Why Antioxidant Supplements Are So Important
You’ve probably heard a lot about antioxidants lately: in the newspaper, in magazines, and on T.V. While many supplements and nutrients have been talked about for as long as you can probably remember, antioxidant supplements are a more recent topic. Don’t let this fool you into thinking they’re any less important. Antioxidants are a vital part of staying young and healthy. But why are they so important?
First of all, we need to know what an antioxidant is. During normal processes, molecules called free radicals are produced in the body. These are basically unstable atoms or molecules that desperately want to become stable. They do this by stealing electrons from healthy cells, making them unstable and less healthy. Antioxidants reverse this reaction, helping to keep the cells of our body healthy and functioning properly.
One of the most talked about effects of antioxidants is their anti aging properties. As we age, we constantly copy our cells to replace them when they die. Errors in copying occur and build up to form the aging process. Free radicals can also interfere and have been shown to promote wrinkles, memory problems, weakness of the immune system, and reduced elasticity of tissue; all of which are associated with the aging process. We can’t completely stop aging, but proper amounts of antioxidants and/or antioxidant supplements can slow the process considerably.
Damage caused by these free radicals is also considered to be a cause of certain cancers. Getting more antioxidants can reduce our risk for certain types of cancer, including cancer of the: stomach, prostate, colon, breast, bladder esophagus, pancreas, and possibly many more. Besides cancer, antioxidants have been shown to help prevent other serious problems, such as: cardiovascular diseases, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and vision problems. It is likely that antioxidants can help prevent other diseases and disorders, but their full effects simply haven’t been studied yet.
Antioxidants prevent the oxidation of bad cholesterol. When this type of cholesterol oxidizes, it can attach to the walls of blood vessels causing heart disease. This increases the risk for heart attack and stroke. Oxidized cholesterol also contributes to the hardening of blood vessel walls increasing the risk of high blood pressure. Antioxidants can help keep your heart and the rest of your circulatory system healthy.
Another great benefit of antioxidants is that they help boost the immune system. If you get sufficient levels of antioxidants, you’re not only less likely to get sick; it’s also easier for you to fight off diseases you may get. Along these lines, antioxidants can also help you heal faster when you have an injury; large or small.
So what are you waiting for? Today is the best day to start eating right or taking antioxidant supplements to get more of these wonderfully healthy antioxidants.
Need more free food and drink information? Jeff suggests reading more free food and drink articles today at: http://www.FreeArticles.com.
The Basics of Antioxidant Skincare
Touch your face, what do you feel? Look in the mirror, what do you see? You are looking at your largest organ and the part of you that everyone sees: your skin. Though often under appreciated, your skin performs many important physiological functions and is extremely susceptible to free radical damage. To function optimally and stay healthy, your skin needs nourishing with antioxidants from the inside and outside.
Free Radicals
Our bodies are under continuous attack by free radicals, extremely reactive molecules produced by our environment and our bodies that damage cells and tissues. Signs of aging like wrinkles, pigmentation, sagging are all attributed to Free Radical damage. On the inside, free radical damage is implicated in various diseases including cancers, degenerative diseases, and inflammatory illnesses as well as the aging process itself .
Antioxidants
Our body has a natural defense mechanism to protect itself from the danger of free radical attack: antioxidants. Antioxidants are specific vitamins, minerals, or nutrients that inactivate free radicals before they can damage cells. Hundreds of antioxidants exist; some, such as Alpha Lipoic Acid, the body produces whereas others, such as vitamins E and C, we must consume. They each function slightly differently but work together synergistically to keep the body and skin healthy.
Antioxidants and Skin
The skin is constantly exposed to free radicals produced by harmful pollutants in the environment and, most significantly, UV light. To maintain healthy, youthful skin we must ensure that our skin has enough antioxidants to adequately protect itself. We can deliver these antioxidants to our skin through diet, supplements, and topical products.
For our overall health, we need a healthy diet and supplements, but for the health of our skin, internal nourishment is not enough: topical antioxidants are essential. Internal supplementation improves the levels of antioxidants in skin cells, but research now shows that topical application delivers these important nutrients to the skin much more quickly . Science has concluded with clinical research that antioxidants used on the skin offer protection from UV damage, certain types of cancer, and reduce inflammation.
Topical Antioxidants
Topical formulations contain many different antioxidants: all skin is different so you will need to choose the right blend for your skin. Some are stronger than others and many offer additional health benefits. Vitamins C and E, two well-known antioxidants, are both essential for skin health. vitamin E provides excellent hydration benefits while vitamin C stimulates collagen production. Astaxanthin, a super-antioxidant, is harvested from micro-algae in Hawaii and is 500 times more powerful than vitamin E. Pycnogenol®, another powerful antioxidant, helps improve microcirculation and also enhances the function of vitamin C .
