Antioxidants are an important component to a healthy body (and therefore healthy skin). Below are some of the antioxidant sources available today. Some in supplement form, others from food sources. Acquainting yourself with where you can find antioxidants for your diet is crucial to keeping your insides functioning on the highest of healthy levels.
Antioxidants
help rid the body of free radicals; free radicals contribute to the
destruction of healthy cells. If you are eating a balanced diet with a
high fruit and vegetable content, you are probably getting lots of
antioxidants. But diets are not so balanced for many people. I’m not a
big believer in taking pills, especially using supplements as a way of
substituting for a poor diet. However, due to our modern lifestyles and
busy schedules, supplementing is not only inevitable, but probably
necessary. Here are some of the many supplement sources to add more antioxidants into your diet.
Alpha lipoic acid
and protective are synonymous. A powerful antioxidant, alpha lipoic
acid has the ability to actually help regenerate other antioxidants that
have been wounded in the process of ridding the body of free radicals.
Alpha lipoic acid can also be very helpful in regulating blood sugar
levels. This is something that diabetics and people who suffer from
hypo- or hyperglycemia may want to know about. I am interested in alpha
lipoic acid not only for its antioxidant abilities but also for its
benefits with inflammation; both of these factors have an effect on the
health of your cells. And as with many of the supplements available in
the anti-aging range, anything that increases the health of your body
will naturally be reflected in healthier-looking skin.
Alpha
lipoic acid in supplement form is fairly expensive. As an ingredient in
skin care products, alpha lipoic acid is outrageously expensive. Even
if these products did work wonders for your lines and wrinkles, unless
you are well-off financially, you will never be able to afford to keep
up this habit. You’ll just have to age with the rest of us and find less
expensive ways to keep your skin looking clear, healthy, and if you
must, young. I’m still not convinced putting alpha lipoic acid, vitamin
C, or any other anti-aging miracle ingredients topically on your skin is
truly effective against aging. I prefer to eat my vitamins, whether in
food or with supplements.
There
is no RDA (recommended daily allowance) for alpha lipoic acid;
recommendations vary from 10mg to 600mg daily. Doses over 100mg might
have the effect of lowering blood sugar levels in some individuals, even
non-diabetics. I am prone to hypoglycemia so I closely monitored how I
felt when I first started experimenting with alpha lipoic acid. When I
took 100-200mg per day, I had no adverse reaction in regard to my blood
sugar levels.
Note:
Alpha lipoic acid should not be confused with alpha-linolenic acid
(ALA), an omega-3 essential fatty acid. They are both beneficial for
different reasons.
Also known as ubiquinone, Coenzyme Q10
(more commonly called CoQ10) has shown signs of rejuvenating brain
cells in laboratory animals. There is no conclusive evidence yet to show
there is an appreciable difference in the human brain, but tests are
underway to bring new information to the forefront. What is known is
CoQ10 is a powerful antioxidant. It has been shown to help boost the
power of vitamin E in the fatty part of cells. This is the part that can
sustain the worst free radical damage. These fatty cells are
concentrated in the brain, so taking CoQ10 may help to protect the
all-important brain. There is no established dosage for Coenzyme Q10.
Grape seed extract
enjoyed a bit of popularity a few years ago, but has since slipped
behind so many of the up and coming antioxidants. Grape seed extract,
however, is an excellent source of a complex of antioxidants called OPCs
(oligomeric proanthocyanidin complexes). You can take capsules ranging
anywhere from 250-1000mg daily. It is the OPCs in red wine that is
thought to be good for certain health issues. Grape seed extract is the
best all around source for OPCs, so don’t drink wine as your only source
for this complex of antioxidants!
If vitamin C
isn’t the best-known antioxidant, surely it is the bestknown vitamin.
It started when we were kids, hearing how vitamin C helps to keep the
common cold away. In fact Vitamin C and the Common Cold is the
title of a wonderful book written by Dr. Linus Pauling. Among many other
contributions (both social and scientific), Linus Pauling is perhaps
best known by the general public for his research and advocacy of
high-dosing vitamin C. This investigative pioneer began ground-breaking
research into the value and disease-fighting ability of vitamin C, and
lived to the ripe age of 93 (1901-1994). He truly was an example of his
research and work in nutritional studies.
Now
we know that vitamin C is one of the most powerful antioxidants. It is
helpful with brain function as well as repairing free radical damage.
One of the more interesting benefits of vitamin C is its ability to
improve the quality as well as the quantity of brain transmissions.
Translation: it helps your brain function optimally.
Vitamin
C helps with many other bodily functions. It helps in the production of
collagen, which is the supporting structure of your skin. It is the
collagen and elastin fibers that break down through sun exposure and the
natural aging process, creating lines and wrinkles on our faces as well
as flaccid or sagging skin. This antioxidant also helps with bruising
as well as the healing of wounds and burns.
Vitamin
C is water-soluble and not manufactured by the body. Therefore, we have
to get this antioxidant through our food and/or supplementation.
Vitamin C is found in numerous foods you are probably already eating.
Because most of this vitamin leaves through the urine, you might
consider taking it in supplement form as well.
Taking
anywhere from 500 to 1000 milligrams daily is thought to be sufficient
to help protect the brain. Even in large doses, vitamin C doesn’t seem
to be toxic. Of course, too much of anything is not a good thing. You
will know if you’ve taken too much vitamin C because you’ll get loose
bowels or possibly diarrhea. Some people even use high-dosing of vitamin
C in order to clean out their colon. If you experience diarrhea,
whether you are inducing this type of evacuation or because you are
sick, you must also increase your water intake to compensate for the
loss of water through these eliminations.
Vitamin E, sometimes known by the name
tocopherol,
is an important vitamin if you are interested in your brain having
maximum help to ward off free radical invasion. This antioxidant works
on the fatty parts of the cells that comprise the brain. Research is
increasing to see if vitamin E can help fend off such debilitating brain
diseases as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
You want to take natural
vitamin E. How do you know if it’s natural? It will always have a “d”
in front of the chemical name, such as d-alpha tocopherol. Tocotrienols
are another form of vitamin E, and can be found alone or in the mixed
tocopherol supplements. The mixed vitamin E supplements might contain
d-alpha as well as d-beta, d-delta, and d-gamma tocopherols. The mixed
forms of vitamin E are said to be the best for brain protection. In most
of the literature I’ve read, it says taking 400 IUs (international
units) of vitamin E is sufficient; taking more, especially over 800 IUs,
can get you into trouble. Most notably, it has blood thinning abilities
at these higher doses. I would stick with the lower 400 IUs per day,
unless instructed otherwise by your health care practitioner.
The
antioxidants you just read about are the most powerful, but certainly
not the only ones available. Other antioxidants include:
- bilberry, an
herb
- cysteine, an amino acid
- ginkgo biloba, an herb
- glutathione, a
protein
- green tea
- melatonin, a hormone
- selenium, an enzyme
- superoxide dismutase, an enzyme
- vitamin A as well as beta carotene
- zinc, a mineral
However you get antioxidants into your body (through food or supplementation), do be sure you are getting these all-important free radical fighters in your daily diet.
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