Free Radical Cascade
Dr. Bob was a MD internal medicine, orthomolecular doctor, MD psychiatrist, chiropractor, and healer 65 years. He was a diabetic who lived to 108 years with only 1 side effect 2 years before he passed away.
Dr. Bob once said that free radicals are like loose canons rolling on a ship deck. This rolling motion can go on and on, creating much destruction. Generally, stable atoms within the body come with electrons in pairs. These paired electrons spin around the nucleus of the atom, with the two electrons balancing each other's electromagnetic forces. Free radicals are atoms with an unpaired electron spinning around the nucleus. The unpaired electron is electromagnetically unbalanced, and in an attempt to reach equilibrium, plucks an electron from the nearest intact molecule. This disrupts the structure of the nearby molecule creating another free radical.
One important method to neutralize free radicals in the body is with antioxidants. Antioxidants furnish the needed extra electron and help neutralize free radicals. By the preponderance of evidence, modern medical science estimates that about 80% of damage from disease is the product of free radicals, so when you stop free radicals you can often stop or decrease disease conditions.
Free radicals are created in the body all the time from natural processes, such as breathing, fuel burning at the cell level, as well as other processes. The idea is not that free radicals are evil, but rather that they need to be neutralized as soon as possible.
When dealing with free radicals, it is important to understand the idea of the free radical cascade. For instance, when a person is first developing a disease, the disease process creates free radicals. Therefore, the body's first stage of alarm reaction is to try and neutralize and balance this disease process immediately. This is the alarm phase of disease, the stage in which the body is trying to eradicate the problem immediately and totally.
According to Dr. Bob, this alarm phase lasts 24 to 72 hours. After this period the second stage of disease fighting occurs. Dr. Bob referred to this as the siege stage. In this stage the body is gathering its resources and getting ready for a prolonged battle. The problem with the siege stage is that at this point there are two problems, not one. In the alarm stage the body's main concern was the disease condition and the free radicals it was creating. However, in the siege stage the free radicals as well as the disease process are creating more free radicals. In other words, free radicals are creating more free radicals. This process can lead to the danger of a free radical cascade, in which uncontrolled free radicals get out of hand. The free radicals cause extensive damage and result in additional free radical creation. That is a lot of loose canons rolling around!
When the free radicals get out of control, our system begins the last phase of disease control. This phase is simply the breakdown of the body. The idea is to stop the free radical damage before it becomes a cascade. The best place to begin is in the first stage of alarm. Take for example the initial symptoms of a cold. In the beginning you start to get the sniffles and sore throat. At this point you are only dealing with the disease process and the initial free radicals created by it. This is your best chance to wipe the cold out. So, at the first sign of symptoms you should do the things you usually do for a cold, such as taking lots of liquids, resting, and staying warm. You might consider supplementing vitamin C to help fight free radicals. This idea is described in the article, "Overlooked Cure for Terminal Illness." The goal is to never let free radical damage reach the level of the free radical cascade. As the free radical cascade gets more out of control, it is harder for the healing functions of the body to keep up with the damage. A good example of this is chronic resentment, mentioned in other articles on this web site. When a person has a chronic negative emotion like resentment, the resentment results in certain hormones being pumped out into the bloodstream continuously. This imbalance of hormones leads to the creation of free radicals. Because the condition is chronic, the negative emotions result in the body continuing to pump out hormones, leading to the destructive free radical cascade.
Ultimately, the free radical cascade leads to breakdown. Vitamin C is a vital antioxidant once the disease process has started, as is explained in the article "Overlooked Cure for Terminal Illness." At the first sign of any disease, increase the antioxidants, particularly vitamin C because it is able to donate electrons. Do not wait several days until you are sure you are really sick. Increase your dose of your multiple vitamins, drink more pure water, try to get more rest, and reduce whatever stresses you can. If you are still sick by about the fourth day, the free radical cascade is just around the corner. It is time to get in bed, increase your vitamin C to 80% bowel tolerance as described in "Overlooked Cure for Terminal Illness," and be aware that things can deteriorate rapidly. If you have ignored illness in the past and gotten better regardless, it is because about 85% of all illness go away. So an excellent idea would be to realize the great value in controlling free radical damage from the onset of symptoms. There are several methods to neutralize free radicals and using antioxidants are one way to combat free radicals, according to Dr. Bob. However, when you reach the fourth day of illness, which is essentially entering the siege stage, you can become a casualty of the other 15% that worsen. Do not take this chance. Take care of yourself. Understand that the longer the illness lasts, the more damage it creates. This damage can be scarring and long term, resulting in more free radical harm. The longer the disease lasts, the more injury you will incur.
There is considerable value in treating illness or disease aggressively right from the beginning. Remember that when you treat an illness lightly you may recover your health, but usually at the cost of long term damage. The more damage you suffer, the more susceptible you are to disease and breakdown later. The best thing to do is to never treat any illness lightly. Be aggressive at the first symptoms, increase your antioxidants, use an excellent multiple vitamin and mineral, eat better, drink distilled water, rest, and etc.
In conclusion, understanding the role of free radicals is vital to understanding disease. Free radicals are damaging. They create many of the problems in the body. The main point of this article is to understand that when free radicals get out of control, problems will multiply much swifter. So tackle stress immediately as a method to decrease free radical production in the body. Do not delay, it can lead to additional free radical production and possibly the free radical cascade. Dr. Bob often said, "go with the flow and contribute to the music of the motion."
Note In order for these anti-aging ideas to be successful, you must use supplements of the highest quality. Dr. Bob often said, "almost all supplement companies produce poor quality." You can consider the product page of this web site. Almost all the products met Dr. Bobs approval. Since he passed away we have attempted to keep the same high standards.
WARNING: DO NOT STOP ANY TREATMENT OR MEDICATION YOU CURRENTLY USE. CONSULT WITH YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE STARTING THE USE OF SUPPLEMENTS.
Thank you for visiting this web site. Go with the flow and contribute to the music of the motion. If you are happy with any information found on this web site, please consider a .The Food and Drug Administration has not evaluated any of the statements contained on this web site. The information contained in this article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Remember each person's body is different and will react differently to various herbal, vitamin and mineral supplements. Therefore, any supplementation must be administered on an individual basis. Use the information found on this web site as precisely that: Information. You and your doctor must make any final decisions. This information is not meant to replace any doctor and patient consultation. This information should in no way replace your personal physician's advice.
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Page Last Modified: 26 Sep 2004