Antioxidants: Benefits and drawbacks

ANTIOXIDANT supplements are now becoming more and more popular and are generally considered healthy. In part, this is because fruits and vegetables, which are rich in antioxidants, are associated with many health benefits, including a reduced risk of disease- like stress. Yet, there is strong evidence to suggest that you may be doing your health a disservice by supplementing with antioxidants. Let`s find out what antioxidant supplements arethe good and the bad side and why it’s better to get our antioxidants from food.

When we talk about antioxidant vitamins, we are referring to vitamin A, C and E and the provitamin, Beta Carotene and the mineral selenium. Antioxidant supplements contain concentrated forms of antioxidants, which are substances that stabilize free radicals. Our body naturally produces free radicals when we exercise and digest food. Several lifestyle, stress, and environmental factors are known to promote excessive free radical formation including air pollution, cigarette smoke, alcohol intake, toxins, high blood sugar levels, high intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids, radiation- including excessive sunbathing, infections bacterial, fungal, or viral, and excessive intake of iron, magnesium, copper, or zinc, too much or too little oxygen in your body. If free radicals exceed our body’s ability to regulate them, a condition called oxidative stress occurs. Over time, this contributes to aging and the development of diseases, including cancer.

It is universally thought that taking antioxidant supplements prevents the damage caused by free radicals to the body’s cells, thereby promoting longevity and warding off disease. However, taking antioxidant supplements in high amounts can do just the opposite. The health detriments associated with taking antioxidant supplements out number its potential benefits. Taking antioxidant supplements in large doses is not recommended for many reasons. First, it may decrease exercise performance- our body naturally produces free radicals as a byproduct of energy metabolism during exercise. The harder and longer we exercise, the more free radicals our body produces, because free radicals can contribute to muscle fatigue and damage, it’s been proposed that taking antioxidant supplements can blunt their harmful effects, hence improving exercise performance and muscle recovery. However, several studies have shown that taking antioxidant supplements, specifically vitamins C and E, can interfere with how your body adapts to exercise and even eliminate some of the health benefits associated with exercise. Another reason why antioxidant in large doses is not recommended is because it may also increase cancer risk. The oxidative stress caused by free radicals to the body’s cells is thought to be a major contributor to the development of cancer. Since antioxidants neutralize free radicals, taking antioxidant supplements have been speculated to decrease the risk of developing or dying from cancer.

Several meta-analyses, however, have shown that taking antioxidant supplements does neither reduce the risk of many types of cancers nor reduce the risk of dying from them once diagnosed, in fact, they may even increase the risk of certain cancers. In addition, it was found that beta-carotene supplements, a precursor of vitamin A, increases the risk of bladder cancer, and, in people who smoke, the risk of lung cancer as well. The exception is selenium, which may help prevent cancer in people with low levels of the mineral or in people with an elevated risk of cancer. However, more research is needed before selenium can be recommended for this purpose.

And lastly, overdose of antioxidant may cause birth defects. Vitamin A is important for fetal growth and development, but at high doses, vitamin A supplements can increase the risk of birth defects. Therefore, women who might be or are pregnant should not take high doses of vitamin A supplements. Beta-carotene, the precursor of vitamin A, is not shown to lead to birth defects. But since taking the supplement long-term is associated with cancer, pregnant women should consult with their physician before taking beta-carotene supplements.

Adequate antioxidant intake is essential to a healthy diet, but we must be aware also that high-dose supplements may be harmful. The bottom line, however, is that the best strategy is to get our daily dose of antioxidants through a healthy diet- plant foods, such as fruits and vegetables. Specifically these foods: vegetables-broccoli, bell peppers, spinach; fruits- oranges, apples, berries; whole-grainsoats, quinoa, brown rice; beans- kidney, pinto, red beans; nuts: walnuts, pecans, almonds; and drinks: coffee, tea.