Can Antioxidants Really Cure Cancer?

Cancer is primarily caused by free radicals in the body due to wrong eating habit, poor nutrition, pollution and genetic factors. To fight the bad effects of these free radicals, antioxidants work as the human body's first line of defense to stop the possibility of cell damage that can lead to cell malignancy, or the rapid multiplication of cells without the aid of apoptosis (programmed cell death). So you think antioxidants can cure cancer, right? Sorry to disappoint you but not quite.

Antioxidants can, in fact, help prevent cancer by cleaning our system from unwanted chemicals – prevent, not cure. In clinical studies that also involved the use of placenta (empty medicines), the consensus clearly stated antioxidant’s important role in fighting certain degenerative diseases. But until now, scientists are having a hard time finalizing the conclusions regarding in vivo experiments.

Resveratrol, glutathione, green tea extract and grape seed extract are the favorite candidates because they truly show promising results.

Resveratrol is said to amplify the effectiveness of radiotherapy and chemotherapy against some cancers but the common factor is not really clear. It has an effect, but the question is still why and how.

Glutathione is also effective in killing cancer cells, if and only if, the human body can contain huge amounts, which you will not get from mere supplements alone.

Green tea extract performed great against leukemia cells in one clinical study, but one is not enough. Further studies should be done, but chances of conducting similar trials are not very clear as of this moment.

Grape seed extract has cancer fighting characteristics, but making use of this antioxidant still leaves experts dumbfounded.

The new fad against cancer is currently undergoing clinical trials. It is CoEnzyme10 (CoQ10), which may reverse the malignancy of some cancer cell lines, like breast cancer.

It is important to be reminded that the effectiveness of these popular antioxidants varies from person to person and the type of cancer in concern. For instance, direct contact with malignant cells, like in the case of gastric cancers, tongue and throat cancers, and stomach cancers, can increase the chances of cure compared to those in isolated body areas like bones, brain and lungs.