A-Z antioxidant power Articles

Astaxanthin is a xanthophyll carotenoid molecule that gives a reddish colour to various organisms such as microalgae, yeast, salmon, trout, krill, shrimp, crayfish, and some other crustaceans. This nutrient is a potent antioxidant with many different health benefits. Read on to discover them, and learn how to take astaxanthin supplements.

Top Health Benefits of Astaxanthin

Antioxidant Benefits

Astaxanthin is a type of carotenoid, which means it's related to beta-carotene and lycopene, two other types of carotenoids that make carrots and tomatoes orange and red.

When researchers measured their antioxidant activity against each other, they found that astaxanthin had more significant antioxidant activity than either beta-carotene or lycopene.

This nutrient from the ocean is a potent antioxidant that can protect our cells against free radical damage. Free radicals are produced in your body when you exercise, experience stress, or come into contact with toxins from pollution. When unstable molecules—aka free radicals—come into contact with your cells, they can create a chain reaction that leads to cell damage. These free radicals can damage your skin, causing it to look older and less vibrant, as well as contribute to other diseases such as heart disease.

But antioxidants prevent this damage by donating an electron to stabilize the free radicals. Antioxidants also help reduce inflammation in your body.

This antioxidant protection allows astaxanthin to help to prevent and treat eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and neurodegenerative conditions.

At the same time, this protects the skin against the physical signs of aging, including wrinkles and age spots. Because it is an anti-inflammatory and anti-allergy agent, it is beneficial for maintaining healthy skin, including helping skin retain a youthful glow.

Skin Benefits

Research shows that taking 6 mg of astaxanthin daily can improve skin texture, reduce wrinkles and spots, enhance skin elasticity, and increase moisture content.

Neurologic Benefits

Astaxanthin is highly beneficial in several neurological concerns. It can help prevent and treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and has also been shown to help recover from a stroke.

Cardiovascular and Blood Sugar Benefits

This nutrient has also been found to help reduce cholesterol levels and lower the risk of developing metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a disease state that involves central obesity, high blood pressure, poor blood sugar control, and unhealthy cholesterol levels. It is also used to treat diabetes and to help prevent diabetic nephropathy. At the same time, current research has found that it protects the heart muscle against permanent damage from a heart attack.

Other Astaxanthin Supplement Benefits

In addition to its health benefits listed above, astaxanthin is effective in the treatment of:

• chronic inflammatory diseases
• gastrointestinal diseases
• liver diseases
• improving exercise performance
• some cases of male infertility

Where To Buy Astaxanthin Supplements

Eating a diet sufficient in astaxanthin containing fish and shellfish, such as salmon, trout, krill, and shrimp can help increase your levels of this beneficial nutrient. However, because our environment puts us in contact with free radicals, it can also be helpful to supplement.

Supplements are most often extracted from microalgae formally called Haematococcus Pluvialis and from the waste shells of commercially prepared shrimp. There is no established dosage for this supplement. So suggested dosages on the label of each product should be followed.

Important Information

It is used in farms across North America as a feed supplement for salmon, crabs, shrimp and chicken to impart a yellow-orange colour to the food. Interestingly, the freeing of this pigment is responsible for lobsters and shrimp turning red when cooked.

The astaxanthin used in farms is often produced synthetically from petrochemical sources. Supplementation has not been studied in pregnant or breastfeeding women, so it should be obtained from food sources instead.

Astaxanthin FAQs

What is Astaxanthin?

Astaxanthin is a carotenoid antioxidant that can be taken as a supplement to offset the effects of free radical damage. It is related to other carotenoid nutrients, such as lycopene and beta-carotene.

What Are The Benefits of Astaxanthin?

It has been shown to benefit the skin by improving skin's hydration and texture while reducing age spots and wrinkles. It also helps the cardiovascular system and eye health and can be used for neurological concerns.

Are There Astaxanthin Side Effects?

Astaxanthin is generally safe. However, it is recommended that pregnant people avoid it.

Where Can I Buy Astaxanthin in Canada?

Most health food stores will carry astaxanthin supplements.

Cacao beans come from a small evergreen tree called the Theobroma Cacao tree. It is the key ingredient of most high-quality chocolates. It however is different than cocoa and chocolate. Many commercial cocoa and chocolate are stripped of the health benefits of the cacao bean due to its bitter taste.

What is Cacao?

Cacao is the raw form of what is used to make commercial chocolate.

The less refined or raw form of Cacao is highly medicinal and is available in most health food stores. It’s made by cold-pressing unroasted Cocoa beans. Once roasted it loses much of its medicinal benefits.

Cocoa powder for baking and making chocolate is made from raw Cacao that has been roasted.

The healthiest form of Cacao is the raw unroasted version.

Key Medicinal Properties In Cacao

It is rich in agents that enhance the production of ‘feel-good’ chemicals in the brain, notably serotonin and dopamine. This means Cacao possesses anti-depressant and mood-elevating properties.

One of these mood-modifying compounds is Anandamide (from the Sanskrit ananda meaning ‘bliss’). This is a naturally occurring substance found in Cacao known as a cannabinoid, a member of the same psychoactive substances found in cannabis. It binds to the same sites as THC, the active chemical in marijuana, and produces a global feeling of euphoria.

Another constituent in cacao which alters mood in a pleasurable way is PEA or Phenethylamine. PEA stimulates the production of dopamine. Dopamine is a neurochemical directly associated with sexual arousal and pleasure. It’s also found to be increased in the brain when we are in love and is especially amplified during orgasm. The feeling is similar to the ‘high’ experienced by runners and the endorphin release after exercise.

