What's the Big Deal About Antioxidants?

For our regular readers, you know that we take a skeptical approach toward the conventional wisdom around fitness and nutrition.  In fact, it seems like, the louder the media shouts about the "latest discovery" in weight loss, the more likely I am to just snort and change the channel.

Weep for our society...

Enter antioxidants.  These precious chemicals have bolstered blueberries to "super food" status.  Ask even the most casually health-conscious person on the street and they'll tell you, "antioxidants are really good for you; you should eat a bunch of them."  A few of the better informed might even mention those pesky free radicals, which "everyone" knows are the little Darth Vaders of human microbiology.  All of this consensus makes me a little itchy.  Perhaps that's because I've seen "Idiocracy" one too many times and the mantra is starting to sound like, "it's got 'lectrolytes! That's what plants crave!"  But I digress...

So we decided to do what we do: get smart on the subject.  This is not simple stuff.  Any of our readers who are medical professionals are welcome to pick apart the fine points, but this is our best effort at making the issue digestible to mere mortals like us.  

First, a few words about oxidation:

We're all familiar with the most common form of oxidation.  It's the process that causes iron to rust.  Oxygen is an interesting atom, and O2 an even more interesting molecule.  These guys have a free electron (or in the case of O2, two electrons) that make them very attractive to other atoms and molecules passing by.  The chemical bonding of intrinsic oxygen to these atoms turns them into other substances (like water, for instance), leaving the host compound behind.  

Put simply: oxidation is the loss of oxygen atoms or O2 molecules from a substance and the creation of new substances as a result.

The Oxygen Paradox: That which does not kill you...

Free radicals if I ever saw one...

Okay, so we know that all living organisms on Earth depend on oxygen to exist.  But, it turns out that oxygen is also chronically toxic to each and every one of those life forms as well.  Bummer, huh?  As a result, we puny Earthlings have generated all kinds of mechanisms to help deal with the harmful effects.  Plants have evolved to produce polyphenols and Vitamin C, for instance.  Humans, too, have developed complex systems to combat the negative effects of oxidation.  A combination of enzymes and chemicals, like uric acid, constantly work to render freed oxygen atoms and molecules into harmless substances, such as water.  

Okay, got it.  Oxidation = "bad," right?

Ahh, if only it were that simple.  Many oxidation processes are beneficial, even critical, to humans.  Oxidation can signal damaged cells to die off and be replaced by fresh, healthy ones.  And oxidation is a critical component to generating ATP, that all-important metabolic fuel that powers our cells and allows us to lift all the heavy things.  So, what's the difference between "good" oxidation and "bad" oxidation?

The bulk of it all seems to come down to two main components.  One is the amount of oxygen being released through oxidation (enter: oxidative stress), and the other is where the oxidation is taking place.  

In healthy cells, supported by the proper combination of enzymes and metabolic fuel, oxidation is just a fact of life.  And, with these components doing their jobs, it's no more dramatic than taking out the trash.  But, if the body undergoes an oxidative stressor, then the process is accelerated and the cell can lose its ability to keep up.  And, just like the trash, it starts to get ugly if things get backed up.  When there is too much oxygen for the cell mechanism to handle, it gets picked up by other substances and becomes things like hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) or Superoxide.  These guys are free radicals, who roam around and do damage to other cells.  What kind of damage are we talking about?  Inflammation, cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and many others.  Free radicals are also considered to be the primary operator in many symptoms of aging in general.

Some cells seem particularly prone to the type of oxidation which results in some of the nastier free radicals.  Low-density Lipoprotein, or LDL, cholesterol appears to be one of these.  We already know that LDL particles are the troublesome ones when it comes to factors promoting heart disease; now imagine them  also being cancer promoters as well.  I think we all agree: cancer sucks!

Okay, a quick recap of the facts thus far: 

- Oxygen is critical to life, but it's also chronically toxic

- The human body already knows this, and has several mechanisms to deal with it

- Oxidation isn't inherently bad, but can become a problem if accelerated or occurs in some types of cells, such as LDL cholesterol particles, among others

- When the oxidation management process is overwhelmed, free radicals are the result

- Cancer sucks

What promotes oxidative stress?

