Free radicals (also known as ROS "Reactive Oxygen Species") can cause severe damage to the cellular system in our body. It may cause damage to macromolecules, DNA and proteins. This led to cause a variety of diseases, especially cancer and heart disease.

The imbalance between oxidant and Antioxidant factors in body cause oxidative stress. This is a danger to the body. A lot of research and studies have been conducted to prove that antioxidants might play a vital role in preventing or slowing the progression of these illnesses.

Based on the findings, some of the notable illnesses caused by oxidative stress are:

Heart Disease

The famous death cause worldwide. Heart disease may occur due to the high level of cholesterol in the body, high blood pressure, smoking habit as well as diabetes. All these factors will promote atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis refers to the buildup of fats, cholesterol and other substances in and on the artery walls (plaque), which can restrict blood flow to the heart and other vital organs. If the plaque bursts, it may trigger a blood clot.

Atherosclerosis happens due to oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (also known as "bad" cholesterol) in arteries. According to several studies conducted, it shows that there is an increasing frequency of heart disease with low intakes of antioxidants in dietary.

For those with high level of antioxidants, they are likely to have lower risk of heart disease. For instance, people who took more vitamin E on a regular basis had 41% lower risk of heart disease compared to those who took less. This result is driven from a test conducted on a group of nurses.

Cancer

It kills human worldwide. 35% of the cause comes from diet. The low intake of fruits and vegetables in dietary can double the risk of cancer. In addition, low antioxidant intake also may be the contributor.

That is why we must have sufficient amounts of antioxidants in our body. How does antioxidant works? Antioxidants deploy it defensive effect by lowering oxidative damage to DNA and lowering it unusual increases in cellular system.

Free radicals also generated by bad smoking habit and chronic inflammation. This can lead to cancers. Some studies have indicated that a man who smoke are likely to have lower levels of antioxidants compared to non-smoker. In simple words, smokers have more risk of cancer.

Lung Diseases

Free radicals also give effects to the respiratory system. Free radicals may come from the endogenous factors as well as via the body exposure to air pollution, cigarette smoke and many more.

Recent findings indicate that free radicals might be involved in the development of pulmonary disorders such as asthma. Antioxidants have been seen to lower the development of asthmatic symptoms.

Neural Disorders

Free radicals may damage nerves and brain system. It can cause the neural tissue to be exposed to oxidative damage. This happens when the brain receives an imbalance high percentage of oxygen and has large amounts of polyunsaturated fatty acids which are highly susceptible to oxidation and oxidative damage. Some of the diseases that may happen are Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Dementia (memory loss).

Cataracts

Cataracts happen when there is a damage to the lens protein which is caused by free radicals. This led to unclearness (opacity) of the lens. Studies show that the formation of cataract can be slowed with the regular intake of supplements antioxidants such as vitamin E, vitamin C and carotenoids.

Finally, studies also show that the low antioxidant level in the blood may cause other types of diseases such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and many more.

Thus, it is important to change your lifestyle and dietary so that it may help to reduce oxidative stress. There are a lot of things you can do such as exercise regularly, adopt a balanced diet (rich in fruits and vegetables), and maintaining a healthy body weight.

TetraSOD is a product made from micro-algae using technology from Spain and has been approved as ‘Novel Food’. A thorough research and clinical tests have been conducted with proven and convincing result to reduce Free Radicals, thus reduced Oxidative Stress. TetraSOD was the main ingredient found in Defensio from Vii Nutrition.