Use of Antioxidants in several Chronic and Degenerative Diseases Treatment

Abstract

Antioxidants are compounds widely spread in the plant kingdom; The antioxidants study concern has increased in recent decades due to the consumption of them has been associated with the decrease of chronic and degenerative  diseases incidence such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases. These are a serious public health problem that impacts significantly on the Health Programs expenditure percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP). Within the wide range of antioxidants, there exist polyphenols among which the flavonoids stand out because they have shown to have antioxidant activity capable of inhibiting free radicals formation such as superoxide and hydroxyl known as reactive oxygen species (ROS). They are capable of causing cell damage triggering different chronic and degenerative diseases. There is a great myriad of food like the blueberry, red wine, green tea and cocoa that have been studied for their antioxidant properties and association to prevent such diseases. The authors infer that this happens because of the high content of phenolic compounds found in this food and conclude that a diet rich in polyphenols meaningfully reduce the risk of developing a chronic and degenerative disease.