These topical antioxidants, as well as others, will protect your skin and optimize skin health, but choose topical products carefully. Look for products that have effective concentrations of these important antioxidants and avoid products that contain potentially harmful ingredients such as mineral oil, petrolatum, and parabens.
Sondra Miles has a BS in Brain and Cognitive Sciences with a minor in Chemistry from MIT. Now she combines her scientific background, her knowledge of complementary medicine, and her passion for health as a member of the Research and Development team at derma e
Antioxidant Skin Care Products- Your Secret Key to Get Glowing Young Skin!
We all know about Antioxidants. And when we refer to antioxidants, we are generally talking about antioxidants in the form of nutritional supplements and vitamins, but not about Antioxidant skin care products. But you would be amazed to know that antioxidant skin care is in fact your key to get glowing young skin.
So, what is the role antioxidants play in your body? In brief, antioxidants counter the free radicals in the body which are responsible for causing damage to our skin cells and tissues. In fact, we show the signs of aging on our skin much before it should happen because of the continuous damage that these free radicals cause.
That’s the reason why Antioxidant skin care products gain so much importance in today’s environment. So, if you want to slow down or reverse the signs of skin aging, then you should take a serious look at the antioxidant skin care alternatives available.
Here are some of the natural ingredients that have shown tremendous positive result in clinical trials over time, you might want to look for these in your antioxidant skin care products.
1) Cynergy TK – This is a natural ingredient that has been pioneered in New Zealand. The most amazing potential of Cynergy TK is that it helps your body in naturally producing more collagen and elastin on its own. As you know that collagen and elastin are the two skin proteins that give us a firm, supple and elastic skin.
Cynergy TK is also rich in functional keratin. Keratin is also a skin protein which works together with collagen and elastin to maintain skin health and youth. The funtional form of keratin makes it very easily absorbable by our body.
Cynergy TK also has also shown to work effectively as a powerful antioxidant when it is a part of antioxidant skin care products. It neutralizes the free radicals before they are able to cause any damage to the skin tissues. Apart from this, Cynergy TK has also shown great improvement in skin moisture retention and skin elasticity.
2) Nano- Lipobelle H EQ10 – This is another amazing natural substance. It is the “nano emulsion” form of Coenzyme Q10. You must have heard of Coenzyme Q10, it is a very popular nutritional supplement as well as a powerful antioxidant. Now, the nano version of Coenzyme Q10 makes it very potent and effective, because it can penetrate seven layers deep into the skin!
And in this way , Nano- Lipobelle H EQ10 works very powerfully from deep within and gives protection to skin youth from its fatal enemies like free radicals, aging, toxins and lack of vital proteins.
All these powerful features make it an indispensable part of any antioxidant skin care product which claims to be highly effective.
You can thus see, what a powerful role such natural ingredients can play in effective antioxidant skin care products in giving you vibrant and healthy skin even in a mature age.
I have covered an extensive research on my website on such potent and natural substances which have a proven scientific role as powerful antioxidants.
Vijay Raisinghani is a long time user and passionate advocate of natural skin care. Visit his site now to discover cutting edge, anti-aging skin care products he recommends after extensive research: http://www.beautiful-healthy-skin.com
Antioxidant Food Supplements
Antioxidant supplements play a protective role for our general health including the health of our hair. Antioxidants supplements are supposed to slow down the oxidation reactions which are brought about by the free radicals. The Free radicals are highly reactive unstable atoms generated in our body that can damage cells leading to a number of diseases and ageing.According to the Free-radical theory of aging, these highly reactive oxygen species (ROS), damage the DNA, proteins and other cellular structures like the cell membranes and cell organelles.
The reaction of free radicals within cells, and subsequent damage has been linked to a range of disorders and chronic diseases including cancer, arthritis, atherosclerosis, alzheimer’s and diabetes and inflammatory conditions
Antioxidants are able to slow down or block these dangerous reactions in the body. They do it either by reacting with intermediates and halting the oxidation reaction directly. They react with the free radicals and prevent the oxidation reaction from occurring.
Antioxidants supplements can be taken as dietary supplements or taken as tablets and capsules. Studies suggest those dietary antioxidants supplements provide a range of are benefits for our health. However, excess antioxidant supplementation may be counter-productive.
Diet carrying antioxidant supplements
A healthy and balanced diet containing antioxidant supplements plays a pivotal role in retaining your hair’s health. Some of the herbal nutrition supplements and some fruits which contain antioxidants serve as natural medications for hair loss.Antioxidant food supplements are found in various forms – vegetables, fruits, grain cereals, legumes, nuts, etc. The sources of antioxidants include fruits (berries and peppers, apple skins, cider, wine), vegetables (spinach, tea leaves), fungi (mushrooms), whole grain cereals (hops, barley, millet and maize), nuts (pecans, pistachios, almonds), beans (cacao including chocolate, coffee).