There wasn't as much information on this subject as I would have liked, but there are a number of common environmental stressors out there.  Not surprisingly: air pollution, hypoxia (as from high-altitude activity), smoking, and alcohol use all seem to increase cellular oxidation as well as inhibit the body's mechanisms to manage it.  But here's one you weren't ready for: exercise!  That's right, a natural and inevitable outcome of exercise is significant oxidative stress.  In fact, it's particularly dramatic if you're involved in the kind of training that produces adaptation, such as progressive weightlifting.  Now, before you freak out and throw away your running shoes, it also appears that exercise promotes the activity of our little oxidation-fighting buddies, balancing out the equation over time.  

Coming back to dietary antioxidants

Foods high in antioxidant properties (including Vitamins A, C, and E, as well as polyphenols)
touted for their ability to fight off these free radicals.  Remember how people once thought (and many still do) that eating fat translated directly into body fat?  Or how we once believed dietary cholesterol directly pours into your blood as serum cholesterol? We know better now.  It's not that simple.  The digestive system deconstructs, remakes, and employs these components as it sees fit.  This principle holds true with dietary antioxidants.  The dietary studies of the effect on the body of these supplements on free radicals are decidedly lukewarm.  In fact, there's some evidence that Vitamin E supplements have the effect of are inhibiting the kind of muscular recovery and adaptation that strength athletes are looking for. 

When you think about it, it makes sense.  The body works to bind those oxygen molecules in ways that makes them harmless.  The presence of free radicals occurs only after the oxygen has bonded in a harmful way.  The damage is done.  Antioxidant supplements don't run through the blood stream kicking free radical butt; they were proactive agents in the plant cells as part of their own defense mechanism. Besides, what if they did work?  Since oxidation is normal and often beneficial, how would we tell mister Vitamin C which processes to interfere with and which ones to allow?  

So, what am I going to do about it?

All of this, after a lot of reading and research, leads to a somewhat puzzling place.  Detection of the presence and amount of free radicals in the body seems impractical until some kind of negative condition develops.  The science doesn't seem to establish specific benefits of dietary antioxidants in preventing the little buggers.  My body seems to have the situation under control in ways I can only begin to understand.  I'm sure as heck not going to stop exercising, as those benefits still seem to greatly outweigh the risks.  So, I'm left to influence the few things I can.  It's somewhat frustrating that I can't offer a set of recommendations with the kind of confidence you might be hoping for; the best I can do is some variant of a nutritional "serenity prayer".

Here's what I know I can control:

   - Limit the influence of oxidative stress where I can through clean air and low-to-no alcohol use.

   - Stop smoking if you feel this is something you are ready to do.

   - Monitor and reduce my LDL cholesterol, particularly in relation to my HDL levels, through a continued diet that limits refined carbohydrates.

   - Support cellular health through the continued inclusion of healthy fats and proteins from whole sources

   - Support the production of growth hormones and protein turnover through a regular weight training regimen to stave off the metabolic slowdown associated with aging

   - Continue eating antioxidant rich foods, such as blueberries, because I enjoy them and they support the rest of my nutrition plan, whether or not they provide any particular antioxidant benefit

   - Continue to avoid excessive supplementation based on magical claims of health benefits

   - Continue to keep track of my overall health through regular doctor visits that include lifestyle and longevity blood panels

   - Given the above, trust my body to take care of the rest

Marketers, sales people, and those that just blithely regurgitate what they're told love to extoll the virtues of their pet products.  More often than not, these are overblown.  Be a skeptic.  Ask questions.  Make connections.  And look for evidence-based material before making drastic changes (or spending money) in things that will affect your health.

Do you have something that makes you "itchy"?  Don't know where to start?  Feel free to leave a comment with your question and we'll do our best to source the best information we can for you.  

Obesity's Perfect Storm

There's something going on in the Western World.  And, despite so much attention being focused on it, it's still getting worse.  The average westerner has lost touch with the innate ability to feed and, thereby, care for ourselves.  People are getting heavier and sicker by the day.  We're more educated, have a higher living standard, and medical science is more advanced than ever before.  How are we not getting the message?

It must be something bigger.

I'm not a conspiracy theorist.  But I do believe in complexity.  And the more I learn, the more I see a "perfect storm" of factors that have come together to, quite literally, shape our society.  To peel it all back, let's take each factor one at a time.

