What are Free Radicals

Definition: Free radicals, pronounced, (FREE RAD-ik-ulz) As defined in the breastcancer.org dictionary.

"These are the chemicals released in a process called oxidation. Oxidation is when molecules in cells split and become unstable. This unstable activity causes a chain reaction in the surrounding molecules. The resulting free radicals can harm important molecules in the cells, including genes. Free radicals can work both for us and against us: Increased free radical activity might combine with other factors to cause some cancers. On the other hand, radiation therapy works in part by creating free radicals."

"The fact that they are highly reactive means that they have low chemical specificity; i.e. they can react with most molecules in its vicinity. This includes proteins, lipids, carbohydrates and DNA. It also means that in trying to gain stability by capturing the needed electron they don't survive in their original state for very long and quickly react with their surroundings. Hence, free radicals attack the nearest stable molecule, "stealing" its electron. When the "attacked" molecule loses its electron, it becomes a free radical itself, beginning a chain reaction. Once the process is started, it can cascade, finally resulting in the disruption of a living cell."  Quote from the doctorslounge.com

This information really makes a lot of sense when you understand how free radicals and acidosis work against the body. You can read more about Acidosis here.

Definition: Antioxidents. As defined in about.com's definition section.

May protect the cells in your body from oxidative damage. As the body uses oxygen, there are by-products known as "free radicals" that can cause damage to cells. Antioxidents are known to repair these free radicals and are associated with a decreased risk of many chronic diseases. Some examples of Antioxidents include beta-carotene, vitamins A, C, and E, lutein, lycopene and quercetin. 

So, as you read these two definitions, you begin to see the relationship between free radicals and Antioxidents. My husband and I have read the book, "The China Study". When you read this book, you will have a very difficult time eating animal based foods for a while. You may even become a vegetarian and in so doing, your health will improve over time because plant based foods are alkaline in nature.

There are many books published today that talk about eating foods that alkalize our bodies. The basic reasoning is that since disease cannot thrive in an alkaline environment, if we alkalize our bodies, we'll avoid a great deal of the problems associated with acidosis. Studies have proven that cancer cannot survive in an alkaline body. However, there is more to this than simply telling us to eat alkaline foods.

The studies done by this one doctor in China revealed just how harmful animal based foods were to our bodies. The worst of it being, meat and dairy. Plant based foods offer great benefits. One of those benefits is that they give us Antioxidents that help "prevent" those free radicals from harming important molecules in our cells.

The problem is, eating plant based foods is not totally the solution, and in reality, not any solution at all, when you consider how many of us are willing to go on a purely plant based diet verses an animal based one. If you are truly to avoid animal based proteins, you have to cook your foods and eat many foods that are soy based.

What most people don't know is that soy is one of the easiest things to grow. It will grow where no other food giving plants will. So, given that knowledge, you should not be surprised to know that soy "is" grown in the worst nutritional conditions because they "will" grow in them. How much nutrition can you be getting from soy based products if they are grown in that sort of environment?

While my husband and I were trying out the vegetarian diet, we could not find anything that came close to cream cheese, half and half, and yogurt. There simply are no substitutes.

In addition to those facts are these undeniable ones:

1. Eating out is not fun anymore. Sorry, but it just isn't the same. I ordered a veggie burrito and paid $9.00 for a flour tortilla filled with white rice and a few beans. I'm sorry but I really just can't quite see the point here. Not the mention the fact that the flour tortilla and most likely the beans had animal based fats in them.

2. Trying to create veggie meals on a constant day to day basis is exhausting. I'm not a creative cook to begin with so it may not be as hard for those of you who can cook well. The problem with the veggie diet is it requires a lot of fresh foods and the cooking of fresh foods. You'll need to plan out your meals and snacks and well, I just became a bit tired of the whole thing.

3. Packaged vegetarian food products are OUTRAGEOUSLY overpriced! Knowing what I do about how cheap soy can be grown, it sickens me to see how much we are charged for soy based meals over meat based ones. There are just not enough vegetarians out there to get those prices down.

4. No ice cream.

5. No ice cream.

6. Even people dying of cancer have a hard time converting to a plant based diet even when it means their life. And many times, there is just not enough time to combat the sickness and terminal inevitability of cancer. In addtion, there is something extremely valuable in what water can do that foods cannot. That is the way water can flush out toxins and acid waste. Kangen water can not only hydrate your body, but it can wash away the acid waste far better than any other type of water can. Why? Because it has been micro-clustered. This simply means these molocules are small enough to penetrate our cells. Flushing out toxins even in our cells is beyond what food and unstructured water can do.

Please read our fda disclaimer.