called ‘free-radical’ damage. A single lone electron is a crazy out of control electron. Damage begins to occur when the lone, free radical electron races around like a kook, seeking to find another electron to pair with.
The free radical electron often pulls an electron off a neighboring molecule, causing the affected molecule to become a free radical itself. The new free radical can then pull an electron off the next molecule and a chemical chain reaction of radical production occurs.
A single, lone electron, unstable and highly reactive, can destroy a strand of DNA in an entire cell in less then a fraction of a second. This rapid chain reaction can lead to cross-linking of atomic structures. DNA cross linking can lead to cancer as cell mutation grows out of control.
The body is designed to discard damaged cells. But in our present food environment, where processed and non-organic foods contain thousands of free-radical causing chemicals, there is no way it can keep up with the daily damage from the onslaught of chemical laden foods.
ANTIOXIDANTS TO THE RESCUE
Antioxidants have the ability to defend the body from free-radical damage. How does this miraculous event take place? Antioxidants ‘neutralize’ free radicals by donating one of their own electrons to end the electron ‘stealing action’. This balancing act by the body is possible because antioxidants are stable in either form, with or without their paired electron. In the case of cancer, as antioxidant foods donate their electrons, it gives the body the time and tools it needs for the repair process.
Now here is the truly amazing part….this is where Food as Medicine really excels and proves itself out. Where are antioxidants found? They are part of the vitamins, minerals and nutrients present in plant food with bright bold colors. Drum roll please….the glory of the flamboyant red in raspberries, the vivid orange in carrots, the deep brown in raw chocolate, the brilliant green in wheatgrass, the rich purple in seaweed, the vibrant blue in blueberries….the antioxidants in the edible plant list goes on and on….
Thank-you planet Earth one more time for your bounty and offer of forgiveness.
But there’s just one thing….the heating process kills 85% of the antioxidants, negating Nature’s plan for us. Raw and living foods come with 100% of their antioxidants intact, guaranteed by Nature, ready to defend the body from harm. This is only one of the reasons raw food detoxing is recommended for healing from cancer….a diet rich in organic, raw foods, loaded with antioxidants, can help you fight and maintain your health like a sumo warrior….