Storm front #1: Flawed Science

It really all starts here.  Whether you agree with his "carbs are the real problem" stance or not, in his book, Good Calories, Bad Calories, Gary Taubes paints a fairly dismal picture of the evolution of medical science with respect to weight and health management.  The foundational focuses are decades old and were based on the limitations of what was known and what could be measured at the time.  These foundations have endured over time and, like a crooked wall, veer ever farther from the original premise.

Scientific studies can do as much harm as good.  This is no critique (necessarily) of the researchers themselves, but more of the instant-gratification, dumb-it-down media to immediately take things out of context and beyond the scope of the study.

These days, the focus is on "curing" obesity.  It was even recently designated a disease.  Open the door for "there's a pill for everything" medicine.  Family practitioners are not up to speed on nutritional science breatkthroughs, and are also less likely to explore lifestyle treatment, like meaningful physical exercise.  The lifestyle mantras are quoted chapter and verse by doctors across the world: get 30 minutes of cardio, 2-3 times a week and eat less fat.  But there is little expectation that patients will follow this advice, so very little emphasis is put on the importance of lifestyle and health.

Specialization also takes a toll here.  Diabetologists and endocrinologists are on the front lines of the impacts of obesity.  But those specialists come into the picture after things are well out of control, and "downward" communication to your family doctor isn't happening the way it should.  Instead, the entire focus has been put on calories in vs calories out, rather than on how to nourish and power our bodies.

Storm front #2: "Big Fitness"

The fitness industry, from big box gyms to "as seen on TV" wonder DVDs and gadgets, to the purveyors of miracle supplements and shakes, is a mult-billion dollar industry.  And its customer base is growing.  There is no incentive for the fitness industry to actually get you into shape.  In fact, they'd rather make you dependent on their products and keep you coming back as a return customer.   If you buy a gym membership and never go, the gym still gets your money and the equipment you would be using remains vacant for yet another member.  It's a win/win for the fitness center.  And nothing you buy from TV is ever going to deliver the results promised.  They even tell you that, right on the screen: "results not typical".

Storm front #3: "Lifestyle Marketing"

Can I have a side of Diabetes with that?

I'm in the marketing industry myself.  Everybody is looking for that fundamental emotional connection to make with their customer.  Lifestyle marketing is when you tie your product to a way of life, a feeling of prosperity, happiness, and success.  The tactics are incredibly successful.  Now think about the last restaurant commercial you saw.  Was it really about the food?  Or were there images of attractive people having a great time while eating food?  If you want to have a good time with friends, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  A meal out somewhere?  Where did that come from?

Now think about the advertising for "convenience foods" that pepper the television.  What are the underlying messages there?  Cooking is hard and you don't have time.  Your family will love you for serving this dish.  Plus: hey! added fiber / reduced fat / naturally sweetened - you name it.  Bottom line: this is better than what you could possibly pull off on your own.  Nonsense, I know.  But we, as a society, are completely in the thrall of the convenience food message.  

Storm front #4: "Addictive Flavors"

On the first three points, we are talking about information that is widely available and completely up to the reader to make an informed decision.  Let the buyer beware, right?  But, when it comes to addictive flavors, this is the one topic where I will point a finger at a malignant source.  

Food companies consult with flavor labs to create the perfect balance between a distinctive flavor and a very limited finish.  When the food is in your mouth, the texture and flavor are extremely pleasing, but, in these engineered flavors, the moment you swallow, you need a "boost" to get the flavor back.  It literally keeps you coming back for more.  

We haven't been eating clean for that long: just over a year.  I still remember foods that I loved.  They were my go-tos week after week.  We recently drove across the country and hit some pretty austere territory in the process.  Our choices were limited.  I literally had McDonalds for the first time in 13 months.  It tasted like - nothing.  Nothing at all.  Place after place we stopped, it was the same story.  Safe to say, we were sort of stunned.  When you're used to real food.  The stuff you used to think of as craveable is just a pale shadow of flavor.  And that's the way they design it.  

Storm front #5: "Pop Media"

Have you noticed that when you flip through five different news broadcasts, they're all on the same stories?  That's because they all take their information off the same news wire.  We are obsessed with the sound bite and the news feeds us exactly what we want.  When a study that took five years to conduct and comes with four hundred pages of findings is reduced to a two-minute blurb read by a talking head from a teleprompter, it's fairly safe to say that you aren't getting the nuances.  

