Surely everyone at some point has heard of free radicals as molecules that are produced to a greater extent when we do a lot of exercise, the intensity of this is very high, or simply because of its relationship with aging. Something that leads us to try to curb oxidative stress, especially in the specific case of endurance runners.
Although they enjoy a bad reputation, free radicals are vital elements for our organism. To understand what a libre radical is, we will have to explain it briefly from a chemical perspective. A libre radical is any molecule (charged or not) that in its atomic structure presents an unpaired or odd electron in its external orbit, which makes this element highly reactive and unstable.
Due to this nature, free radicals have always been associated with cell damage, and therefore a somewhat negative concept, but they are key factors in the maintenance of the body.
Causes that lead to increased production of free radicals
There are a multitude of circumstances that cause an increase in the production of free radicals, of which we can highlight the following:
- Hypercaloric diet.
- Diet insufficient in antioxidants.
- Inflammatory processes and trauma.
- Strenuous exercise.
Cells continuously produce free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) as a natural part of the maintenance of their metabolic processes. When these cells undergo stress (in our case an example of this will be exercise) there will be an increase in the production of these molecules. However, our body will have sufficient mechanisms (endogenous antioxidants) to cope with this increase in oxidizing agents.
When the increase in free radicals exceeds the body's antioxidant capacity, damage to fats, proteins and genes will occur. If reference is made to the oxidation of fats, oxidized LDL has a greater tendency to adhere to the walls of blood vessels, thereby increasing cardiovascular risk. If the cells of the blood vessels are affected by free radicals, vascular alterations originate that also increase cardiovascular risk (Vilaplana, 2007).
This balance between ROS and antioxidant capacity may be broken if the production of ROS is greater than the capacity to reduce these molecules, as occurs in strenuous exercise (e.g. in a long-distance competition).
Antioxidant supplementation to reduce oxidative stress.
In turn, in competitions of very long duration or in stages this damage will be amplified, since the antioxidant capacity of our organism will be overcome by oxidative stress, product of strenuous exercise.
In these cases, the use of an antioxidant supplementation can help to reduce oxidative stress, and therefore muscle damage. However, not all supplements on the market have the same antioxidant capacity or the same set of antioxidants. There are a multitude of products based on vitamin E, C, polyphenols, and a long etcetera, almost all of which are secondary antioxidants.
The Spanish brand TetraSOD® has been marketing for some time a product with a high antioxidant content based on primary antioxidants (essential enzymes in the process of attenuating the action of ROS) whose antioxidant capacity is much greater than secondary antioxidants. TetraSOD® includes in its product the enzyme superoxide dismustase (SOD) from the microalgae Tetraselmis chuii, which exhibits a much higher activity than other antioxidants on the market, allowing a better recovery between demanding sessions or accelerating recovery after competition.
The use of TetraSOD after competitions or during a highly demanding training period mayhelp to improve recovery between sessions or competitions.
References
- Vilaplana Batalla, M. (2007). Antioxidants present in food: vitamins, minerals and supplements. Offarm: Pharmacy and Society.
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