The fact is there are 5 diseases that are fatal to humans, the first one is heart attack, the second is cancer, then stroke, lung disease and last but moving up fast in the list is diabetes. The fatal five share two common elements, Free-radicals and inflammation. Free-radicals are molecules or atoms that are missing an electron, the free-radicals attack any healthy cells they come in contact with and steal an electron causing damage to the cell membrane. Inflammation is a process that is intended to help our body heal but in the case of disease, free-radicals cause deformities or mutations in the cells, the inflammation can not repair the damage so it actually begins to feed the now deformed or mutated cells. Let us take a closer look at all five of these fatal diseases.

Clots in the arteries is the source of as many as 83% of all strokes and 80% of all heart attacks. The condition referred to as Atherosclerosis or “hardening of the arteries” is the most common cause. This is were a build up of plaque which has a hard surface inside your artery has cracked and the platelets that are designed to clot in order to protect us from bleeding to death, end up clotting over the crack and cause a complete blockage of blood flow. In the case of heart attack the blockage is near the heart and in the case of stroke the blockage cuts off the supply of blood to the brain. When it comes to heart disease, the free-radicals attack cholesterol cells in the blood supply deforming them which in turn makes them sticky; now you have bad LDL which collects and sticks to the artery walls. Inflammation dose not play a major roll in heart attacks and stoke but scientists are calling chronic inflammation a silent killer in a vast majority of diseases and illnesses.

An estimated 570,280 people died, due to cancer in the year 2005. It seems that the overall death rate is on the decline for some types of cancers, but there are others on the rise, such as esophageal, liver and thyroid cancers. It is the free-radicals that damage our DNA is the causative factor of ALL cancers.It is the DNA that holds the blue print for each cell that it creates.  This blue print is who you are; when the free-radicals attack the DNA the blue print becomes mutated and when the new cell is produced with this new blue print you have a cancer cell.  You do not have cancer until the inflammation process begins; inflammation is the bodies’ defense against illness or injury. Inflammation tries to destroy the cells that it dose not recognize as being you, the inflammation loses this fight yet our bodies keep sending more, causing chronic inflammation. At this point the cancer cells begin feeding on the inflammation cells and which initiates cancer growth.

More than 35 million Americans have chronic lung diseases. Every year over 349,000 people die from lung disease - a death rate of 121.4 per 100,000. The lungs are far more complex than other organs in the body. The lungs have various minor rolls to play and three major ones; they are defenders of intruders, they remove waste and toxins from the blood, and their main purpose is to supply oxygen to the blood. There are more than three dozen different types of cells inside the lungs and they all have very specific tasks to accomplish. Our lungs are engaged in a constant battle with the outside world with each breath we take. If the lung function gets impaired in anyway - you may acquire a potentially fatal lung disease. Lung diseases such as asthma, bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis (CF), pneumonia, sarcoidosis, and many more can be fatal. In the case of lung diseases, free-radicals are coming in from the outside world in all forms of pollution; this creates inflammation which causes the obstruction of air flow.

Millions of Americans have type 2 diabetes; millions more have it and are not yet aware of it. The inability to use the sugar called glucose is what is Diabetes. Glucose is created when the body breaks down food for energy. The hormone insulin opens up the bodies’ cells to allow glucose to enter into the cell and be used as fuel. In diabetes the cell never opens up and the glucose flows through the blood stream causing high blood sugar levels. With diabetes the body either dose not make enough insulin or is resistant to its own natural insulin. High blood sugar can lead to very serious complications such as heart disease, kidney and eye disease and other problems like nerve damage and death. Heart disease is the leading cause of premature death in people with diabetes. Diabetes is the major cause of leg and foot amputations in Americans today. Infections are much harder to control in people with diabetes, they are at greater risk of complications and death due to infection. Excessive body fat is the biggest risk for type two diabetes! Diabetes is on the rise; Americans are eating poorly and are lacking physical activity. Free-radicals are very active in a person with diabetes, attacking a number of cells because diabetes causes an abnormal immune function. Free-radicals are the reason you see so many different complications or side illnesses in this disease. Chronic inflammation is also a major player with this disease and in the side illnesses. All of the above diseases need medications to help regulate the disease but you need to know this, medications cause free-radical damage, and this damage is called side effects. All medications can cause side effects.

Lets turn our focus to free-radicals and inflammation and how they act.
If you have a room with ten 2 year old children; they only have one toy in the room; can you imagine the mayhem; nine children trying to steal the toy from one child. Do you think that one child has a chance? This is what free-radicals do to a cell. Now you have the parents come into the room and try to comfort the children who are without toys. The children are crying and throwing fits and are impossible to calm down, you’ll do anything, usually offer them cookies or some other sweet treat. This is only a momentary fix; you would have to keep feeding them to keep them calm. This is inflammation. But if you have ten more children enter the room all with an extra toy to share with the others; it becomes peaceful and everyone is happy. This is what anti-oxidants do.

