Now, don’t shoot the messenger. I’m just posing a question that was discussed in one of my graduate classes recently. Every day one is bombarded with foods and products containing antioxidants that promise to do just about everything short of parting the Red Sea. But is this entirely accurate? What role do antioxidants play in the body and are they even necessary for health? I will discuss answers to these questions and more in today’s mini-bites blog.
Phytochemicals, including antioxidants, are found in plants and help to protect them from everyday aggressors and stress that may cause harm to the plant. It is hoped that these same mechanisms of action will transfer over to the body once the plant is ingested. Phytochemicals and bioactive compounds in general are believed to work via hormesis. The body can distinguish between nutrients and non-nutrients. Most of these bioactive compounds are seen as non-nutrients or non-essential to the human body meaning that signs of a deficiency will not be evident in the short-term (as will be evident with a protein, vitamin or mineral deficiency) but can prove to be beneficial in the long-term if consumed on a regular basis. Upon ingestion, the body sees these substances as foreign low-dose stressors causing the body to react accordingly. This thus primes the body to resist even more severe stress such as disease.
Eating foods that have naturally occurring phytochemicals, like fruits and vegetables, provide low phytochemical doses and activate pathways in the body that induce the gene expression of protective proteins. However, high doses, as seen with supplements, may be toxic to the body. For this reason, many healthcare professionals are wary when it comes to patients receiving antioxidants via supplements instead of through whole foods. Research is only scratching the surface when it comes to antioxidants, phytochemicals and bioactive compounds. Moreover, much of the research that documents an improvement in disease status due to mega-doses of antioxidants is mostly conducted in vitro and not within human models. There is much more to learn in this area of research that it is almost impossible to conclude that health benefits originate from antioxidants and antioxidants alone.
A professor I once had the pleasure of learning from made the impeccable analogy of ingesting antioxidants to adding drops of water to a vast ocean. Will it really make a difference? Allow me to explain. Our magnificent bodies are equipped with endogenous or “already built-in” antioxidant systems. These antioxidant systems rely on nutrients such as vitamins and minerals to function and thus protect the body from stress and furthermore disease. This is why I am posing this question: Is it really the exogenous antioxidants alone found in foods that are protecting the body or is it our intact endogenous antioxidant system working in conjunction with these nutrients and bioactive compounds found in a healthy whole foods diet that is doing the trick? A doctor I once worked with said that inserting a multivitamin or supplement into the center of a donut doesn’t make it any healthier. Thus, if you are not eating a healthy diet but choose to take antioxidant supplements, will that have any benefit to the body and disease prevention?
Now don’t get me wrong. I know you may feel as if someone has pulled the rug out from under you. Antioxidants have almost been deemed as that magic bullet. I’m not telling you to disregard fruits and vegetables because antioxidants may or may not play a significant role in protecting the body. I believe Albert Einstein said it best when he stated, “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” That being said, I am empowering you! Be prudent consumers! Choosing to eat a whole foods plant-based (fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, etc.) diet will offer the amalgamation of many bioactive compounds that work in perfect synchronicity to keep you healthy! I encourage you to choose food over supplements and prevention as your treatment of disease. Hippocrates stated, “Let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food.” Take care. –A xo
Holst B, Williamson G. Nutrients and phytochemicals: from bioavailability to bioefficacy beyond antioxidants. Curr Opin Biotechnol. 2008;19:73–82.
Biesalski H-K, Dragsted LO, Elmadfa I, Grossklaus R, Müller M, Schrenk D, Walter P, Weber P. Bioactive compounds: Definition and assessment of activity. Nutrition. 2009;25:1202–1205.
Phytochemicals, including antioxidants, are found in plants and help to protect them from everyday aggressors and stress that may cause harm to the plant. It is hoped that these same mechanisms of action will transfer over to the body once the plant is ingested. Phytochemicals and bioactive compounds in general are believed to work via hormesis. The body can distinguish between nutrients and non-nutrients. Most of these bioactive compounds are seen as non-nutrients or non-essential to the human body meaning that signs of a deficiency will not be evident in the short-term (as will be evident with a protein, vitamin or mineral deficiency) but can prove to be beneficial in the long-term if consumed on a regular basis. Upon ingestion, the body sees these substances as foreign low-dose stressors causing the body to react accordingly. This thus primes the body to resist even more severe stress such as disease.
Eating foods that have naturally occurring phytochemicals, like fruits and vegetables, provide low phytochemical doses and activate pathways in the body that induce the gene expression of protective proteins. However, high doses, as seen with supplements, may be toxic to the body. For this reason, many healthcare professionals are wary when it comes to patients receiving antioxidants via supplements instead of through whole foods. Research is only scratching the surface when it comes to antioxidants, phytochemicals and bioactive compounds. Moreover, much of the research that documents an improvement in disease status due to mega-doses of antioxidants is mostly conducted in vitro and not within human models. There is much more to learn in this area of research that it is almost impossible to conclude that health benefits originate from antioxidants and antioxidants alone.
A professor I once had the pleasure of learning from made the impeccable analogy of ingesting antioxidants to adding drops of water to a vast ocean. Will it really make a difference? Allow me to explain. Our magnificent bodies are equipped with endogenous or “already built-in” antioxidant systems. These antioxidant systems rely on nutrients such as vitamins and minerals to function and thus protect the body from stress and furthermore disease. This is why I am posing this question: Is it really the exogenous antioxidants alone found in foods that are protecting the body or is it our intact endogenous antioxidant system working in conjunction with these nutrients and bioactive compounds found in a healthy whole foods diet that is doing the trick? A doctor I once worked with said that inserting a multivitamin or supplement into the center of a donut doesn’t make it any healthier. Thus, if you are not eating a healthy diet but choose to take antioxidant supplements, will that have any benefit to the body and disease prevention?
Now don’t get me wrong. I know you may feel as if someone has pulled the rug out from under you. Antioxidants have almost been deemed as that magic bullet. I’m not telling you to disregard fruits and vegetables because antioxidants may or may not play a significant role in protecting the body. I believe Albert Einstein said it best when he stated, “Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” That being said, I am empowering you! Be prudent consumers! Choosing to eat a whole foods plant-based (fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, etc.) diet will offer the amalgamation of many bioactive compounds that work in perfect synchronicity to keep you healthy! I encourage you to choose food over supplements and prevention as your treatment of disease. Hippocrates stated, “Let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food.” Take care. –A xo
Holst B, Williamson G. Nutrients and phytochemicals: from bioavailability to bioefficacy beyond antioxidants. Curr Opin Biotechnol. 2008;19:73–82.
Biesalski H-K, Dragsted LO, Elmadfa I, Grossklaus R, Müller M, Schrenk D, Walter P, Weber P. Bioactive compounds: Definition and assessment of activity. Nutrition. 2009;25:1202–1205.
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