Antioxidants

Free radicals and other “reactive oxygen species” (ROS) are formed continuously in the human body, both deliberately and by “accidents of chemistry.” Our endogenous antioxidant defenses are inadequate to completely prevent damage by ROS. Hence, diet-derived antioxidants may be of special importance in delaying or preventing the onset of diseases in which ROS are involved, such as cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, and some forms of cancer. Determining the optimal intake of antioxidant nutrients is one of the greatest challenges in the nutrition/free radicals field today, but the possibility of side effects from supraoptimal doses must not be ignored.