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Showing posts with label Astaxanthin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Astaxanthin. Show all posts

November 22, 2011

Astaxanthin naturally prevents sunburn



Overexposure to sunlight can have devastating effects on human skin. From minor sunburns to melanoma skin cancer, spending too much time in the sun can result in everything from discomfort to fatal disease. For this reason, preventing overexposure to sunlight has been at the forefront of peoples' minds for years. Though staying out of the sun entirely is not an option for most individuals, utilizing sunscreen can drastically reduce the effects of direct sunlight. Astaxanthin, an antioxidant, has been indicated as a naturally occurring skin protector that can minimize the damage caused by the sun's rays.

Astaxanthin is a member of the carotenoid family, which is a group of plant chemicals that are used by many species of flora to ward off damaging effects of the sun. A natural sunscreen, astaxanthin has been protecting plants for thousands of years. Astaxanthin is also present in the many animals that eat plants, especially algae. These animals include mostly seafood, such as salmon, shrimp, crab, and lobster, but also include flamingos.

Unfortunately for humans, simply consuming foods rich in astaxanthin is not enough to prevent sunburn; however, taking the antioxidant as a dietary supplement in pill form may be beneficial. As a powerful substance that can infiltrate every part of the body (cells, brain, nervous system, eyes, organs, and skin), astaxanthin can cross the blood-brain barrier, infiltrate the blood stream, and provide benefits to every cell in the human body.

But how does this antioxidant prevent sunburn, specifically? The sun's rays damage the skin through free radicals, which are also responsible for causing premature signs of aging and some cancers. Counteracting the activities of free radicals with antioxidants is important in preventing damage, such as sunburn, and astaxanthin is one of the most powerful antioxidants in the body.

Building up enough astaxanthin to effectively prevent sun damage may take several weeks, prompting many people to rely upon over-the-counter sunscreens; however, the over-the-counter brands contain a great deal of harmful chemicals and also cause free radical damage, among other things. This is one of the many cases where products that are meant to protect the body cause just as much harm, if not more, than the damage they are meant to avoid.

Astaxanthin is a proven natural preventative of sunburn, but it is not yet evident how much of the antioxidant needs to be present in the body to provide reliable protection. Additionally, there is no way to be sure of the levels that your body contains. Taking a natural astaxanthin supplement will certainly improve the body's ability to prevent sunburn, but if you decide to utilize this method of sun protection, be sure that you pay attention to the supplements you take and the amount of time you stay in the sun to gauge how long you will remain safe from sunburn.

For anyone that is looking for natural protection against sunburns, astaxanthin is a great alternative to the chemical-laden products that are sold in many stores. The benefits of this supplement are clear; however, if you do implement it into your dietary routine, be sure to pay close attention to your sun exposure to develop an understanding of how long your antioxidant levels can keep you safe.

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June 23, 2011

Astaxanthin is a top natural anti-inflammatory

Astaxanthin, a substance known to be the most potent known antioxidant, has a natural and scientifically proven anti-inflammatory ability. The fact that astaxanthin is natural and has no side effects makes it very attractive to people as a health supplement. The scandals and deaths associated with leading pharmaceutical anti-inflammatories make it all the more appealing.
Astaxanthin is a red pigment found in different strains of algae, phytoplankton and plants. Because these organisms constitute the base of many food chains, the pigments can also be found in some animals as well. For example, it is astaxanthin that gives salmon and trout their reddish colour; in fact, the redder the fish are the healthier we can assume they are.
When certain types of algae are under stress, usually caused by a lack of nutrition or too much sun, the cells of the algae accumulate high concentrations of astaxanthin for protection. Due to the protective abilities of the pigment, these algae cells can lay dormant for up to 40 years without food or water and still return to normal under proper conditions.
Inflammation
Inflammation is a first-response defence and healing function that becomes active before our immune system does. If our bodies cannot solve the problem with inflammation, then our immune system takes over. Inflammation can occur within seconds in response to some kind of injury or attack on the body. It is non-specific, which means that is does not matter what the problem is: your body always responds in a similar way.
Specifically, the inflammation process is an extremely complex and highly evolved system. In general, inflammation causes redness, swelling, heat and pain. These effects occur due to the effects of a wide spectrum of inflammation mediators that are released after a detected injury or attack. Some of the known mediators include prostaglandins, tumor necrosis factors, interleukins and nitric oxide. All of these different substances play a role in a complex, coordinated and balanced defence of the body.
One type of mediator, prostaglandins, are chemical messengers that can, for example, regulate the contraction and relaxation of smooth muscle to increase or decrease blood flow. Prostaglandins are generally made from arachidonic acid and two enzymes called COX-1 and COX-2. The biggest-selling pharmaceutical anti-inflammatories are extremely strong COX-2 inhibitors, which means they limit the production of prostaglandins and therefore ease swelling and pain. Part of the reason that these synthetic drugs cause undesirable, and sometimes dangerous, side effects is because it is very unnatural and unbalanced for the body to deal with the extreme suppression of a single mediator (in this case just one of the two COX enzymes) without affecting the balance of all the other mediators. Naturally occurring anti-inflammatories in foods we eat ease inflammation by gently inhibiting several inflammation-causing mediators, including prostaglandins, thereby calming the process as a whole.
Although astaxanthin is no where near as strong as leading pharmaceutical anti-inflammatories, it has been found to be one of the strongest anti-inflammatories found in nature. Several double-blind, placebo-controlled animal and human clinical trials have shown that astaxanthin naturally inhibits many of the known inflammation-mediators and therefore can ease inflammation and pain without any negative side-effects.
The red pigment does, however, have many side-benefits such as being the strongest acting antioxidant known as well as being extremely beneficial for your eyes, central nervous system, brain, skin and immune system and for increasing sports performance & recovery.

 
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