All you Really Need to Know About Free Radicals and Antioxidants

Most people, when explaining what free radicals are, will launch into a complicated chemistry lesson - which is only understood by someone who already knows what a free radical is! So, here's the short version: free radicals are atoms that are missing an electron. There's much more to it than that, of course, but that's really all the average person needs to know. That's because you don't really need to understand what they are - you need to know what they do.

So here's the important part: free radicals "attack" your cells. Now, free radicals are not evil invaders trying to kill you. It's simply part of their chemical nature to try and complete their set of electrons, and inside your body, this means taking the electrons out of your cells. This process of removing electrons is called oxidation. Specifically, free radicals target your DNA, which resides inside little "pockets" in your cells called mitochondria. Mitochondria are extremely important because they are the "energy factories" of our cells. They produce the energy that keeps our cells alive, and when the DNA inside the mitochondria is damaged, the mitochondria shut down and our cells die. While it's normal for some cells to die as new ones are made to replace them, when too many cells start to die, we begin aging.

Now remember I said that the process of removing electrons is called oxidation? This gives rise to another term you've heard before: antioxidants. As you've probably already guessed from the name, they help prevent the oxidation of your cells. They do this by acting as a shield between the free radicals and your cells: the antioxidants donate one of their own electrons and allow themselves to be oxidized, ending the free radicals' oxidation reaction. Antioxidants don't become free radicals because they are stable with or without the extra electron.

Dr. Denham Harmon was the first to propose that free radicals were actually the cause of aging. He supported his theory by showing that feeding a variety of antioxidants to mammals extended their lives. Since then, many diseases have been linked with free radical damage, including heart disease, cancer, and arthritis.

Antioxidants are not a magic pill that will prevent all aging and help you live forever. They aren't a cure for cancer. Nor are they a remedy for poor eating habits or a sedentary lifestyle. But, combined with a healthy diet and regular exercise, antioxidants just might help you live a little longer, and a little healthier.