Thursday, March 31, 2011

Antioxidants protects against radiation

New research presented at the 36th annual meeting of the Society of Interventional Radiology, has revealed the incredible power of antioxidants to protect the body against the damaging effects of radiation. Researchers from the University of Toronto, Ontario, Can., department of medical imaging found that patients who took an antioxidant blend prior to receiving medical radiation scans experienced significantly less DNA damage than others.

For the study, the team took blood samples of participants and observed the prevalence of DNA strand repairs both with and without the administration of antioxidants. They specifically watched for the quantity and presence of a certain type of protein complex that is known to bind to damaged DNA sites and repair them. Upon analysis, the team found that the antioxidant-supplemented blood had fewer proteins than did normal blood, indicating that far less DNA damage had taken place due to the presence of free radical-scavenging antioxidants.

"Pre-administering this formula before a medical imaging exam may be one of the most important tools to provide radioprotection and especially important for patients in the getting CT scans," added the lead researcher. Based on team's observations, the antioxidant blend visibly reduced DNA damage by as much as 50 percent.

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