Oxygen has been a critical component in the evolution of life on earth, and humans are no exception as the gas has enabled nutrients to be used more efficiently, in turn allowing for the essential generation of energy required for development and growth. While oxygen is a crucial part of life, it is also implicated in the generation of free radicals that promote abnormal cellular destruction, cancer proliferation and advanced aging in humans.
Many environmental factors such as pollution, cigarette smoke, and radiation turn the oxygen molecules found in mitochondria into free radicals. These unstable molecules destroy the normal molecules that form our cells, such as lipids, proteins, and even DNA, by turning them into free radicals.
The destructive nature of free radicals is behind the genesis of many chronic diseases including hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, dementia, and cancer. This knowledge has prompted researchers to investigate the potent antioxidant properties of fruits and vegetables in the fight against these often fatal illnesses.
Avocado oil protects cellular mitochondria to prevent free radical damage and agingMany prior studies designed to investigate the impact of food based antioxidants on human health have been disappointing because most phytonutrients are unable to penetrate the mitochondrial power factories housed in each cell. Free radicals continue to damage the delicate mitochondria, causing energy production to stop and the cell to collapse and die.
Researchers from the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) have released the results of a study conducted with avocado oil to determine absorption by the mitochondria and subsequent neutralization of deadly free radicals. Avocado oil is highly resistant to oxidation, and has been shown to help neutralize the metabolic effects of iron, a primary cause of cellular oxidation.
Lead study design author, Dr. Christian Cortez-Rojo noted that "avocado oil causes accelerated respiration in mitochondria, which indicates that the use of nutrients for producing energy for cell functions remains effective even in cells attacked by free radicals and that mitochondria can produce little amounts of damaging free radicals." Avocados have been maligned for decades as poor dietary advice about fat consumption has prevailed in modern medical culture.
The study concluded that avocado lowers the blood concentration of cholesterol and certain fats that are increased in diabetic patients and that may lead to stroke or heart attack. Adding small amounts of avocado to your daily diet can provide excellent antioxidant support to protect mitochondria from early decline and protect against chronic diseases of aging.
