In today’s episode I am going to tell you all about oxidative stress. I am really looking forward to diving into this topic with all of you so that you can become experts in understanding your body and why oxidative stress and antioxidants are so important for your health.
So don’t miss this episode as we will go through:
* What is Oxidative Stress
* How Does Oxidative Stress and Antioxidants Work in Our Bodies
* Where Can We Find Antioxidants
* How Do We Know If We Need More Antioxidants
* How Can We Measure Our Oxidative Stress
* Antioxidants and Detoxification
Stress exposure can cause imbalances in our systems and even in our cells. And these imbalances increase what I refer to as our internal stress or oxidative stress.
These imbalances create free radicals or unstable molecules that are made during cell metabolism. Free radicals can build up in cells and cause damage to other molecules, such as DNA, lipids, and proteins, and this damage may increase the risk of cancer and other diseases. Antioxidants can help stabilize these unstable molecules and get rid of the free radicals and avoid the damage.
When we are exposed to stress there is a signal sent to our cells that we are in need of more antioxidants. In science this is referred to as mitochondrial hormesis, which is the body’s response and protective mechanism. It starts increasing mitochondrial function, antioxidants production and detoxification.
However, when the mitochondria are too overwhelmed, they can’t create this protective mechanism, and this is when we start feeling worse. This is where antioxidants can help.
Some antioxidants are produced by the human body, like glutathione, but there are others that we need to get from an external source (food or a supplement) like Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin A, Zinc, Selenium and Beta-Carotene. All these nutrients are required by our bodies for detoxification and metabolic processes.
When it comes to diet, we can find the best source of antioxidants in colorful fruits and vegetables. The more nutrient dense your food, the better, but, if you are under a lot of stress you might still need more antioxidants, which is when taking a supplement would be beneficial.
One of the ways that we identify we have high oxidative stress is the signs of aging. Also, if you have been diagnosed with abnormal cells it is very likely you have high levels of oxidative stress.
Neurological symptoms like tingling, numbness, nerve pain, headaches or migraines are all signs of high oxidative stress. Also, anxiety and depression have been associated with oxidative stress. High blood sugar levels also increase oxidative stress. Another sign that your oxidative stress is high is fatigue and brain fog.
If you want to know the levels of oxidative stress or antioxidants in your body there are specialty labs that run micronutrient blood panels and urine tests that tell you the level of oxidative damage in your body and which antioxidants you are lacking. We can order these tests for you through my office.
If you have high oxidative stress you can take antioxidants, but we also need to address the cause of the oxidative stress, we need to look at which toxins are affecting you individually and build up a plan to get these toxins out.
A detoxification, if done correctly, can also help reduce the levels of oxidative stress. I prefer to tailor your detoxification process to your unique body for it to be effective and safe, and to make you feel better, not worse. I encourage you to be mindful about how you support your body to detoxify in the best and most gentle way possible.
I am teaching a free detox masterclass so if you would like to learn more about this you can sign up here (https://drdoni.lpages.co/detox-masterclass/). We will talk about how to know if you need a detox, the best things to include in a detox, the things to not include in a detox, and some options for supporting you through a gentle and effective detoxification program.
If you want to get started with a detox program, you can check out my new 14-Day Detox Program (https://drdoni.lpages.co/14-day-detox-program/), which I designed based on my experience in an Amazon Retreat with a Shaman.
Also, I just released a Blog about the health risks of common household toxins and how to safely detoxify in a way that’s easy on your body (https://doctordoni.com/2023/03/detoxification-program/).
And remember that we can do a detox for a period of time but ultimately, we need to be thinking about how do we maintain our health every day of the year and a lot of that has to do with understanding the stresses and toxins that we are exposed to at different levels and what does your body need to help counterbalance that stress and prevent this oxidative stress.
By preventing oxidative stress, you are preventing all kinds of different health issues and you are also improving your longevity.
We’re here to help you!
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