The Role of Antioxidants in Combating Free Radicals and Ageing – News18
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Read how antioxidants serve as your body’s natural defence against environmental stressors and premature ageing in everything from skincare to food.
The best defence against ageing for your skin? Antioxidants!
Ageing is part of life. There’s no denying it, and everyone ages differently too. In this social media-driven world, people uphold many unrealistic beauty standards, which can create confidence issues and self-doubt. Premature aging will pose a major concern, which can result in a pessimistic viewpoint towards our own beauty, both inside and out.
What most people don’t know is that genetics and lifestyle play a crucial role in ageing, but one of the biggest contributors is free radicals. They can do significant damage to our cells, resulting in faster ageing and even the development of health issues.
A very effective way to avoid damage from free radicals is by using antioxidants. These are easily obtainable from our diet, our own bodies, and even skincare products. These antioxidants help slow down the ageing process and improve overall health. In fact, it is projected that anti-ageing products worldwide will see a CAGR of six percent over the period of 2023-2032 and reach nearly $80 billion.
How to prevent damage from free radicals
Free radicals are naturally produced in our body. They are unstable molecules, usually missing an electron, making them highly reactive. They tend to steal molecules from our body, from cells, proteins, or even DNA. This causes major damage to our body, resulting in wrinkles, skin sagging, etc. Sometimes, they can even evolve into more terminal problems like cancer due to accumulation and even speed up the ageing process.
Several studies show that environmental factors contribute to ageing. For example, this review demonstrates that cellular senescence and skin aging are closely regulated and connected and that they can, in fact, be induced by air pollution, cigarette smoke, etc.
Antioxidants put up a strong shield against these free radicals. They can neutralise the free radicals by donating electrons to them, therefore balancing them out. Though our bodies can produce antioxidants on their own, most of them come from our diet.
Antioxidants can also be found in anti-ageing products that have vitamins C & E. Each of these antioxidants helps in different ways to help protect our bodies. Vitamin C is vital for maintaining skin health and protecting against sun damage or UV radiation. Vitamin E helps in protecting skin cells.
Antioxidant products that help in slowing down aging
As we get older, our body functions tend to slow down, thus producing fewer antioxidants, and as cells also become less effective at repairing the damage, the ageing process gains faster momentum. We need to find ways to boost our intake of antioxidants and help our bodies counteract the decline. Skincare products can be immensely helpful for this; products with retinols and some herbal plant-based products are gradually becoming popular all across the globe.
Ayurvedic products are quite popular, and research by Grand View Research shows that the global herbal beauty products market size is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.3% from 2025 to 2030.
Here are some products that can help slow down ageing:
- Retinol:Retinol products are helpful in increasing skin elasticity and slowing down melanin production, making them the perfect anti-ageing products. Retinols also help neutralise free radicals in your skin. It is one of the best skincare products available on the market.
- Kumkumadi:Indian Ayurvedic practices have been working on developing products that help slow down the ageing process. Kumkumadi gel or oil helps in moisturizing skin and can help rejuvenate the skin with ingredients like turmeric, sandalwood, saffron, licorice, etc.
- Bakuchiol:Bakuchiol is a magical skin treatment plant-derived serum that is known for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. It can increase collagen production and reduce wrinkle appearances. It is often considered a replacement for retinol products.
The Bottom Line
It is important for us to look after our bodies, and adopting methods to curb premature ageing can help us be healthy and even confident in our lives. By maintaining healthy skin and taking care of it, we are not just nourishing our bodies but also protecting them from severe damage from extremely negative environmental impact.
(With inputs by Mr. Ganesh Kamath (Founder and CEO of Earthraga)
