"The Free Radical Connection"
Do
you breathe? do you eat? do you move?; if you are a living being, you are
producing free radicals in your body. What are they and what does this fact mean
to you?; first, form a mental image of our solar system with the planets
orbiting around the sun. Now, shrink this down to microscopic size and you have
a rough representation of the structure of an atom. The planets in their various
orbits around the sun represent the electrons spinning around an atom’s
nucleus. In
a "non radical" compound, all orbits are occupied by two electrons.
This electron pairing makes the compound very stable, however, in a "free
radical" compound, there is a single unpaired electron in the outer orbit.
A single "excited" electron is searching to become part of a paired
set and will "steal" an electron from another nearby atom to
accomplish this pairing. During this theft, the original free radical becomes
stable but the neighboring atom, by losing an electron, becomes a free radical
itself. This new free radical will then seek out another atom to steal from and
on and on. A biochemical reaction somewhat like the effect a cue-ball has, in
billiards on the break. Free
radical reactions are necessary to life. The transfer of electrons is basic to
energy production and many metabolic processes, however, if the chain reaction
continues in an uncontrolled manner, cell membrane damage can occur resulting in
altered cell function, mutation and even cell death. In fact, some scientists
have been theorizing that cellular free radical damage is the major cause of
aging and degenerative disease. Maintaining originality of the genetic blueprint
is paramount! Built
into your marvelous body is a control mechanism to stop this chain reaction at
the proper time; its ultimate function being that of stabilizing the
"frequency" of the cells’ atoms. This system is made up of a number
of compounds, mostly vitamin and mineral derived, which have been given the
collective name of "antioxidants" / meaning against oxygen.