Antioxidants

Antioxidants are substances that reduce oxidative damage (damage due to oxygen) to cells such as that caused by free radicals. Free radicals are highly reactive chemicals that attack and damage cells throughout the body.  Well-known antioxidants include a number of enzymes and other substances such as vitamin C, vitamin E and beta carotene that are capable of counteracting the damaging effects of oxidation. Antioxidants have been shown to be effective in inhibiting the development of heart disease, they play a role in maintaining lung function in adults, reduced breast cancer risk among pre-menopausal women and many other benefits.

Some of the most potent antioxidants are flavonols. These flavonols are found in fruits and vegetables and can be extracted from the bark of pine trees. Flavonols contain very important substances called oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs). OPCs were patented in 1987 as nutritional agents that act as antioxidant scavengers of free radicals. Free radicals are electrically charged molecules that can destroy other normal molecules. Free radicals are harmful and are thought to be a causative factor in many chronic and degenerative diseases caused by oxidative stress.

Pycnogenol is one of the most powerful antioxidant free radical scavengers known. According to reports by Horphag Research Ltd. and others, Pycnogenol® is 50 times more potent than vitamin E and 20 times more potent than vitamin C in its antioxidant activity. Pycnogenols (flavonoids) enhance the effectiveness of antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, beta-carotene and other antioxidant nutrients. As a natural antioxidant, it is unique. It can penetrate the blood brain barrier.