Eric Bakker N.D.May 11, 2022

Antioxidants aid in the removal of residual free radicals that might harm cells and tissue, resulting in fewer inflammatory triggers.

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Arthritis and Inflammatory Disorders Are Helped By Antioxidants

Arthritis is a condition that involves free radicals and inflammation. By reducing free radicals, inflammation may be eased and relieve arthritic pain.

Inflammation can cause many pains besides arthritis. Swelling, pain, localised heat, and redness characterise inflammation. Injury could be a major catalyst for inflammation. When injury occurs, fluid gets trapped in the spaces between cells in the injured tissue. This fluid most often results from leakage from capillaries, but something can also produce directly it in tissue via free radical reactions.

Articles of interest

Besides anti-inflammatory properties, antioxidants like flavonoids may have beneficial effects in arthritic diseases by positively influencing the balance between synthesis and degradation of extra-cellular cartilage constituents. Evidence for this action comes from the inhibition of type II collagen breakdown.

Antioxidants help normalise capillary permeability to prevent the leakage of fluid that causes swelling. It also helps by neutralising free radicals that promote swelling and inflammation. Antioxidants possess multiple anti-inflammatory activities, making it an excellent choice as a natural product in the treatment of inflammatory disorders. These conditions include;

Inflammation Is One Of The Main Drivers Of Disease

In the acute inflammatory response, the production of this entire battery of free radicals is an important mechanism that is necessary to fight of invading pathogens. However, the problems begin when the inflammatory process persists and becomes chronic, because the inherently high level of oxidative stress turns against the healthy body tissues.

In diseases such as the different arthritis or in autoimmune disorders like lupus or multiple sclerosis, where inflammation manifests chronically, free radicals are permanently produced and can cause tissue destruction. It is in particular in these types of diseases that managing oxidative stress levels should be considered as part of the general therapy.

Why Antioxidants To Support Inflammatory Disorders?

Evidence for the role of antioxidants in disorders of chronic inflammation comes from many studies on the consequences of the elevated oxidant levels. Biomarkers of cellular damage are indicative of oxidative stress. Antioxidants like flavonoids are uniquely suited as a support or single therapy in the treatment of inflammatory disorders due to their combination of super powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Reasons Antioxidants Are Beneficial

The reasons to use antioxidants in the management of inflammatory disorders include:

  • Besides anti-inflammatory properties, flavonoids may also have beneficial effects in arthritic diseases by positively influencing the balance between synthesis and degradation of extra-cellular cartilage constituents. This basically means that evidence for this action comes from the inhibition of type II collagen breakdown.
  • The radical scavenging capacity of flavonoids, and particularly proanthocyanidins, is many times higher than that of the vitamin antioxidants for a wide range of radicals.
  • The potency as antioxidants and the chemical diversity of multi-compound flavonoid extracts strongly recommend flavonoids in therapeutic efforts to lower oxidative stress levels.
  • They have shown flavonoids to inhibit the production of ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species), the activity of the ROS generating enzymes MPO and NADPH oxidase, and several signal transducing enzymes involved in the cell activation in neutrophils.
  • They have shown flavonoids to reduce biomarkers of oxidative cell damage in cell culture systems, animal models and human studies.
  • Flavonoids inhibit lipid peroxidation. This can be by direct radical scavenging or by chelation properties of transition metals.
  • Flavonoids have direct anti-inflammatory properties that have been documented in many studies. The anti-inflammatory properties of flavonoids include cyclooxygenase.

Conclusion

Antioxidants, including flavonoids, are very promising agents for the management of arthritis and other inflammatory diseases. In addition, flavonoids possess multiple anti-inflammatory activities, making it an excellent choice as a support agent in the treatment of inflammatory disorders.

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