You have the power to take your health into your own hands and put a stop to the damage now. Anti-oxidants help the body fight against free-radicals, anti-oxidants are a molecule or atom that has an extra electron. It gives this extra electron away and in turn the free-radical stops attacking healthy cells. Science has proven that ALL diseases and illnesses are caused by free-radical damage. There are risk factors for all diseases but free-radicals are the source and cause of major complications. Free-radicals can not be avoided; they are in air and water pollution, in the junk foods we eat, and caused by traumas and injuries. Free-radicals are a part of life; they even affect the aging process itself.

Anti-oxidants are essential for health, plants contain about 1,000 to 1,500 anti-oxidants, a diet of fruits and vegetables is essential, supplements are key, vitamins and minerals contain high numbers of anti-oxidants. You need to do some research and try to find fresh supplements; they tend to lose their potency the longer they sit on the self. There are also super charged, super powerful anti-oxidants in nature called Xanthones. Xanthones have the power to defeat a larger number of free-radicals at one time, due to strong carbon bonds that make the molecule stable. Each Xanthone performs a specific biological function inside the body unlike regular anti-oxidants.

It is sad that most people save for retirement their entire adult life without realizing that possible future medical expenses can destroy any plans that they may have. By understanding your health requirements and the part that nutrition plays in that, you can greatly improve your quality of life into your retirement years.

This article is supported by Online Nursing Degrees

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Resveratrol is the latest health craze related to anti-aging. For several years now more and more, studies are proving that resveratrol supplements can slow down the aging process. Aging is the process through which human’s bodies deteriorate. Metabolic processes and physiological functions slow down. The rate of this slowing can be adjusted through the introduction of antioxidants such as resveratrol.

More and more studies on resveratrol are uncovering the tangible benefits of this element of red wine, including anti-cancer and anti-aging properties. In short, resveratrol activates a gene within living cells that gives that cell more time to repair itself.

From Oprah to 60 Minuets to Barbara Walter, major media outlets have highlighted the studies on resveratrol that point to the anti-aging benefits. These tv shows have interviewed the doctors and researchers that have proven the effects of resveratrol in living cells. These tv shows have profiled the companies that are making these resveratrol supplements. Resveratrol is the next antioxidant that has the potential to make longer, healthier lives more possible.

The research into resveratrol suggests that it is a powerful antioxidant that helps to mitigate the damaging effects of free radicals in the body, and also may induce a process through which extended life will be more than a possibility. One effect of the antioxidant resveratrol is on arteries. Research suggests that resveratrol brings down blood pressure by increasing blood flow.

Antioxidants mediates the damage that free radicals inflict on cells. Diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer and Parkinson’s can be slowed by the introduction of antioxidants.

Resveratrol is found in several organic sources, such as peanuts, red wine, grapes and blueberries among other items. But grapes, in particular Muscdine, have the highest concentration of resveratrol. Though nothing comes close to the amount of resveratrol in supplements. These capsules have been filled with resveratrol. In order to get similar amounts of resveratrol one would need to consumer hundreds of bottles of red wine per day. Of course, this is not a feasible option.

Many supplements exist that contain this newly discovered antioxidant, resveratrol, which some are calling “The Fountain of Youth” that also includes other important anti-oxidants. The amount of these nutritional supplements is growing all the time and more people are looking to introduce them into their daily intake. While there are quite a few companies that don’t put enough resveratrol or the resveratrol they do create has a low bioavailability. This means that not enough resveratrol actually gets used by the body.

There are very few elements such as resveratrol. The growing number of positive studies and increasing amount of fundung for product development means that resveratrol has not yet reached its full potential.

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Knowing which foods to include to begin benefiting your health is the first step to having an anti oxidant rich diet. Eating more foods with high antioxidant levels will help your body fight the free radicals that damage your body.

There are quite a few different foods high in antioxidants, some which are in foods that you may not expect.

Of course fresh fruits and vegetables are all very high in anti-Oxidants, but just make sure that if you are eating fruit you eat it earlier in the day, so that any sugar in the fruit can be burned off by your body during the day.

Another of the most antioxidant rich foods is spinach. Popeye didn’t just eat spinach to gain muscle, he ate it for other great things it does to his body. These foods are also antioxidant rich: apples, artichoke hearts, pinto beans, plums, pecans, red kidney beans, red beans, prunes, wild blueberries and russet potatoes.

Benefits

Eating foods with high antioxidant levels has many benefits. Fighting off free radicals in your body is one of the greatest benefits of antioxidants. Free radicals cause damage to the body, but antioxidants fight the free radicals and slow the damage that they do to the body.

The oxidation process, a process which causes cholesterol deposits and the narrowing of arteries, is slowed down by dietary antioxidants, and this makes them really helpful. The anti aging properties of antioxidants allow you to stay healthy and younger longer.

These antioxidants will provide a stronger immune resistance to flues, viruses and infections, greatly reduced incidence of all cancers, prevention of glaucoma and macular degeneration, reduced risk of cholesterol-oxidation and heart disease, and anti-aging of the cells in your body.

Just make sure that you incorporate these anti oxidant rich foods properly and that you do not overdo it, because you can end up doing yourself more harm than good.

Also, if you simply do not have the time to worry about this, you do always have the option of taking antioxidant supplements. These are tablets that you can pop back and which will offer you the same health benefits as eating the real food.

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