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Antioxidants, nature and chemistry
Submitted by Dr. Tamer Fouad,
M.D.
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Antioxidants are substances that protect
other chemicals of the body from damaging oxidation reactions
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In the aerobic environment,
the most dangerous by product are the species of reactive oxygen. The
role of antioxidants is to detoxify reactive oxygen intermediates (ROI)
in the body. Over the past several years, nutritional
antioxidants have attracted considerable interest in the popular press
as potential treatment for a wide variety of disease states, including
cancer and other causes e.g. atherosclerosis, chronic inflammatory diseases
and aging (Delany L. 1993).
Definition
An antioxidant is a substance that when present in low concentrations
relative to the oxidizable substrate significantly delays or reduces oxidation
of the substrate (Halliwell, 1995).
Antioxidants get their name because they combat oxidation. They are
substances that protect other chemicals of the body from damaging oxidation
reactions by reacting with free radicals and other reactive oxygen species
within the body, hence hindering the process of oxidation. During this
reaction the antioxidant sacrifices itself by becoming oxidized. However,
antioxidant supply is not unlimited as one antioxidant molecule can only
react with a single free radical. Therefore, there is a constant need
to replenish antioxidant resources, whether endogenously or through supplementation.
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