Take the recent story on Omega-3 fatty acids.  The study took participants who had prostate cancer and examined their blood chemistry to see if there were any trends.  They found that some of these participants had elevated levels of Omega-3 DHA.  There was a correlation between these participants, all of whom had cancer, and blood levels of this fatty acid.  Of course, people at risk for prostate cancer (men over 50) have been bombarded with messages about supplements that will reduce their risk or the severity of the cancer.  Did they have elevated levels because they were fighting cancer, or was the cancer a result of the Omega-3?  Or... was some other element of body chemistry out of whack that contributed to both the cancer and the blood lipid levels?  The study confessed not to know.  But the news story said "Taking fish oil is associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer."  Period.  

Beyond the news, you run into an endless stream of "talk" shows that are, at best, the blind leading the blind, and at worst, a serious conflict of interest.  People who profit from the endorsement of a product on their forum should be regarded with skepticism, especially when it comes to your health.

Storm front #6: "Urban Myths"

The Internet is a fabulous thing, isn't it?  I mean, you're enjoying our fabulous content right now thanks to the "information superhighway".  But the Internet is a peculiar paradox.  On one hand, it has nutured our craving for instant gratification.  There is always something new to grab your attention.  On the other, it is a vast repository of things that just won't die.  In my military life, when you got a new regulation or new set of orders, they would always tell you that the previous version was obsolete and you should get rid of it.  That was nice.  It was clean and simple.  The new guidance is the only guidance.  

Not so in our modern world.  Everything gets mixed up.  This will save you, that will kill you.  Then tomorrow the whole thing is reversed.  The result is that people hold on to whatever piece of information struck them first or resonated the most, with a healthy dose of skepticism for anything that conflicts with what they perceive to be the truth.  And, with the Internet, they can perpetuate it through a host of different channels, continually re-muddying the waters.  

People mean well.  They believe that their information is the right information.  But there is very little to help you, the reader, from separating established fact from outdated convention from plain ol' poppycock.  

Superstorm: Obesity

By themselves, none of these "storm fronts" would do much damage.  But the way they've coalesced into a combined power, it has colored our perception in a profound way.  Look at how these look when they're strung together into one set of attitudes about food and fitness:

     "I'm overweight, and I know I need cardio exercise three times a week to burn fat, plus I have to watch my fats and cholesterol.  Fiber's great though, so I should eat more grain.  Plus, I drink green tea every day, since it's a fat-burner.  I have a membership at a great gym; they have all these cool classes and tons of treadmills and elliptical machines, plus I bought that "Turbo Jam" DVD, so I can tone and shape my muscles.  It really makes me sweat."  

     "I eat pretty healthy; I only buy low-fat and low-calorie foods. Except on weekends, because that's when I go out with my friends.  Dinner, drinks and dessert are such a great way to unwind and I deserve a little reward.  I'll just work out twice as long on Monday.  When I'm hungry, I usually have an extra bowl of Special K, because it's heart healthy and "they" say the studies show women who eat this weigh less.  Besides, it's delicious! I could eat a whole box of that stuff every day."  

     "I'm not sure why I'm not losing weight.  I don't eat eggs, cheese, or meat hardly ever; I only drink diet soda now, and I've been taking Hydroxycut for months.  I only eat 1200 calories a day (when I don't cheat).  I'm just so tired all the time.  I have no time or energy to go to the gym, let alone cook a lot of crazy food.  I feel bad, because I've paid for the membership, but I'll get back in there soon.  Guess I'll microwave dinner; it's Healthy Choice at least."

Do these sound like anybody you know?  Do you see the subtle influences of the six "storm fronts" across them all?  

How about this one?

     "I love food!  It seems like I'm eating all the time.  Steak, cheese, and full-fat Caesar dressing?  Bring It!  I can't remember the last time I had a bowl of cereal.  I have a vague idea of how many calories I'm eating, but I don't count and don't really care.  I  never jog or hit the elliptical.  The best thing is all the great flavors I get to eat: Mexican, Greek, Chinese, and Italian.  Besides, I save a ton of money by eating at home."

This person is obviously unconcerned about his or her health.  A walking time-bomb, right?  Well, the truth is, this is a declaration that Michelle and I have both made more than once.  In fact, though it is only part of the story, it is a big part of our attitude toward nutrition now.  It flies in the face of everything you know about eating healthy, right?  How could we possibly lose weight with such a bizarre approach to nutrition?  

