Question
I just started getting into anti-oxidants and feeling really overwhelmed. There are so many.
Where do I put my money?
Answer
It’s easy to understand why you might be feeling that way, as there are a myriad of anti-oxidants found in fruits, vegetables – even seaweed.
I feel oxidation in general needs to be addressed first, because you should understand WHY anti-oxidants might be needed, WHEN to take them and then WHICH ONES to take.
The truth is, a young, healthy body has an endogenous anti-oxidant system that’s pretty robust.
Those antioxidant enzymes BTW are SOD, catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase.
Yet here’s what I think you need to consider.
1.) It’s no longer a given that young people are healthy. In fact, there are more than a few that aren’t and;
2.) Like everything else as you age, the effectiveness of your built in antioxidant enzymes wane – potentially leaving you wide open to disease.
Therefore, I think you should take fewer when you’re younger and more when you’re older.
In my early 20’s then, I took 3 anti-oxidants religiously.. 1.) Vitamin C 2. ) Vitamin E and 3.) Beta-carotene.
In my late 20’s/early 30’s, I added Alpha Lipoic Acid based on the fact it helps re-generate C and E, as well as the fact it works in both a water and fat soluble environment.
In my late 30’s, I added EGCG from Green Tea as well as Melatonin, NAC and Selenium
By my early 40’s, I added Curcumin, Canthaxanthin, Vitamin D, Zinc and Copper
In my late 40’s, I added Quercetin, K2 and Canthaxanthin.
In my early 50’s I subbed Astaxanthin for Canthaxanthin, then added Ginger and ACV.
Many of you also know that for the last 30 years, I’ve been captain Ephedra and Ecdysterone.
It just so happens there are multiple anti-oxidants in each, yes even ephedra sinica which contains catechins, Epicatechin, Hydroxyquinol and interestingly enough, Salicylic acid.
RCE has so many, its impossible to list them all here.
Note also that during this time I was rotating lots of Tribulus, Fenugreek, Cissus as well as other herbals chock full of anti-oxidants.
Just think about 1 facet of this – cholesterol. I’ve always said it’s not high cholesterol that’ll kill you, it’s OXIDIZED cholesterol.
And at age 51, all of my anti-oxidant use apparently paid off – after a recent calcium screen (which shows blockages) I scored a big fat ZERO.
Which means they couldn’t detect any blockages or narrowing anywhere.
Make of that what you will, but in my mind there’s no doubt – all of these anti-oxidants worked.
Finally, if I were to choose just 1 or 2 it’d be NAC and Ginger.
A gram of Ginger/day covers almost everything, and NAC builds glutathione – your body’s most prolific endogenous anti-oxidant.
Linus Pauling said it on his deathbed, “host cell resistance is the key.”
If you’re pinching pennies then, I think NAC and Ginger do the most, for the least.
