SINCE the 1980s more and more research has confirmed that many of the most common diseases are associated and helped by their supplementation. So important is the role of antioxidants that medical science is beginning to consider the presence of any one of the disease listed below a sign of probable antioxidant deficiency in the same way that scurvy is a sign of Vitamin C deficiency. In the future, we may be tested for blood levels of antioxidant nutrients alongside levels of blood sugar and cholesterol and blood pressure. Capable of predicting your biological age and expected lifespan, your antioxidant nutrient status may prove to be your most vital statistic. The following are the most probable antioxidant deficiency diseases: Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, infertility, macular (eye lens) degeneration, measles, mental illness, periodental (tooth) disease, respiratory tract infections, rheumatoid arthritis.
The common denominator is the process of aging and its associated disease is called oxidative damage. This has put the spotlight on the use of antioxidants as nutrients that help protect the body from this damage by preventing and treating disease. So far, over a hundred antioxidant nutrients have been discovered and hundreds, if not thousands, of research papers have extolled their benefits. The main players are Vitamins A, C and E, plus beta-carotene, the precursor of Vitamin A that is found in fruit and vegetables. Their presence in your diet and levels in your blood may prove to be the best marker yet of your power to delay death and prevent disease.
What is an antioxidant?
Oxygen is the basis of all plant and animal life. It is our most important nutrient, needed by every cell every second of every day. Without it we cannot release the energy in food which drives all body processes. But oxygen is chemically reactive and highly dangerous: in normal biochemical reaction oxygen can become unstable and capable of “oxidizing” neighboring molecules. This can lead to cellular damage which triggers cancer, inflammation, arterial damage and aging. Known as free oxidizing radicals, this bodily equivalent of nuclear waste moist be disarmed to remove the danger. Free radicals are made in all combustion processes including smoking, the burning of petrol to create exhaust fumes, radiation, frying or barbecuing food and normal body processes. Chemicals capable of disarming free radicals are called antioxidants. Some are known essential nutrients, like Vitamin A and beta-carotene, and Vitamin C and E. Others, like bioflavonoids, antocyanidins, pycnogenol and over a hundred other recently identified protectors found in common foods, are not.
The balance between your intake of antioxidants and exposure to free radicals may literally be the balance between life and death. You can tip the scales in your favour by simple changes to diet and antioxidant supplementation.
Antioxidants in health and disease
Slowing down the aging process is no longer a mystery. The best results in research studies have consistently been achieved by giving animals low-calorie diets high in antioxidant nutrients. In other words, exactly what they need and no more. This reduces “oxidative stress” and ensures maximum antioxidant protection. Animals fed in this way not only live up to 40 percent longer, but are also more active during their lives. Studies shows that there is every reason to assume that the same principles apply to humans. Large-scale surveys show that the risk of death is substantially reduced in those with either high levels of antioxidants in their blood or high dietary intakes.
Conversely, a lower level of Vitamin A and Vitamin E is associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The blood levels of Vitamin E and beta-carotene in sufferers are half those of elderly people who do not have Alzheimer’s. Elderly people with low levels of Vitamin C in their blood have eleven times the risk of developing cataracts compared to those with high levels. Similarly, those with low Vitamin E blood levels have almost double the risk, while people consuming 400ius of Vitamin E a day have half the risk of developing cataracts.
Levels of Vitamin A are consistently found to be low in people with lung cancer. In fact, having a low Vitamin A level doubles the risk of lung cancer. Similarly, a high intake of beta-carotene from raw fruit and vegetables reduces the risk of lung cancer in non-smoking men and women. Supplementing Vitamin E and C effectively halves the risk of over a having a heart attack while, in a massive study, those who consumed 15-20mg of beta-carotene per day had 40 percent lower risk of a stroke and 22 percent lower risk of a heart attack compared to those consuming only 6mg per day. Those with high dietary intakes of beta-carotene had half the risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Supplementing 1,000mg of Vitamin C also reduces blood pressure.
Antioxidants also help boost your immune system and increase your resistance to infection. Antioxidants have been shown to reduce the symptoms of AIDS, and, in a small number of cases, to reverse the condition. They increase fertility, reduce inflammation in arthritis and have key roles to play in many conditions including colds and chronic fatigue syndrome.
