Antioxidants outlook: Diseases preventive versus curative/therapeutic impact

Antioxidants are natural chemical substances that exist in foods such as vitamins, minerals and other compounds that are believed to help preventing disease by neutralize free radicals. Free radical, are formed by normal body metabolic processes, and by exposure to environmental contaminants like pollution and cigarette smoking. Without adequate amounts of antioxidants, these free radicals travel throughout the body causing cells damage and homeostatic disruption. Part of this cellular damage leads to one of several diseases among them are coronary heart disease (atherosclerosis as well as cardiovascular), and cancer