Many health and beauty products boast using antioxidants to fight free radicals. But just what are antioxidants and free radicals, and why are they so important for your health?
Antioxidants are substances that lessen or neutralize free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that occur in the body from normal body processes as well as from exposure to toxins.
To understand how antioxidants work, first you need to know how normal molecules become free radicals…
As you may recall from high school science class, all cells are made of molecules, which are made of atoms. Atoms all contain neutrons, protons, electrons and a nucleus, which is in the center of the atom. Electrons orbit the nucleus, which is important because a happy atom likes to have a balanced number of electrons. When it loses one, it becomes an unbalanced free radical. The free radical will attempt to attack a nearby molecule to steal an electron, thereby creating a new free radical. This creates a damaging cycle, which is where antioxidants step in.
Antioxidants don’t need a certain number of electrons to maintain stability, so they donate electrons to free radicals, stabilizing them once again and thus preventing and even reversing cellular and DNA damage.
Because some free radicals are a natural consequence of normal cellular actions, the body has ways of counteracting by creating necessary antioxidants to maintain balance and keep our cells healthy. Our cells have the ability to produce antioxidants by using a protein called Nrf2. Activation of Nrf2 triggers the production of our body’s most important antioxidants. Fortunately, there are certain foods that also trigger the production of Nrf2, such as broccoli, turmeric, green tea, coffee, and resveratrol, a polyphenol found in red wine.
If there are not enough antioxidants to neutralize an excess of free radicals, cellular damage can occur. Including antioxidant-rich foods in your diet is an excellent way to boost your levels of this critical class of nutrients and enzymes, as is supplementing with a formula that provides a wide range of natural antioxidants.
Padma Basic® is a clinically tested botanical antioxidant formula that provides a unique combination of tannins, flavonoids, and polyphenols to combat free radicals.
Padma Basic® is based on a traditional “cooling” herbal formula that combats symptoms of “heat”, which aids the body’s response to inflammation. Padma Basic® consists of over fifteen powerful herbs that act to promote cardiovascular and circulatory health, while also supplying key antioxidant defense against free radicals. Padma Basic’s unique balance of herbs provides a range of researched health benefits, safely and naturally.