Testing your antioxidant potential
Your ability to stay free of these disease depends on the balance between your intake of harmful free radicals and your intake of protective antioxidants. As the scales start to tip away from health, early warning signs start to develop like frequent infections, difficulty shifting an
infection, easy bruising, slow healing, thinner skin or
excessive wrinkles for your age. Another sign of impaired antioxidant status is a reduced ability to detoxify the body after an onslaught of free radicals. So, for example, if you feel groggy or achy after a burst of exercise, or after exposure to pollution such a being stuck in a traffic jam or a room full of cigarette smoke, your antioxidant potential may need a boost.
A more accurate way to determine your antioxidant status is to have a biochemical antioxidant profile done. This blood test measures the levels of beta-carotene, C and E in your blood and determines how will your antioxidant enzyme systems are functioning. Most nutritional laboratories offer this kind of test. A less expensive and extensive TRAP test (total reactive antioxidant potential) is also available. But while this will indicate if there is an antioxidant problem, it does not define which nutrients are missing.
Antioxidants—the best foods
Every year more and more antioxidants are found in nature, including substances in berries, grapes, tomatoes, mustard and broccoli and in herbs such as turmeric and ginkgo biloba. These substances, such as bioflavonoids, lycopene and anthocyanidins, are not essential nutrients but are highly beneficial. They are classified as phytochemicals.
The main essential antioxidant vitamins are A, C and E and the precursor of Vitamin A, beta-carotene. Beta-carotene is found in red/orange/yellow vegetables and fruits. Vitamin C is also abundant in vegetables and fruits eaten raw, but heat rapidly destroys it. Vitamin E is found in “seed” foods, including nuts, seeds and their oils, vegetables like peas, broad beans, corn and whole grains–all of which are classified as seed foods. Eating sweet potatoes, carrots, watercress, peas and broccoli frequently is a great way to increase your antioxidant potential provided, of course that you do not fry them.
Another great food is watermelon. The flesh is high in beta-carotene and Vitamin C, while the seeds are high in Vitamin E and in the antioxidant minerals zinc and selenium. You can make a great antioxidant cocktail by blending the flesh and seeds into a great-tasting drink. Seeds and seafood are the best all round dietary sources of selenium and zinc.
The amino acids cysteine and glutathione also act as antioxidants. They help make one of the body’s key antioxidant enzymes, glutathione peroxidase, which is itself dependent on selenium. This enzyme helps to detoxify the body, protecting us against car exhaust fumes, carcinogens, infections, too much alcohol and toxic metals. Cysteine and glutathione are particularly high in white meat, tuna, lentils, beans, nuts, seeds, onions and garlic and have been shown to boost the immune system as well as to increase antioxidant power.
Supplementary benefit
Given the unquestionable value of increasing your
antioxidant status, it is wise to make sure that your daily supplement programme contains significant quantities of antioxidants, especially if you are middle-aged or older, live in a polluted city or suffer any other unavoidable
exposure to free radicals. The easiest way to do this is to take a comprehensive antioxidant supplement. Most
reputable companies produce formulas containing a combination of the following nutrients: Vitamin A, beta-carotene, Vitamin E, Vitamin C, zinc, selenium, glutathione and cysteine, plus plant-based antioxidants like bilberry or pycnogenol. The kind of total supplementary intake to aim for is shown below.
Vitamin A
The suggested optional nutrient allowance per day for Vitamin A and beta-carotene is 800-1000mcg RE (retinol equivalent) for children and 800-2000 mcg RE for adults for maximum antioxidant protection. Take between 2000 mcg (6600iu) and 3000 mcg (10,000iu) per day of retinol and the same again for beta-carotene.
Vitamin C
The suggested optional nutrient allowance per day is 150mg for children and 400-1000mg for adults. For
maximum antioxidant protection take 1000-3000mg per day.
Vitamin E
The suggested optional nutrient allowance per day is 70mg for children and 90-800 mg/ius for adults. For maximum antioxidant protection take 400-800 mg/ius per day.
Selenium
The suggested optional nutrient allowance per day is 50 mcg for children and 100 mcg for adults. For maximum antioxidant protection take 100-200 mcg per day.
Zinc
The suggested optional nutrient allowance per day is 7mg for children and 15-20mg for adults. For maximum antioxidant protection take 10-20mg per day.
Here are some simple tips for improving your antioxidant potential and boosting your power of prevention:
• Eat lots of fresh fruits
• Eat lots of vegetables, especially sweet potatoes, carrots, peas, watercress and broccoli.
• Take a good antioxidant supplement daily.
• Do your best to avoid pollution, smoky places, direct exposure to strong sunlight and fried foods.
• Don’t over-exercise or exercise beyond your aerobic potential.