Why Are Free Radicals So Dangerous?
A free radical can destroy a protein, an enzyme or even a complete cell. To make matters worse, free radicals can multiply through a chain reaction mechanism resulting in the release of thousands of these cellular oxidants. When this happens, cells can become so badly damaged that DNA codes can be altered and immunity can be compromised. Contact with a free radical or oxidant on this scale can create cellular deterioration, resulting in diseases like cancer. Tissue breakdown from this oxidative stress can also occur, which contributes to aging, arthritis and a whole host of other degenerative conditions. Our constant bombardment with free radicals has been likened to being irradiated at low levels all the time. Unfortunately, because of the damage free radicals cause within our cellular structures, the sad fact is that many of us will die prematurely from one of a wide variety of degenerative diseases. Free radical damage has been associated with over 60 known diseases and disorders. A
