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When we hear the word “radical”, most of us get nervous – and understandably so, as radicalism is not typically thought of as a good thing! This applies to more than just politics - within the body, free radicals are responsible for doing a lot of damage. Let’s explore what they are, what they’re doing and how to fight them off. Free Radicals Defined Scientifically, free radicals are molecules with at least one unpaired electron. This makes them seek out intact molecules and absorb parts of those atoms, creating chain reactions through the body in order to complete themselves. To put it simply, they destroy healthy cells to feed themselves. How Free Radicals are Formed Free radicals are created when certain types of cells react with one another. Often, outside toxins are responsible for triggering free radical production. Things like chemical pollution, cigarette smoke, and excessive tanning (especially from tanning beds, but too much sunlight is also damaging) oxidise the body and create free radicals. Nutritional factors are also a major part of causing free radicals – chemically processed foods and pesticides are often culprits. What Free Radicals Do Free radicals are the body’s burglars. As you learned earlier, they invade healthy cells to acquire missing molecules. However, they don’t generally kill the cells. That wouldn’t be so bad, because the body can simply create new cells when old ones die. What free radicals do is more far-reaching and insidious. By ripping apart those healthy cells, free radicals alter their actual DNA, resulting in a mutated cell that goes on to damage other cells. This process happens very quickly – if free radicals gain a foothold in your body, they’ll trigger a chain reaction that results in free radicals spreading through your body, robbing molecules from intact cells and weakening your body’s disease defence system. Too many damaged cells and tissues can open the way to serious diseases like cancer, Alzheimers or cardiovascular diseases. How to Combat Free Radicals Fortunately, there are a lot of steps you can take to limit free radical production. Limiting environmental toxins is a great place to start – if you smoke, quit! (obviously easier said than done) and try to live somewhere with relatively clean air. Your diet is another thing you have direct control over. You’ve probably heard of “antioxidants”, which play a major role in preventing free radicals from wreaking havoc in your body. Basically, antioxidants donate the electrons that the free radicals need to become complete cells, thus eliminating the need for the molecules to rob other cells. A few examples of major antioxidants: vitamins A, C, and E, minerals like selenium and zinc and bioflavonoids. Incorporating fresh fruits and vegetables into your diet is a surefire way to up your antioxidant count, as is drinking certain types of tea (especially white and green). To really put the nail in the free radical coffin, make that tea with alkalife Natural Alkaline Water. Why? Read on. How Alkalising Fights Free Radicals The damage done by free radicals is often called “oxidation” – hence why antioxidants are so effective. But they’re not the only line of defence. Alkaline water is equipped with a feature called “oxidation reduction potential”, or ORP, which increases the likelihood of chemical reactions that provide healing electrons to free radicals. As inventor and author Ray Kurzweil explains, “The negative ions in alkaline water are a rich source of electrons that can be donated to free radicals in the body, neutralizing them and stopping them from damaging healthy tissues.” Ignoring free radicals is one of the most dangerous things you can do to your health, and it’s almost certainly one of the major factors responsible for many of the serious diseases we’re seeing these days. Start taking steps to counteract them before it’s too late. For more natural health tips visit our blog at: http://www.alkalife.com.au/blog
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