Free Radicals and Antioxidants

What are Free Radicals?

A free radical is an atom which has an odd number of electrons in its outer ring. In other words, it is imbalanced, chemically.

Due to this chemical imbalance, these unstable molecules (oxidants) are produced when your body breaks down food or by environmental exposure to things like tobacco smoke, radiation, pollution, stress and herbicides.

It is partially responsible for aging, tissue damage and some diseases.

Here is the problem: These molecules do not have an even number of electrons, so they are always searching for an extra electron which they can "partner" with (steal from) to once again become stable, chemically.

However, the damage doesn't stop there, as the new molecule, say a piece of a cell wall, is now also missing an electron and has become another free radical.

This snowball effect can wreak havoc on healthy tissue.

The human body is composed of many different types of cells.

Cells are composed of many different types of molecules. Molecules consist of 1 or more atoms of 1 or more elements joined by chemical bonds.

Atoms consist of a nucleus, neutrons, protons and electrons.

The number of protons (positively charged particles) in the atom(s) nucleus determines the number of electrons (negatively charged particles) surrounding the atom.

The innermost shell is full when it has two electrons. When the first shell is full, electrons begin to fill the second shell. When the second shell has eight electrons, it is full, and so on and so on.

The most important structural feature of an atom for determining its chemical behavior is the number of electrons in its outer shell.

A substance that has a full outer shell tends not to enter into chemical reactions (an inert substance).

Because atoms seek to reach a state of maximum stability, an atom will try to fill its outer shell by:

• Gaining or losing electrons to either fill or empty its outer shell


• Sharing its electrons by bonding together with other atoms in order to complete its outer shell

Atoms often complete their outer shells by sharing electrons with other atoms.

By sharing electrons, the atoms are bound together and satisfy the conditions of maximum stability for the molecule.

Normally, bonds don't split in a way that leaves a molecule with an odd, unpaired electron. But when weak bonds split, free radicals are formed.

These molecules are very unstable and react quickly with other compounds, trying to capture (steal) the needed electron to gain stability.

Generally, they will "attack" the nearest stable molecule, "stealing" its electron.

When the "attacked" molecule loses its electron, it becomes a free radical itself, because it has now become unstable, chemically. This begins a chain reaction of damage.

Once the process is started, it has a domino effect, finally resulting in disruption to the living cell.

Usually, the body can handle free radicals, but if antioxidants are unavailable, damage can occur.

Just like a banana that slowly turns brown, or when our car's paint turns a whitish color after too much exposure to the hot sun, our bodies, too, deteriorate (become oxidated) over time due to an excess number of free radicals.

Oxidative stress has been linked to diseases such as Parkinson's, Autism, Diabetes, Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure, Rheumatoid Arthritis, cancer and many other diseases.

There are many antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and many other nutrients. They have been found to protect the body against the destructive effects of free radicals.

Antioxidants have an extra electron, which they donate. This ends the electron-stealing process happening to your body's cells.

They act as scavengers, helping to prevent cell and tissue damage that could lead to cellular damage and diseases such as high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer.

Where Do We Find Antioxidants?

Antioxidants are present in many foods. They prevent free radicals from harming healthy tissue.

Fruits and Vegetables are needed to help fight diseases and premature aging.

One of the best ways to ensure adequate intake of antioxidant nutrients is through a balanced diet consisting of 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.

There are many foods we can consume that are very high in antioxidants. Dark chocolate, for instance, with unprocessed cacao has one of the highest ORAC Values of all antioxidants.

Do you like dark chocolate? Good news! They have found that dark chocolate , (an antioxidant) is very good for you. Dark chocolate is different from milk chocolate because it is rich with antioxidants.

After you walk through the fruit and vegetable aisle in the grocery store, look through the different selections of dark chocolate in the candy aisle.

Help your body reduce oxidative damage.

So, eat your fruits and veggies and give free radicals what they want,... an extra electron!

Return from Free Radicals to Home Page