Oxidative Stress; The Secrete Code of Our Ageing

Ever wondered why some people keep looking stunning in spite of their growing age? Year after year you find them  radiant and it seems as if they don’t lose their charm even a bit. Over the years these luminaries simply defy the attack of old age and sail through in their lives so cheerfully that anyone goes green with envy of the aura they carry with them. Well, the secret of their ageless looks can be a matter of research, but a typical body function called oxidative stress will help you unlock the mysteries of our ageing process, which is why someone appears ageless or aged to us. Read on to know what is oxidative stress and what role it does play in our ageing.

What is Oxidative Stress?

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between free radicals and antioxidants in our body. It causes damage to our body cells when free radicals react with our body cells. A free radical is a molecule which has an extra unpaired electron that makes it highly reactive to form a pair. For achieving this, a free radical reacts with the cells of our body and causes extensive damages to them. This damage which is called oxidative damage is harmful to the organs and systems of our body. This oxidative damage is a major cause of many diseases which ail our body.

How Body Gets Free Radicals?

Free radicals are derived from normal metabolic processes of our body. Certain other causes many give to rise to free radicals in our body. Being exposed to certain factors like pollutants, pesticides, rays like UV rays, X rays might be reasons of free radical production in our body.  Even unhealthy diet like consuming junk food may form free radical in our body. These free radicals react with our body cells, precisely with our skin cell and can cause premature ageing of the skin and wrinkles. So oxidative stress plays a major role in our ageing. These radicals cause damages to our hair also. They are responsible for many diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

So how body defends itself?

Though free radicals are believed to perform certain essential functions also but its rapid increase can bring doom to our body. To check this, our body possesses its own antioxidants which defend these free radicals. These antioxidants are molecules which defend the free radicals of our body. Free radicals harm our body when their levels become very high in our body. But antioxidants present in certain food items offer an extra electron to free radicals which helps them form a pair, thereby reducing their chemical instability. This is why antioxidants have the capacity to counter the activity of free radicals and so antioxidants can thwart oxidative damage to our body cells. This is the reason why antioxidants become extremely important constituents of our daily diet. We can naturally find these antioxidants in our daily fruits and vegetables.  Beta-carotene, Vitamin C and E rich foods are the best sources of antioxidants that we can add to your diet.  Fruits and vegetables are good source of antioxidants.

Our body constantly tries to strike a balance between free radicals and antioxidants. When free radicals outnumber antioxidants, then only it leads to a state called oxidative stress. Our lifestyle, stress, and environmental factors give rise to free radicals in our body, which can lead to oxidative stress. Certain lifestyle changes like smoking, consumption of alcohol, exposure to pollution and presence of high levels of toxins and sugar in our body are possible reasons among others which can be a reason of oxidative stress.

What If Free Radicals Outnumber Antioxidants?

Oxidative stress, the imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants, when continues for long a long time can damage our DNA and other molecules present in our body. This can lead to a number of diseases like dementia, arthritis and many more. While we can’t avoid the formation of free radicals in our body but we, by adding antioxidants to our diet, can modify our body’s response towards them.

A 360-degree overview:

Now, that you know what is oxidative stress and how it leads to ageing, the ball is in your court to decide what to do to beat this oxidative stress and you strive to look for all viable options to strike a balance between the free radicals and antioxidants so that you keep glowing in spite of your growing age.

(The content of this article is for informational purpose only. It cannot be a substitute for advice from a medical practitioner. Read DISCLAIMER for more…)

Read also: What is stress and how it affects you?