Peaceful Strategies to Combat Free Radicals

By Claudia E. Harsh, M.D. Alliance Institute for Integrative Medicine

Did you think this integrative medicine column had morphed somehow into current events and politics? The newspaper I read this morning was full of stories about radicals, war, aggression and posturing that left me wondering why more of us “moderates” aren’t standing up and speaking out for peace and balance and mediation. But that’s not the kind of radicals I’m talking about today. Today I’m talking about the kind of radicals that are waging war inside you and causing cell damage leading to inflammation. This kind of inflammation causes a variety of problems including heart disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer. By virtue of breaking down food or taking some medicines or living in our (occasionally toxic) environment we’re exposed to free radicals. A free radical is a chemical compound that is unstable and it’s looking for ways to become stable and inert.

Understanding all of this instability starts with the concept of chemical bonds. Let’s look deep within your cells for a moment and review the very building blocks of life!

Understanding Free Radicals The cells in your body are made up of molecules, which are made up of one or more atoms. The atoms are made up of a nucleus that contains protons and neutrons and outer rings of electrons that “orbit” the nucleus and react with other atoms by forming chemical bonds. The number of protons within the nucleus determines the number of electrons in the orbits. (Each chemical has a different number of protons for instance Hydrogen has one, Carbon has six, Oxygen has eight, etc.) The electrons fill “shells” of orbits; when the outer orbit of electrons is full, the compound is considered stable or inert. In order to fill it’s outer orbit, atoms exchange electrons and form chemical bonds with other atoms.

Free radicals, then, are formed when a molecule breaks apart either by metabolism or because its chemical bonds are weak. The molecules are unstable, with openings in the outer electron orbits, causing them to react quickly with nearby molecules to “steal” electrons and cause these “donor” molecules to become free radicals and on and on. The process can cascade and ultimately disrupt normal cell function. Your immune system uses this process to disrupt viruses and other invaders.

Free radicals become a problem when they form in such large numbers that they overwhelm the normal cell’s ability to “police” them or neutralize them and cause them to become inert. We’ve know for a long time that a group of chemicals called “antioxidants” can neutralize the free radicals by donating an electron. The antioxidants don’t become free radicals themselves because they are stable in either their original form or after they’ve released an electron. Examples of antioxidants include vitamin E, vitamin C, beta-carotene (the water-soluble precursor for vitamin A), and the mineral selenium.

Understanding Antioxidants Antioxidants are found in colorful fruits and vegetables. Two recent studies measured different foods and the amount of antioxidants in them. Pomegranates, berries, walnuts, sunflower seeds, ginger, red beets, chili peppers, kale, red cabbage, bell peppers, parsley, artichokes, currants, fava beans, dried apricots and prunes were all high on the antioxidant list in a Norwegian study. An Italian study compared three different strategies for measuring antioxidant content and their top foods were spinach, artichoke, peppers, and berries. The beverages with the highest antioxidant content were coffee followed by citrus juices. The oils with the highest antioxidant content were soybean oil and extra virgin olive oil.

The bottom line recommendation of four to five servings of (preferably organic) fruits and vegetables a day still seems to be your best bet for optimal antioxidant intake and function.

Many people take vitamin supplements that contain antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium and beta-carotene. I’ve run into the mindset frequently that “if a little is good than a lot is better.” Unfortunately, when it comes to antioxidants in supplement form, I have to express some caution. The National Cancer Institute summarizes five studies on its website that looked at the use of antioxidants and cancer prevention. Betacarotene was found to increase lung cancer rates in two studies but had no effect on cancer rates in another. On the other hand, a Chinese study in people with an increased risk of stomach cancer showed a positive effect (less cancer) with extra vitamin E, selenium and beta-carotene. Two important points come to mind: 1) until we understand our genetic uniquenesses and why some of us are prone to develop cancer we can’t make a blanket “one size fits all” recommendation about antioxidant doses. We can, however, measure antioxidant levels in our blood and personalize recommendations. And finally 2) I can’t stress enough that until quality control in the nutraceutical industry is standardized and reliable it is the consumer’s responsibility to ask about it again and again.

Here’s hoping for a peaceful solution to your inner free radicals. Until next month, Be Well! Claudia E. Harsh, M.D.

Claudia E. Harsh, M.D., OB/GYN, is the Director of Integrative Gynecology at the Alliance Institute for Integrative Medicine, located in Kenwood. She and her colleagues use acupuncture and other forms of mind-body medicine to help people to reach their full potential.