Contents:
- Medical Video: Antioxidants - vs - Free Radicals - Immune System
- What are free radicals?
- Where do free radicals come from?
- How do free radicals affect health?
- Are there too many symptoms of free radicals?
- How do you know the levels of free radicals in the body?
- Then, how to prevent free radicals from forming in the body?
- Exercise decreases the amount of free radicals in the body
Medical Video: Antioxidants - vs - Free Radicals - Immune System
Maybe you often hear, "Beware of free radicals, later get cancer." Free radicals are known as one of the main causes of cancer. But do you know what free radicals really are? What is the shape? Where does it come from? Or, how do these free radicals trigger the growth of cancer cells in the body?
What are free radicals?
There have been many studies that prove that free radicals do increase the risk of various diseases, such as Alzheimer's, cancer, atherosclerosis, Parkinson's, and various other diseases. Free radicals are also closely related to the premature aging process. Free radicals are an atom that has an imperfect shape, loses molecules in the outermost part, causing the atom to bind to other atoms or even lose all parts of the atom.
The body consists of millions of cells, and in each cell there are many molecules that build it. Each of these molecules plays a role in all cell functions that greatly affect the health of the body. When something makes the molecule damaged, the overall body function will also be disrupted.
Where do free radicals come from?
Free radicals are formed by the body from various processes, including various nutrient metabolism and the results of the immune system response. Substances or basic ingredients of free radicals are found in the various foods you eat, or medicines that are consumed, the air that is inhaled every day, and from the kinds of drinks you drink.
How do free radicals affect health?
If it is not excessive, the free radicals produced by the body will not harm health. But because we continue to be exposed or consume various sources that can cause the body to produce free radicals, it is not impossible that free radicals increase in number. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, chemical reactions carried out by free radicals in the body can cause cell membranes to be damaged, and this causes everything to easily enter the body's cells. Then, it can cause cells to mutate and trigger the growth of cancer cells and tumors.
Accumulated free radicals are rather difficult to remove and cause oxidative stress conditions. Oxidative stress is a process in the cells of the body that destroys cell structures such as protein, fat, and DNA. If oxidative stress is not handled and removed from the body it can cause various diseases, such as strokes, coronary heart disease, and even cancer.
Are there too many symptoms of free radicals?
Based on the article published in the Methods of Molecular Biology, in people who experience oxidative stress or have too many free radicals, there are no specific symptoms seen. However, some symptoms that may appear are fatigue, headache, dizziness, pain in the joints, visual disturbances, easy pain or a decrease in the immune system, signs of aging on the face, and decreased ability to remember.
How do you know the levels of free radicals in the body?
The study reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, there is no measurement tool or direct measurement method to determine the amount of free radicals in the body. Various theories state that free radicals are indeed very difficult to measure and the exact amount in the body is known because it reacts very quickly in the body so it is difficult to measure directly. However, experts can measure the production of free radical reactions, namely MDA and 4-hydroxinonenal.
Then, how to prevent free radicals from forming in the body?
It has been mentioned previously that actually free radicals are the body's natural response that is carried out to metabolize nutrients or the response of the immune system. So, what must be done to prevent the adverse effects of free radicals is to limit the formation of free radicals. This can be done by increasing substances that can counteract the effects of free radicals, namely antioxidants.
Antioxidants are substances that can inhibit the chemical processes carried out by free radicals on body cells. This compound is already in the body in the form of an enzyme, but the amount is not enough to fight the effects of free radicals. Therefore, it is necessary to consume foods that contain antioxidants, such as food sources of vitamin C and vitamin E, zinc, and beta-carotene, which are mostly contained in various types of fruits and vegetables.
Exercise decreases the amount of free radicals in the body
Free radicals can also be handled by doing physical activity or regular exercise. According to the Biochemical Society, regular aerobic exercise can reduce the amount of free radicals in the body. This is because when exercising, the body burns a lot of energy and causes chemical reactions from free radicals not to occur.
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