Friday, October 2, 2009

The Side Effects of the Digestion Process

By Dr. Lorna Mistranski

The best way to fully comprehend what free radicals are is to look at them from a cellular level in that the human body is made up of all kinds of cells.

Cells are comprised of various types of molecules and these molecules consist of one or more atoms of one or more elements held together by a chemical bond.

The composition of an atom is: nucleus, proton, and electrons where the sum of the protons determines the total amount of electrons that will be around the atom.

The primary role of electrons is for chemical reactions that occur inside the atom and the substance that holds the atoms together to form molecules. Electrons revolve around the atom in one or more shells

When the innermost shell has two electrons, it is considered full. When the second shell is full with electrons the process starts all over again.

The most important thing in determining the structural characteristic of an atom is the number of electrons in the outermost shell.

Maximum stability is reached when the atom has a full outer shell. This is the ideal condition every atom seeks to attain and is achieved by the following conditions:

Gaining or losing electrons to either fill or empty its outer shell

Bonding together with other atoms and sharing electrons to complete the outer most shell

Atoms very frequently finish this outer shell by sharing electrons with other atoms. This allows the conditions to be satisfied for what is needed to the atom to sustain maximum stability of the molecule.

Frequently, the bonds remain in tact so that the atoms do not become unpaired. However, when this does occur the highly unstable free radicals are formed and they react quickly to obtain their own stability.

The ideal way free radicals attack is by locating the nearest molecule they can find that has achieved maximum stability and start stealing electrons. Once a molecule is attacked, it too becomes a free radical. This process creates a chain reaction that continues until it causes cells to become damaged.

Free radicals will frequently arrive during metabolism and sometimes the body will even produce them to fight off viruses and bacteria. Free radicals also come from pollution such as radiation, cigarette smoke, and pesticides.

Most of the time the body is able to fight off free radicals, but if antioxidants are unavailable or if there are too many free radicals, cellular damage can occur. As you get older free radical damage gets more progressive.

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