Polyphenol antioxidants
This type of antioxidant is characterized by the presence of several phenol functions. It is found in a wide array of phytonutrient-bearing foods. Examples include – most of the legumes; fruits like apples, blackberries, cantaloupe, cherries, cranberries, grapes, pears, plums, raspberries, and strawberries; vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, celery, onion and parsley. All the above are rich sources of polyphenol antioxidants.Alternative sources of polyphenol antioxidant include red wine, chocolate, green tea, olive oil, bee pollen and several grains.
Antioxidant vitamins
Some of the vitamins that are good sources of antioxidants,. the antioxidant vitamins are–vitamins A, C and E.
Vitamin A
The animal form of vitamin A is retinol. It is a yellow, fat-soluble antioxidant vitamin found in animal foods such as eggs, liver, whole milk and fortified foods like fat-reduced milk, cereals and breads. Vitamin A, are the dark-colored pigments found in plant foods like fruits and vegetables (especially dark green leafy ones) and include spinach, cantaloupe, carrots, sweet potatoes and squash.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a natural antioxidant helpful in maintaining healthy hair. Sources of this vitamin are foods such as citrus fruits, kiwi, pineapple, tomatoes, green peppers, potatoes with their skins and dark green vegetables. The daily recommended dose for vitamin C is 60 mg.
Vitamin E
It increases scalp circulation which is crucial for hair growth. You get vitamin E from foods like wheat germ oil, soybeans, raw seeds ad nuts, dried beans and leafy green vegetables. The daily recommended dose for vitamin E is up to 400 IU.
Russell Blank is freelance writer who is an advocate of natural care remedies for good health. He is a prolific writer antioxidant supplements writing informative articles in various magazines. For more information visit us : www.hairlossinformation.com
Antioxidant for Dogs – Tips and Info
Who said antioxidants only work for humans? Incidentally, humans and dogs are one of the few animal species that cannot produce their own concentration of antioxidants. It is for this reason that we, humans, count much on our diet to get our daily source of antioxidants and when that isn’t enough, we also have our own containers of antioxidant supplements to make up for any shortage in antioxidant supply. The same can be said of dogs. Antioxidants are very useful substances that help prevent damage to our system brought on by the harmful effects of oxygen. Although it’s true that oxygen is an essential element of life, that doesn’t discount the fact that it can also have a negative ripple effect on the person.
During your pet’s normal metabolism, the oxygen that it breathes creates byproducts called free radicals that can be very harmful to its body. These free radicals act on other healthy molecules, turning them into free radicals like themselves. This causes a chain reaction which, when left unattended, can lead to degenerative sickness in your beloved pet.
Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs provides the perfect solution for any health problems your canine buddy is having. Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs contain natural dog antioxidant supplements that help revitalize your dog’s mobility and overall energy. In addition to that, Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs can also armor your dog from the effects of free radical damage.
Antioxidant Action of Oxyfresh Antioxidant for Dogs
Antioxidant supplements are important to a dog’s health and well-being. What miniscule antioxidants your pet consumes from its food, you can supplement with Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs. Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs play an important role in minimizing damage to your dog’s cells, such as those that make up the immune system. In so doing, Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs also works to boost the immune system of your pet.
The Oxyfresh Antioxidant for Dogs Formula
Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs is truly unique. Its amazing wafer recipe supports dogs with suppressed immune systems, tissue injury, arthritis, joint inflammation, and dogs recovering from surgery. The key ingredients of Oxyfresh antioxidant for dogs include wheat sprout complex, selenium, whey protein, barley grass powder, and alfalfa grass powder, all of which are rich sources of disease-fighting antioxidants.
Wafer foods are definitely much better than hard foods where it can take your dog awhile to completely assimilate and absorb all the nutrients. Wafers are easily digested and the faster the food is broken down, the faster the nutrients are going to be absorbed.
For more info, see Antioxidant For Dogs and Oxyfresh Antioxidant For Dogs. Ron King is a web developer; visit his website Sunless Tanning.
Copyright 2007 Ron King. This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact and the links live.
Antioxidant Supplement
The focus of research on vitamins these days is how antioxidant supplements may play a role in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Antioxidant supplements – E, C, and beta-carotene (a form of vitamin A) – have potential when it comes to health promotion. However, most data available about such health promoting properties of antioxidant supplements are incomplete. And only up to 30 percent Americans are taking some form of antioxidant supplements.
