Is There A Bad Side To Antioxidants?

With all the hype and "good news" surrounding the very existence of antioxidants, very few people stop to ask the question - are the any adverse side effects of a diet high in antioxidants? Whilst the answer to this question is not that difficult to announce, the scientific backing of such claims is still in the process of being proven.

What you read in this article certainly doesn't detract from the obvious fact that we need antioxidants in our diet in order to survive. This is a fundamental fact of life, and our bodies would breakdown eventually if we stopped consuming them. But there are indeed a few things you should keep in mind when focusing on getting as many antioxidants in to you as is humanely possible.

More Antioxidants = Less Iron & Zinc

For some strange reason, the existence of antioxidants in our bodies means that the absorption rate of key minerals iron and zinc are held back. This occurs in the gastrointestinal tract, and there are many theories as to why it may be the case.

However, this issue can easily be resolved by consuming higher levels of the two minerals when you are consuming high levels of antioxidants. Additionally, this is only the case with strong reducing acids, and is not a side effect of lighter, more variable antioxidants such as resveratrol. Clearly then, this is not a major health issue, but is instead something to be wary of.

Smokers Beware

If you smoke on a regular basis - beware of the power of antioxidants. Whilst you may think that consuming large amounts of antioxidants will actually help to counteract the negative effects of smoking - you may be surprised to learn that the presence of some antioxidants actually makes things worse. 

Because the antioxidants try so hard to undo the internal damage that cigarette smoking does to the body, other cells, especially in the lungs, are actually called upon to help out. In doing this, the antioxidants are actually making things worse by turning healthy and beneficial lung cells in to damaged and carcinogen ridden cells.

The scientific proof exists to show that indeed this actually leads to a higher rate of lung cancer than patients who do not stock up on antioxidants.