What is Oxidative Stress? The Invisible Battle Inside Your Body
Oxidative Stress effects touch every aspect of your health; from the wrinkles on your skin to your risk for chronic disease. At its core, it’s a fundamental process of cellular wear and tear, a battle between creation and destruction happening inside you right now. The Basic Chemistry: Rusting from Within The easiest way to picture oxidative stress is to think of rust. When iron is exposed to oxygen and water, it oxidizes, forming rust, which weakens the metal’s structure. A similar process happens in our bodies. The culprits are molecules called free radicals (or reactive oxygen species; ROS). These are unstable atoms with an unpaired electron. In their quest to become stable, they aggressively “steal” electrons from other molecules; like proteins, fats, and even DNA. This theft damages those molecules. To a degree, this is normal. Free radicals are natural byproducts of essential processes like converting food into energy (metabolism) and when your immu...