Crossroads Nutrition Blog

MAY 1, 2009
by Paul Caragine MD

ANTI-OXIDANTS are a major nutritional component of CROSSROADS NUTRITION products, and especially of the Ultra-Premium ULTRA-MULTI (Multi-Vitamin-Mineral-Herbal-Biological) Formula, which has a staggering 102 of them! Anti-Oxidants are the thing that most distinguish the CROSSROADS ULTRA-MULTI product from the multi-vitamin products of other companies. Anti-Oxidants have been much discussed in medical and nutritional journals in recent years and also in the media and by radio and television talk show hosts. Not everyone understands exactly what they are, so here is an explanation.
Every minute of every day, every normal cell in our body produces metabolic waste products within it that results from the normal chemical reactions taking place within those cells. Some (a small amount) of this normal waste is in the form of very reactive chemicals called FREE-RADICALS. Free Radicals are chemicals that have an extra unpaired electron somewhere in their molecular structure that renders the molecules very reactive with whatever they encounter. These encounters often result in damaging changes to those other molecules. Chemists call many or most of these reactions “oxidation” reactions, similar to the reaction that happens to iron (rusting) when it is exposed to oxygen, or when leaves burn, – it oxidizes. Oxidation rusts or ages our body as well.
There are many kinds of damage that result from this oxidation. Some of the damage is to cell membranes that are rich in fats (or “lipids”), other damage is to the structures within cells including structures within the nucleus, which are proteins, DNA, and RNA. Others damage the linkages between cells (such as blood vessel walls).
Anti-oxidants are chemicals that neutralize or cancel out free radicals, “pac-man style”.
They are classified into two broad divisions, depending on whether they are soluble in water (hydrophilic) or in lipids (hydrophobic). In general, water-soluble antioxidants react with oxidants in the cell cytoplasm and the blood plasma, while lipid-soluble antioxidants protect cell membranes from oxidation, a process called lipid peroxidation. Sometimes Free Radicals can damage normal and important parts of the cellular machinery including good fats (in the cell wall), proteins (in cellular machinery like mitochondria), and even the genetic machinery like the DNA in Chromosomes and the various forms of RNA. Many scientists believe that the net result of all of this damage is the essence of the AGING process (deaths from “old age”), and is also the underlying basis of many chronic diseases such as Atherosclerosis and Diabetes and even most if not all cases of CANCERS.
So, Free-Radicals are mostly “bad guys”, although they do occasionally actually help us to kill microorganisms and some cancer cells. It turns out all anti-oxidants protect parts of our cells and that many if not all Anti-Oxidants themselves kill cancer cells and microorganisms as well so that they also represent a strengthening of the immune system ANTI-OXIDANTS therefore LENGTHEN LIFE SPAN (longevity), fight and PREVENT CANCER, and STRENGTHEN THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. They have also been found that they strengthen bones to counter Osteoporosis.
Free radical production is increased by severe infections, tobacco in all forms, alcohol, stress, radiation (including ultraviolet from sunlight), pollution (especially organic-chemical environmental pollutants like cleaning fluids), by other toxic chemicals in our environment such as the so-called heavy metals (lead, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, etc., and even iron overload), and by the deep fat frying of food. This stresses the anti-oxidants and forces them to divert their attention from anti-aging and anti-cancer activity so they can neutralize these increases in free-radicals. We can actually see an effect of Anti-Oxidants when we observe how the anti-oxidants in lemon juice prevent apples from turning brown.
Some anti-oxidants (like Glutathione, “King of the Anti-Oxidants”, Sulforaphane and Indole-3 -Carbinol) do this INDIRECTLY, but for longer durations by activating certain enzyme chemicals within Cells that transfer electrons around. Then the activated enzymes, in turn, become the DIRECT Anti -Oxidants that destroy the Free Radicals. Some of these enzymes are Super Oxide Dysmutase, Phospho Kinases, Catalase, Glutathione Transferase, Glutathione Peroxidase, and Quinone Reductase. To the extent these direct and indirect Anti-Oxidants succeed, we age slower, live longer, and are protected from all kinds of Cancers.
Selenium and zinc are commonly referred to as antioxidant nutrients, but these chemical elements have no antioxidant action themselves and are instead required for the activity of some antioxidant enzymes.