But what exactly are antioxidants and how important are they?
Antioxidants come in two forms. They can either be vitamins or minerals. They help prevent oxygen from reacting with other chemicals in cells. Such reactions – called oxidation – could lead to cell damage which may result in heart disease and cancer.
Antioxidants can be found in a variety of foods, but they are far more common in fresh fruits and vegetables. A health diet of fresh produce could lead to high levels of antioxidants in your body, which could only mean one thing – less free radicals (those harmful molecules that cause cell damage) and a healthier you.
When antioxidants start to work, they destroy the free radicals or break the chain. You see, here’s what happens when you have lots of free radicals in your body. Because they are highly unstable, these free radicals have the tendency to steal or get electrons from stable molecules and in so doing, make those molecules unstable as well, turning them into free radicals. This becomes a long chain and will go on and on until such a chain in broken. This is where antioxidants come in whose sole function is to break the chain and neutralize free radicals.
During the process of neutralization, the antioxidants are neutralized themselves. Hence, they also become oxidized. That is why the body needs a constant source of antioxidants in order to keep combating these harmful free radicals and stop them from multiplying.
With the kind of diet most of us have these days, it is very likely that we may not be getting enough antioxidants from the foods that we eat. And remember that the body needs to replenish its levels of antioxidants constantly. This is where antioxidant supplements come in.
Because the body may not be getting enough antioxidants because you don’t enough fruits or you don’t eat a lot of vegetables, you therefore need an alternate source such as antioxidant supplements.
Antioxidant supplements are that source. And while antioxidant supplements can’t very well take the place of natural antioxidants, they can however aid in increasing the level of antioxidants in your body.
To find more about antioxidant supplement go to:
http://www.antioxidant-supplement.info/
Look and feel healthy. Get more information about antioxidant supplement on: http://www.antioxidant-supplement.info/
Read about antioxidant antiaging go to: http://www.antioxidant-supplement.info/antioxidant-antiaging.php
Choosing Antioxidant Health Products
As more and more people are becoming conscious of the need for a healthy lifestyle they are becoming more aware of the importance of antioxidants in their diet. The naturally occurring chemical reactions within all our bodies causes some cells to break apart, but not every part of every cell will be re-absorbed. These “left over” parts are called free radicals and end up circulating throughout your body looking for cells from which they can take an electron. They then move on. While free radicals not considered an attacking force in their own right, the cells left in the wake of the free radical’s theft, are not complete and these incomplete cells can lead to a multitude of health deficiencies.
Fighting Free Radicals
Once they know the damage that free radicals are doing everyone wants to get rid of them. The way to do this is by consuming antioxidants. Antioxidants work by providing a new place for these free radicals to live until they are gathered up and excreted as part of the normal bodily functions. You can best do this by eating foods rich in antioxidants. However with the busy lives people lead these days many people don’t have the time to make sure that they are eating a healthy balanced diet, let alone one rich in antioxidants.
The answer to this problem is to take an antioxidant dietary supplement. One can either take a single antioxidant supplement that is formulated to deliver a complete daily dose of antioxidants. Or one can take a number of supplements that will provide you with the right amount of different antioxidant minerals to maintain good health.
In order to make an informed choice you need to understand how antioxidant products can help in removing free radicals from your body. It is paramount to health that the antioxidant product help gather the free radicals, rendering them unable to attack other healthy cells, to maintain the good health of all cells.
In most cases, the antioxidant product will be in the form of a liquid, which when ingested goes to work quicker. There are also some antioxidant products in pill form, but all forms of antioxidants must be ingested into the system in order to attack the free radicals in the environment in which they reside.
Healthy Products Can Require Taste Adjustment
As can happen in many aspects of choosing a healthy option those products that offer health benefits have what can be optimistically called an “acquired taste”. Traditionally, anything that was good for people generally did not taste good, and many people shunned their use for that very reason. With today’s antioxidant product made from fruits and vegetables, the taste has improved tremendously leading more people to accept their use more readily.
One of the most common and easiest sources of antioxidants is tea. It has been learned that many antioxidant benefits found in tea occur naturally. Also most fruits contain vitamins A, C and E, which are key elements in many of the antioxidant products on the market. However an antioxidant dietary supplement will provide you with a more concentrated portion of antioxidants. By concentrating these elements and packaging them into a more concentrated form those of us who can not spend all day eating fruit and drinking tea can also get the health benefits of antioxidants. Of course you should choose your antioxidant product based primarily on the health benefits to you, but if you succeed in finding a supplement that also tastes good you are more certain to continue to take it and continue to enjoy those health benefits.
Visit ThinkThinSeeSlim.com for more advice for a healthy diet, exercise and information on antioxidants.