Chronic inflammation and free radicals

Chronic inflammation and free radicals

The normal inflammatory response is, in part, a burst of free radicals produced by the immune system in response to an injury. This natural production of free radicals occurs to prevent infection and to promote healing at a site of injury.

In simple terms, a free radical is an electrically charged particle. This electrical charge occurs because the free radical is missing an electron. To become stabilized, a free radical must “steal” its missing electron from another molecule. When the electron is stolen from an invader (e.g., bacteria), the invader’s molecular structure is damaged, which leads to its death (as intended by the immune system). When there are no invaders left to destroy and when there is a lack of electrons available from antioxidants to stabilize excess free radicals, free radicals then turn to the only other source from which they can steal electrons – healthy cells. The resulting damage to and death of healthy cells, from loss of electrons to free radicals, further signals the immune system for additional help. This sets up a continuous autoimmune response (creating more free radicals), which promotes chronic inflammation and tissue damage, commonly referred to as oxidative stress.

Chronic overproduction of free radicals by the immune system results in inflammatory- related disease such as arthritis, arteriosclerosis, heart attack, Type II diabetes, lupus, MS, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, etc. A classic example of the damage caused by excess free radical production is the chronic swelling and joint degeneration of arthritis. A chronic inflammatory condition can only stop when the excess of electrically charged free radicals in the area of inflammation is stabilized and the attack on healthy cells ends.