Antioxidants Do What?

We know, we know, last week came and went, and your inbox didn’t get its usual dose of wit and wisdom from us. No, it wasn’t intentional. But let’s be real, was anyone actually opening newsletters in the middle of Black Friday madness? We figured you had enough on your plate (and in your cart). That said, huge thanks to everyone who showed up, you’re the reason we’re still standing (and the reason we’re out of coffee). But now that the dust has settled, we’re back to bring you something actually useful, antioxidants, and why they’re cooler than a 75%-off toaster.

What Are Antioxidants?

These are compounds that fend off oxidative damage, a villainous process that ages us, wrecks cells, and generally makes life worse. You’ll find antioxidants in plants, fruits, and vegetables. Think berries like raspberries and cranberries, which pack an antioxidizing punch so potent it feels almost unfair. But why do plants even produce these? Surely it’s not for the sake of our health.

In reality, antioxidants like tannins serve as the plants' own defense mechanism against environmental stressors. These tannins, famously found in the stems, seeds, and skins of fruits, are also why red wines are renowned for their antioxidizing properties, more on that in a bit. But the benefits are when they are ingested in small amounts. If we were to eat a bunch of plant stems you would probably get intense bloating, dyspepsia and constipation. Yeah that doesn’t exactly scream “health”. It turns out, in large amounts they induce contractions in the muscles of the digestive system and reduce the amount of secretions. Both of these culminate in dryer and “stucker” due to reduced peristaltic movements.

What Is Oxidative Stress?

It seems a bit contradictory for oxygen to cause stress, simply because we are surrounded by it, breath it and drink it in the form of water. So much so that our bodies are approximately 65% oxygen by weight! That's a whole lot of something that is, in theory, not good for you.

To say that oxygen is unhealthy would be untrue, there are nuances to the matter. It is best to say that some forms of oxygen are harmful, these are called Reactive Oxygen Species or ROS. They even have a scary name to prove it! This is when oxygen forms compounds that are able to bind to our cells and cause them to get stressed. ROS are the main type of free radicals that cause our bodies to glitch. The most common ROS are:

• Superoxide (O₂⁻): A byproduct of mitochondrial energy production.

• Hydroxyl radical (•OH): Extremely reactive and damaging, often produced during exposure to ionizing radiation or when hydrogen peroxide reacts with metals (Fenton reaction).

• Peroxyl radical (ROO•): Formed during lipid peroxidation (damage to fats in cell membranes).

When you hear the term oxidative stress it is simply referring to an imbalance between antioxidants and ROS, making your body a prime subject for anomalies. Some of the repercussions of having sustained and elevated oxidative stress are:

• Cancer: Simply put ROS can damage every part of our being, including the components of our cells. Because of an interaction between our DNA and ROS mutations can occur that ultimately increase the probability of that mutated cell becoming a cancer cell.

• Cardiovascular Disease: We should all know what atherosclerosis is by now, but in case you don’t have any worries! It is basically the accumulation of plaque in our blood vessels. ROS plays a role in oxidizing LDL cholesterol, causing lipid accumulation in the blood and ultimately forming and precipitating atherosclerotic plaque.

• Neurological Disease: Diseases like Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease (AD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis, depression, and memory loss have been associated with elevated oxidative stress.

There are more effects that are ultimately unimportant, what is important is that we all understand that we need to include those fruits and veggies in our diets as well as the little ones. That small habit would make us happier and healthier, a little goes a long way.

How Do Antioxidants Reduce ROS?

Antioxidants typically act either by directly reducing and eliminating the amount of ROS that is in our system or by increasing the enzymatic activity of the enzymes that are responsible for breaking them down. They can exert protective effects, in the way that you don't need to have a body overload of ROS to decide to increase your intake of antioxidants, because, as we know, they will help mitigate the effects of stressors like air pollution and an over processed diet. Pro tip: make fruits and veggies your allies. Two servings of fruit a day? Totally manageable.

Red, Red, Wiiiiinnnneeee.

Ahhh, the subject that we were all waiting for. You can hear UB40 playing in your head right about now. So, the culminating question, “Is wine good for you?”. The answer, stripped of romanticism, is no. Although there is a significant amount of antioxidants in the form of tannins in wine, containing somewhere along the lines of 82mg per glass. The issue would be the alcohol. We cannot expel it as OH, we need to transform it into Acetaldehyde which is an incredibly toxic intermediary compound that always causes liver damage proportional to the amount ingested.

Red wine becomes an even less attractive option for getting your daily oxidants when you figure that just 4 oz of blueberries contain over 160 mg of tannins! That is nearly 4x the amount per weight! So as previously mentioned, red wine is okay for a moderate use. But let’s not kid ourselves, we drink it to enjoy ourselves, not because it makes us healthier and feel better.

Final Thoughts

So there you have it: everything you didn’t know you needed about antioxidants, oxidative stress, and why blueberries beat red wine in the health game every time. If you’ve made it this far, thanks for sticking with us despite our Black Friday hiatus. Now that inbox peace has been restored, we’ll resume our regularly scheduled programming, because antioxidants, unlike those sale emails, are worth your attention. See you next week!