Health Benefits of Cacao

Helps Increase Production of Serotonin

It is also high in the amino acid tryptophan. Tryptophan increases the production of serotonin, the brain’s ‘feel-good’ chemical. It promotes a highly desirable mood state and is often the target of anti-depressant drugs. No wonder it makes us feel so good!

Improves Cardiovascular Health

Flavanols have been found in high concentrations in certain fruits and vegetables, wine, grape juice, and berries. Flavanols are particularly high in Cacao. Epicatechins are thought to be the flavanols responsible for many of the health benefits of Cacao, especially for cardiovascular health. Studies have shown that Epicatechins in Cacao have a short-term benefit on LDL (commonly referred to as 'bad') cholesterol, has been shown to reduce blood pressure, improve vascular platelet function, as well as decrease insulin resistance, indicating Cacao in the treatment and prevention of metabolic syndrome.

Potent Antioxidant With Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Epicatechins in Cacao are potent antioxidants and have both anti-inflammatory and Nitric Oxide (NO) synthase-activating effects. NO activation may play a role in the reduction of stroke, heart failure and diabetes; all of the major causes of death in North America.

Some data has linked a deficiency in epicatechins to these diseases, which explains why Cacao is so protective in preventing these diseases. Island-dwelling populations off the coast of Panama who consume an abundance of raw Cacao have been shown to have lower blood pressure levels and no age-related decline in kidney function, as well as overall significantly less mortality resulting from cardiovascular events. This protective effect is lost on the same population when they migrate to nearby cities where there is less raw Cacao consumption.

Cacao Nibs As a Superfood

As a superfood, it is a good source of minerals, particularly magnesium, zinc, iron, calcium, and potassium. These minerals are all important for healthy muscle function, especially for the heart and blood vessels. They help the heart to pump efficiently and the blood vessels to dilate and constrict as needed, which helps blood pressure.

It is also a low-glycemic food, high in fibre and lowers blood sugar and insulin resistance.

Cacao is high in Resveratrol, a strong antioxidant which can cross the blood-brain barrier and protect your brain from oxidative damage. Antioxidants are also very important to protect against unwanted cellular damage from stress, environmental toxins and metabolic waste, which our bodies produce daily.

Cacao Supplements: Powder, Paste and Nibs

Cacao comes in powdered, paste and nib forms. It is great added to baked goods, curries, yogurt, hot cereal and health shakes. By adding it to your food it increases the nutritional value up to tenfold!

What is Resveratrol?

As one of the most prevalent anti-aging supplements, resveratrol is an active polyphenolic nutrient found in common foods such as red wine, berries, and the skins of other brightly coloured fruits. In addition to its anti-aging benefits, this nutrient has been found to protect the cardiovascular system, and balance female hormones.

Health Benefits of Resveratrol

Healthy Cell Growth

Animal studies on resveratrol showed dramatic results for reducing unhealthy cell growth, by acting directly on infected cells and causing programmed cell death (apoptosis). These studies showed that the experimental subjects taking this nutrient had far more unhealthy cell death than those not supplementing during their treatment. These same studies also showed that it inhibited the proliferation of affected cells. The best results in terms of treatment seem to be with issues in which the resveratrol can come into direct contact with the affected cells. For this reason, it may be particularly effective for gastrointestinal, as well as skin cell issues (if applied topically).

Protecting the Cardiovascular System

According to animal studies, resveratrol can also protect the heart and cardiovascular system from damage. These effects come from its ability to maintain the integrity of artery walls and to reduce viscosity of the blood. It has been shown to reduce the risk of clot formation, while it also promotes vasodilation (relaxing of the blood vessels). It has also been shown to possess significant anti-inflammatory properties, making it a promising option in atherosclerosis prevention. Some researchers believe that resveratrol is responsible for the "French Paradox", explaining why many French people can eat more fatty foods than North Americans, but suffer from fewer incidences of heart attack and stroke. The thinking is that this may be due in part to a higher red wine consumption.

Female Hormone Balancing

Resveratrol has also been shown to possess both estrogenic and anti estrogenic properties, based on the body's own levels and need. Similar to soy products, this may have an application in both estrogen dominant pathologies, as well as in such conditions as menopause, in which estrogen levels are low. In a sense, it helps to balance the body's estrogen levels naturally.

Antiviral and Antioxidant

There is also some promising research to suggest that resveratrol may inhibit viruses, such as: herpes simplex, varicella, influenza and others. Animal studies have confirmed that resveratrol can prevent and help to reverse free radical damage. Unfortunately, since it is metabolized so quickly, the powerful antioxidant claims may be slightly exaggerated when considered in the complex case of the human body. The antioxidant effect of resveratrol is stronger when stabilized in supplement form.

Taking Resveratrol

The levels of resveratrol used in all of these animal studies are far beyond levels that can be naturally reached through diet, nor is it safe or practical for people to drink enough red wine on a daily basis to have a significant health enhancing effect. It is for those reasons that supplementation is the preferred method of delivery. This nutrient can be found as a supplement in both capsule and liquid form, in varying concentrations. These supplements are usually made from Japanese knotweed, a concentrated plant source of resveratrol. Because of this, many supplement companies will advertise that their resveratrol products contain the equivalent of at least 20+ glasses of red wine. It is also important to note that currently there is very little research, based on clinical trials, supporting the efficacy of resveratrol in humans.