The Truth About...Those Antioxidants

The terms “antioxidants” and “free radicals”- what do they mean exactly? Are antioxidants safe to take as a supplement? Tina & Leah tell you the truth, even if it is inconvenient. (Don’t blame the messengers!)

Antioxidants only do good, right? The theory is that antioxidants prevent cancer by limiting damage in and around our cells. Truth: Foods high in antioxidant compounds are associated with less cancer (think plants!). BUT, does this mean that antioxidant supplements are a good idea? The truth is in the data.

Another pressing question: “Are antioxidants safe during & after treatment for cancer?” This gets tricky. What prevents cancer is not always a good idea after it has been diagnosed. Radiation, and some chemotherapies, actually use oxidation as their means to kill cancer cells. Can antioxidants from food interfere? Can antioxidant supplements interfere? We discuss this in detail.

This is the second installment in our “Truth About…” pod. The idea of this series is to tackle a few topics where marketing messaging is flooding the scene, where misinformation abounds, and where we think people could be doing themselves harm with that not-so-discerning doctor, Dr. Google.

Join us as we talk about antioxidants and a couple of very popular products whose marketing teams are way ahead of their scientific advisory staff.

Links we mentioned on this episode and other cool stuff:

Juice Plus Vegetable+ Label Showing <1 gram fiber JuicePlus.com

Newsletter critiquing Juice Plus claims Google Archive, UC Berkeley Wellness Newsletter

False Claims by Juice Plus, Feb 2006 Google Archive, University of Kansas

Protandim study on athletic performance shows no improvement PLoS One

How increasing antioxidants in cells (Nrf2 activation) may promote cancer growth Cancer Discovery

Glutathione may increase tumor progression and treatment resistance Journal of Cell Biology

Beta-carotene and higher rates of lung cancer in smokers New England Journal of Medicine

How beta-carotene was metabolized may explain the higher rate of lung cancer in smokers American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Vitamin E and prostate cancer, the SELECT trial JAMA

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