Oxidative Stress and Your Health

Oxidative stress is a condition that arises when our cells cannot adequately destroy the free radicals we make as a normal byproduct of metabolism and cellular processes. We make more free radicals during periods of exercise, physical and emotional stress.

Free radicals are truly radical. Free radicals are unstable oxygen molecules that, according to research, can hit each cell in the body 10,000 times each day! As these free radicals constantly hit the cell membrane, it starts to break down and become weak. This is where the oxidative stress begins. Think about an iron pole outside in the weather. After enough time in the elements it will start to rust and breakdown. Oxidative stress is like "rust" in your cells. They harm our immune system leading to many degenerative diseases including heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

So what to do? Antioxidants fight free radicals. And we can get lots of antioxidants from eating dark fruits like raspberries, acai berries, dark chocolate, or oranges.

Ok, simple right?

Well, yes and no.

Yes, you can consume the above foods, but according to scientific studies you get the "one and done" deal. Which means each antioxidant neutralizes one free radical. So it would be impossible to consume enough antioxidants, through the foods we eat, to combat the free radicals your body produces everyday.

But there is an answer.

You could eat 350 oranges, over 30 lbs of raspberries, or 15 lbs of dark chocolate each and every day to fight the free radicals and help prevent the havoc they produce in your cells. But eating that much is impossible.

Ok, eating that much is not the answer.

But what if you could take a supplement that would help your body produce powerful antioxidant enzymes, SOD(superoxide dismutase) and CAT(catalase), which works together to neutralize more free radicals than any "consumable" antioxidants? And by neutralizing these free radicals you are slowing the aging process and the resulting age related health issues!

That supplement is Protandim. Protandim is clinically proven, per Lifevantage.com, in a published peer reviewed study to "eliminate the age-related increase in cell aging factors".

Protandim is different than antioxidant supplements. What Protandim actually does is signal the cells in your body to produce its own antioxidants enzymes ( SOD & CAT), which provide thousands upon thousands of times more antioxidant power than any food or conventional supplement. It's like having an army of millions fight an army of one 24/7/365.

Protandim has been clinically proven to slow the aging process and the related health issues associated with physically aging.

Is Protandim the fountain of youth?

For more information you can visit the company website at Lifevantage or contact me.

Wishing you the best in health!

Tony Estigoy
tony@rebelpr.com

What are Free Radicals Doing to My Body?

Free radicals are so keen to get on and react with other substances that they start off destructive chain reactions. Free radical damage has been implicated as a factor in heart disease, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and even the process of ageing.[1] Free radicals are thought to be toxic, causing damage to DNA and cells. Although antioxidants "clean up" free radicals, this process becomes more inefficient as we age.[2] Free radicals are molecules that are all around us. They are produced both as a natural product of living (through metabolism) and by outside sources such as sunlight, cigarette smoke and general pollution.[3]

Oxidative damage , another name for the chemical reaction free radicals cause, can lead to the breakdown or even hardening of lipids which make up all cell walls. If the cell wall is hardened (lipid peroxidation ) then it becomes impossible for the cell to properly get it’s nutrients, get signals from another cell (such as firing of a neutron), and many other cellular activities can be affected.[3] Oxidative stress (OS) is a term used to describe internal inflammation and the free radicals produced as a result. Free radicals are neutralized by antioxidants.[4] Oxidative damage is the foremost theory as to what causes the deterioration that comes with age. This concept is known in anti-aging as the “oxygen paradox.” While oxygen is required for life and cellular fuel, the side effects of oxygen metabolism are detrimental to our heath.[5]

So what are some of things you can do about free radical oxidation?

Antioxidant supplements include individual vitamin supplements such as Vitamins C or E or beta carotene and mineral supplements like selenium. Green tea extract, grape seed extract, and pomegranate are other popular natural antioxidant supplements.[7] Antioxidants, which have healing properties are found in certain vitamins and foods. The body manufactures a defense against free radicals in the form of antioxidants although the defenses breakdown as we age.[8] Antioxidants interact with and stabilize free radicals and may prevent some of the damage free radicals otherwise might cause. Examples of antioxidants include beta-carotene, lycopene, vitamins C, E, and A, and other substances.[9]

To your continued longevity,

-Tony Estigoy

Articles quoted in this research:

[1] http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0328.htm
[2] http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2002/guarente.html
[3] http://www.stopgettingsick.com/template.cfm-1692

[4] http://justotalhealth.wordpress.com/2009/02/28/what-are-free-radicals/
[5] http://www.totalhealthbreakthroughs.com/2009/03/inflammation-cut-it-off-at-the-pass/
[6] http://drlam.wordpress.com/2009/04/02/calories-that-count-p

[7] http://www.nutrasanus.com/antioxidants-category.html
[8] http://www.nuvet.com/freerads.asp
[9] http://www.cancer.gov/newscenter/pressreleases/antioxidants