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What Are Antioxidants & Where Can I Find Them?
An antioxidant is a molecule that will neutralize free radicals, those waste products of oxidation, and stop the dangerous chain reaction of damage within the cell. When present in sufficient amounts, they can combat and even reverse some of these harmful effects. Recent cancer research and heart disease prevention studies have shown that healthy eating, along with proper diet and nutrition rich in these, can go a long ways towards antiaging health. So they are for two groups of people - sick people and healthy ones. Everyone, young and old, can benefit from them! There are many ways a good supplement can help you. Here are a few:
So how do these powerhouses accomplish these monumental tasks? By mopping up free radicals, and destroying them as they occur. In this way, they can prevent oxidative damage from pollution, toxins, radiation, drugs, and many other stressors on our bodies from our environment. Since we are exposed to record levels of these factors, our bodies are having a difficult time keeping up. This is evidenced by the poor state of our health today. There are two types, the ones you have to take in through your food or supplements, and those that your body makes. The best approach is to optimize both sources.
We will start with some foods that rate very well. We call them exogenous, meaning the body does not make them, and we have to supply them to our bodies in some way:
To reduce a further toxic load on the body, you should choose organic sources for these foods where possible.
There are also many supplements that are very effective in neutralizing free radicals. Here are a few of them here:
The other source are endogenous, meaning the body makes them inside the cell. Even with a very well-balanced diet, rich in the foods and supplements described above, we still need additional assistance. In fact, the sources above depend on a substance made by our bodies to do their job properly. The body’s most powerful antioxidant that exists in each of your cells right now is a small protein called glutathione. (glue-ta-thigh-own). Big word, but essential to know about! Your life depends on this, and without it your cells would die from unrestrained oxidative stress. The good news is you have this substance in all of your cells already. The bad news is your levels are constantly under attack and prone to fall as you age, leaving you vulnerable to disease and poor health. The easiest answer would seem to be to go to your local health food store and purchase a glutathione supplement and take it. Unfortunately, this does not work very well, as it is quickly broken down in the digestive process and eliminated. The only effective way to raise and sustain glutathione levels is to give your body the building blocks it needs to manufacture it inside the cell. There are many ways to do this, which I will discuss briefly here. There have been some pharmaceutical drugs developed, such as N-Acetyl-Cysteine (NAC), and there are also natural ways to boost glutathione levels, through food sources, or with an undenatured bioactive whey protein. Here are a list of the comprehensive ways to raise glutathione (GSH), based on Table 9 on page 40 of “Glutathione- Your Key to Health” by Dr. Jimmy Gutman:
Drugs:
Natural Products:
A number of co-factors must also be present for GSH production:
What Doctors are Saying about Antioxidant Protection and Glutathione:
Breakthrough in Cell Defense, Allan Somersall, Ph.D., M.D., and Gustavo Bounous, M.D. FRCS(C)
"Antioxidants are well documented and known to possess vital roles in health maintenance and disease prevention. Glutathione is your cell’s own major antioxidant. Maintaining elevated glutathione levels aids the body’s natural antioxidant function. Biochemical Pharmacology 47: 2113-2123 1994 "Your life depends on glutathione. Without it, your cells would disintegrate from unrestrained oxidation, your body would have little resistance to bacteria, viruses and cancer, and your liver would shrivel up from the eventual accumulation of toxins." Glutathione: Essential Health AID - Antioxidant, Immune Booster, Detoxifier. Dr. Jimmy Gutman, M.D., FACEP
Antioxidant Protection and Glutathione are Essential for Great Health!
Boost Your Antioxidant Protection And Glutathione Here:
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