Antioxidants are credited with the power to make a person healthier. From losing weight, improving circulation and sleep, to fighting free radicals and a host of other good things, antioxidants are touted as the cure all for just about anything. Antioxidants, however, do not possess magical powers, nor are they infallible compounds that benefit everyone. Here is something about antioxidants your nutritionist didn’t tell you.
A recent study published in The Proceedings of the Nation Academy of Science indicates that taking the antioxidant compounds, Vitamins C and E, may not be the best thing to do if you are a diabetic or at risk of developing diabetes.
One of the ways a person who is at risk of developing diabetes is told to reduce the chance of developing the disease is with regular exercise. Exercise is intended to not only improve overall health and make a body stronger; it also improves the way a person’s body reacts to insulin. However, in a study of male subjects, the men who took daily vitamins and exercised showed no improvement in how their body reacted to insulin, while those who exercised and didn’t take vitamins showed an increase in insulin sensitivity.
No one can argue that exercise is good for your health. It’s true that when you exercise it increases the production of more free radicals that can damage the healthy cells in our bodies. Some vitamins, however, like vitamins A and C function as antioxidants, and take care of those free radicals before any damage is done.
In the case of a person who has or is at risk of diabetes, it appears that reducing those free radicals may also eliminate insulin sensitivity. Here’s why.
In order for exercise to help the body to react to insulin a certain amount of free radicals must be produced. Once free radical production reaches a certain level, the body’s insulin production kicks in. By taking the antioxidant compounds, vitamins A and C, the free radicals are staved off, and apparently don’t grow enough in numbers to cause the body to react with insulin production.
This study doesn’t negate other benefits we reap from proper amounts of exercise, and the study is still in its infancy stages. It is, however, something to keep an eye on in the future.
As the studies continue, there will be more information for scientists to utilize in their efforts to determine the effects of vitamin intake on those who have or are at risk of developing diabetes. By no means should you stop or start taking vitamins A and C as a result of this information.
Consult both your nutritionist and your primary care doctor if you feel as if you want to stop or start taking any vitamin supplements. The human body is an amazing machine, and each one is unique in and of itself. Your doctors know your body’s mechanics better than anyone and they are knowledgeable with regard to altering how you treat it. As such, you should take care to consult them before you make any changes in your daily routines with regard to your health.
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