Melatonin is a powerful antioxidant that can easily cross cell membranes and the blood-brain barrier. Unlike other antioxidants, melatonin does not undergo redox cycling, which is the ability of a molecule to undergo repeated reduction and oxidation. Redox cycling may allow other Anti-Oxidants (such as vitamin C) to act as pro-oxidants and promote free radical formation. Melatonin, once oxidized, cannot be reduced to its former state because it forms several stable end-products upon reacting with free radicals. Therefore, it has been referred to as a terminal (or suicidal) Anti-Oxidant. The different Anti-Oxidants work in slightly different ways, but in complimentary or synergistic fashions that result in a synergistic effectiveness (greater than just the simple sum of their individual activities). That’s why taking large numbers of different Anti-Oxidants is important for our health. The greater the number of Anti-Oxidants, and the greater the amounts of each Anti-Oxidant, the better it is for us. CROSSRROADS ULTRA-MULTI has more different anti-oxidants in higher dosages than any other nutritional product in the world!
The makers of nutritional products sometimes make conflicting claims about their product being the best anti-oxidant. Some claim that their product has the highest ORAC value. The ORAC value, or the oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity, is indeed a measure of anti-oxidant power, but it is only a measure anti-oxidant power against one particular free-radical oxidant – the peroxyl radical. The Peroxyl radicals are not the only dangerous free-radicals around. There are many other free-radicals that would produce totally different anti-oxidant power ratings. Anti-oxidants respond to different pro-oxidants or radicals, much like different antibiotics kill different strains of bacteria. In fact, there are at least six families of potentially destructive free radicals. When the original ORAC test was developed, it simply measured the ability of a food to fight one of these groups. Our bodies also have to defend against the other five. Tests have now been developed to rate anti-oxidant activity against the other five major anti-oxidants; these tests include the HORAC, NORAC, SORAC and SOAC tests.
There are two different large families of Anti-Oxidants in foods, that
tend to be color-coded to help us identify them:
1) The Purples, Blues & Reds, that contain the ProAnthocyanidin chemical family as well as phenols, tannins, etc., and…
2) The Yellows, Oranges, & Whites, that contain the Flavanoid chemical family. A subgroup of the Anti-Oxidant Flavanoid family called the Carotenoids.
These are the yellow and orange vegetables like carrots, sweet potatoes, yellow squash, yams lemons, and yellow and orange peppers. These foods all score poorly on ORAC tests because they defend poorly against the peroxyl radical. But carotenoids defend brilliantly against a different type of free radical called singlet oxygen, measured by the SOAC assay. The antioxidant power rank assigned to them would depend on which test was used — but the only score you’d hear about would be the brilliant one. Some have said “Why not just get a list of the antioxidants found in each food and call it a day?” Experts say that doing that would be meaningless, because just the amount of an antioxidant in a food doesn’t tell you much about its activity. For example, a food might have 100 mg of vitamin C and only 10 mg of quercetin, an antioxidant plant compound. But quercetin potentially has 10 times the antioxidant activity of vitamin C. The ORAC value reflects the total antioxidant fire power of the food against the peroxyl radical taken as a whole. So, should we pay attention to claims about a product’s ORAC value? The answer is, yes… but while it is true that a higher ORAC rating is better than a lower one, and any high rating is potentially good, just be sure that you realize the rating reported may be for an isolated and less prominent antioxidant action than the combined environmental assault you may be facing.
Foods with high ORAC values supposedly slow aging processes, thus increase longevity, and also may
be a measure of their anti-cancer power. One supposedly should have 9 servings of 350 or better ORAC
value foods and ideally get 3150 units per day. We ideally need 3150 ORAC units of anti-oxidants each
day to combat breaks in DNA, etc.
Here is a list of several of the fruits and vegetables with the highest ORAC values:
1. Prunes 5770
2. Raisins 2830
3. Blueberries 2400
4. Blackberries 2036
5. Strawberries 1540
6. Spinach 1260
7. Raspberries 1220
8. Brussels Sprouts 980
9. Alfalfa Sprouts 930
10. Broccoli Flowers 890
11. Beets 840
12. Red Bell Peppers 710
13. Onions 450

New York State Black Current Berries supposedly have twice the ORAC rating as Blueberries.
