So – now new research suggests that antioxidants may not always be the best for you. Just when we thought that were now doing great things for our bodies by consuming lots of antioxidants, there is news that perhaps some antioxidant supplements are aging.
Thinking about it, whenever we go overboard with something, we then find that it is not as good for us as we thought. Like low fat diets; they were going to make us really healthy. Now it is low carb that are healthy.
Then it seems that antioxidants may have a down side.
First there was the recent report that suggested that taking antioxidant supplements cancelled out the positive effects of exercising. One of the benefits of exercising is an increase in insulin sensitivity. The study indicated that this increase in insulin sensitivity did not occur when vitamin C and E supplements were taken, but did for those taking placebo tablets. A decrease in insulin sensitivity (development of insulin resistance) is part of the development of type 2 diabetes. Those participants in the study that were given antioxidant vitamins took vitamin C, 500 mg, twice per day and vitamin E, 400 IU, daily.
Now another study confirms something that had been suggested before, that a small amount of oxidative stress primes the body and makes it better able to cope with bigger stresses. The idea is that the response to a small stress activates pathways in the body and makes it able to deal with bigger stress. In some ways this is not surprising since it has been known for a long time that if a big heart attack follows a smaller heart attack there is less damage than if there is just a big heart attack. This is called preconditioning.
This second study raises an interesting question. Does some oxidative stress actually slow aging? And, if this is the case, is taking large amounts of antioxidant supplements actually increasing the rate of aging?
Bear in mind that this research may only apply to people who take high doses of antioxidant supplements daily. Regular and varied healthy diets may provide the right level of antioxidants.
Why is nothing ever simple – will we ever understand the human body?
photo credit: zappowbang
[tags]antioxidants, preconditioning, insulin sensitivity, exercise, oxidative stress[/tags]
One Comment
Everything needs to be taken in moderation. But it is a known fact that free radicals is a widely accepted idea for describing the aging process. The main agents are oxygen free radicals: aggressive chemical compounds created as a byproduct of our natural metabolism which has been accumulated over a lifetime. There is simply no substitution for eating healthy, unprocessed whole foods, fruit, vegetables, nuts and whole grains containing antioxidants.