I'll repeat what I said at the beginning: something is wrong - something bigger than "eat less, move more".  We believe that we have found a winning approach to nutrition and fitness.  I won't say "right" because your goals may be different.  But if you want to lose fat, be stronger, have more energy, and feel great about how you feel and look, then you've come to the right place.  You've got to shed the conventional wisdom, choose a nutrition plan (not a diet) and a training plan (not exercise) that will deliver the results you want.  

How to Spot a Weight Loss Scam

As a moderator of the +Fitness and Nutrition community on Google+, I happily promote sharing ideas and discovering new information from around the world. But every day I see at least a few really kooky ideas put out there (which are promptly banned). The diet and fitness industry makes billions of dollars a year, and an awful lot of it is pure junk. You sink good money and faith into a program and, six weeks later, you're discouraged and frustrated. Whether it is a diet plan, a weight loss supplement, or the latest fitness craze, learn to spot the pretenders and steer clear.

Buzz words

Buzz words are particularly rampant in the female-oriented fitness industry, but can be found anywhere. Be especially wary if you see claims like:

You think Barishnykov started with this?

• Toned


• Long and lean muscles


• Sculpted


• Firmed

In these cases, run - don't walk - in the other direction. These terms are in themselves mythological. And the results will be too.

Targeted fat loss

I especially like the "life-like" spokesmodels

Anything that promises to "burn belly fat" or any other region for that matter is selling you a bill of goods. Your body will release fat reserves from wherever it pleases and nothing you can do will influence that one bit.

This includes so-called "flat belly foods" that will melt your stubborn fat away. Now we love food, and in our Mastering your Macronutrients series, we outline how to determine which choices are better than others. But if a blueberry, avocado, or some green tea really made a difference, don't you think everybody would be skinny as a rail?

"Sweat-based" or "thermic" devices

The tummy-slimming sweat belt - it's a girdle, people.

I'm almost reluctant to bring this up, because I don't want to insult any readers by implying they wouldn't already know better. There are these neoprene girdles and battery-powered devices that promise to "melt" belly fat through sweating. I lived in South Texas for a decade and I can report that I NEVER witnessed any of those bellies melting away in 105 degree heat. Sweat does not relate to fat loss whatsoever.

They promise you results

Honestly - what are you training for with this?

Any program that isn't custom designed for the individual (which means revised significantly over time) can't keep the promise of results. Everybody is different and cookie-cutter programs will work differently for everyone. Besides, most of those "promises" are artfully couched with small-print disclaimers or "as part of a healthy exercise and diet regimen". If you already have a healthy exercise and diet regimen, what exactly is their product doing?

They DON'T promise you results

This may sound counter-intuitive, given my last statement, but hear me out. A good program should be able to make specific claims, without the buzzwords and without the cure-all claims. By that I mean that it should be able to tell you what parts of your body it will impact and how.

You can't tell how it works

Skechers - 'nuff sed.

Body recomposition is about creating adaptation in your systems. If you can't understand exactly what adaptation the program will be creating, whether by being intentionally vague or simply over-promising, it probably will be of questionable benefit when it comes to calculating the results.

You have to subscribe to their product line

This one is a twofer! Team Beach Body and useless workouts.

Every single thing you need to be healthy and strong is on your grocery store shelves and in your local gym. Any product that requires continued and sustained purchase of their proprietary product lines is trying to get an exclusive line to your wallet, which is the only place you'll lose weight. This includes, but is not limited to, the host of multi-level marketers out there, a-la Shakeology and Herbalife.

Upselling

As if it weren't bad enough that someone would require you to buy a membership to care for your own body, many vendors and product lines aren't satisfied with your initial purchase. They want you to get into "boosters" and "turbo-chargers" and other such rocketry to "jump start your fat loss." This is simply the height of predatory business practices.

Anything that doesn't include a nutrition and training component

The bottom line is that there is no substitute, shortcut or magic bullet. The keys to building your best healthy body aren't hard, but they are hard work. There's no way around it. Any discipline you want to master requires dedication and commitment, be it a career, musical ability, or any other skill. Your body is no different.  If you make your health a priority and get on a reputable, proven plan that matches your goals, you will succeed.