Originally published May 19 2005
Antioxidants in vegetables and fruits protect the body's immune system
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Staying disease free can, in many cases, be just a matter of eating plenty of antioxidants in most fruits and vegetables. The antioxidant compounds in such foods work against the disease causing agents called "free radicals" that attack the DNA of a body's healthy cells. Keeping your body filled with a healthy supply of antioxidants is a great way to keep free radicals in check, nutrition experts say.
Antioxidants minimize damage and keep your body's cells healthy.
You can help by eating plenty of antioxidant-rich foods.
By Jeanie Lerche Davis WebMD Feature Your body needs plenty of antioxidants to defend itself against the assault of free radicals on healthy cells.
Learn how antioxidants work and how to get plenty in your diet.
To help your body protect itself from the rigors of oxidation, Mother Nature provides thousands of different antioxidants in various amounts in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes.
When your body needs to put up its best defense, especially true in today's environment, antioxidants are crucial to your health.
As oxygen interacts with cells of any type - an apple slice or, in your body, the cells lining your lungs or in a cut on your skin -- oxidation occurs.
"Oxidation is a very natural process that happens during normal cellular functions," researcher Jeffrey Blumberg, PhD, professor of nutrition at Tufts University in Boston, tells WebMD.
They are "free" because they are missing a critical molecule, which sends them on a rampage to pair with another molecule.
"The problem is, free radicals often injure the cell, damaging the DNA, which creates the seed for disease."
They are kept under control by antioxidants that the body produces naturally, Blumberg explains.
External toxins, especially cigarette smoke and air pollution, are "free radical generators," he says.
Free radicals trigger a damaging chain reaction, and that's the crux of the problem.
"Free radicals are dangerous because they don't just damage one molecule," Blumberg explains.
When a free radical oxidizes a fatty acid, it changes that fatty acid into a free radical, which then damages another fatty acid.
These external attacks can overwhelm the body's natural free-radical defense system.
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