The 3 most important Anti-Oxidants needed by our body are also made in our body from other nutrients;
they are Glutathione, Super-Oxide Dysmutase (or SOD), and Catalase – all discussed above.
Now look more closely at Glutathione, the most important anti-oxidant of all. When free radicals are lurking about, threatening to start an oxidation reaction, Glutathione catches them, neutralizes them, passes them on to another antioxidant (such as Vitamin E) so that glutathione regenerates itself, and then begins the cycle anew. In the liver, this powerful biochemical latches onto toxic substances and binds to them, so the liver can excrete them without being damaged. It also prevents healthy red blood cells from being damaged by free-radical forms of oxygen. We could not possibly survive without this powerful antioxidant. It plays an important role in fighting cancer, stabilizing blood sugar and cellular repair after a stroke. It is the front line defense for preventing oxidation of LDL-cholesterol, which subsequently damages arteries. It protects the lymphatic system and the digestive system from an overload of unstable fatty molecules. It maintains the integrity of red blood cells and prevents damage to other cells. In an important study done in Germany it was shown that raising glutathione levels increased the number of T-cells, a prime marker of good immune system function and crucial to those infected with HIV. In addition to the above benefits, glutathione is useful in modulating blood sugar in diabetics and in boosting performance in athletes. It stops or slows down macular degeneration which causes vision loss and cataracts. Glutathione is depleted by natural aging. It is also depleted by chronic diseases such as cancer and arthritis, overexposure to pesticides; pharmaceutical drugs that stress the liver (acetaminophen) and aspirin; vitamin and mineral deficiency and birth control pills.
Ask yourself now, If Glutathione, Super-Oxide Dysmutase, and Catalase are such critical anti-oxidants and are made by our body, why should we take other Anti-Oxidants from fruits and vegetables?”. The answer is that these other Anti-Oxidants, such as grape seed extract, resveritrol, green tea extract, Vitamin E and many others – supplement the big three that we make ourselves and help them to more efficiently rid the body of dangerous Free radical oxidants. Those made by our body and those we get from food all pull the same direction, in team-work, to help us. The more anti-oxidants we have, the better off we are. The brain is uniquely vulnerable to oxidative injury, due to its high metabolic rate and elevated levels of polyunsaturated lipids, the target of lipid peroxidation. Consequently, antioxidants are commonly used as medications to treat various forms of brain injury. Here, superoxide dismutase mimetics, sodium thiopental and propofol are used to treat reperfusion injury and traumatic brain injury, while the experimental drug NXY-059 and ebselen are being applied in the treatment of stroke. These compounds appear to prevent oxidative stress in neurons and prevent apoptosis and neurological damage. Antioxidants are also being investigated as possible treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and as a way to prevent noise-induced hearing loss.
Thus, ULTRA-MULTI capsules, powders, and bars, with all their nutrients and anti-oxidants, move us
along “In theRelentless Pursuit of Excellence To Improve the Health of the Human Race”. This will
translate into increased resistance to disease, reduced medical suffering, decreased visits to doctors, fewer
admissions and shorter stays in hospitals, reduced Health Insurance rates (private and Medicare), and lower
government deficits.
ULTRA-MULTI has 102 different Anti-Oxidants in large doses. Glutathione
itself, the most powerful and critical of all the anti-oxidants, is not one of them because it is broken down
by stomach acids when taken orally. Glutathione’s chemical predecessor and its immediate forerunner, is
N-Acetyl Cystiene (or NAC), which is not broken down by stomach acid, is an anti-oxidant itself, and is
included in ULTRA-MULTI.
To be fair and accurate, it must be said that Although some studies have suggested antioxidant supplements have health benefits, other large clinical trials have not detect any benefit for the formulations tested, and excess supplementation may be harmful.( see the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) 297 (8): 842–57.)
In addition to these uses in medicine, antioxidants have many industrial uses, such as preservatives in food and cosmetics and preventing the degradation of rubber and gasoline, the prevention of metal corrosion, the vulcanization of rubber, and the polymerization of fuels.
Since reactive free-radical oxygen species do have useful functions in cells (some kill microorganisms and some cancer cells) the function of antioxidant systems is not to remove oxidants entirely, but instead to keep them at an optimum levels.