Did you know that every day, your body is under quiet attack?
Not from anything dramatic like a lion or a hurricane, but from the small stuff like stress, pollution, poor air quality, processed food, plastics and chemicals. All of these generate something called free radicals. That may sound political and remote, not personal and medical, but free radicals can damage your cells over time.
Your body does have a sophisticated natural defence system. But modern life produces far more oxidative stress than we humans have evolved to handle. This is where antioxidants come in and why supporting your antioxidant defences is no longer optional. It is essential.
What is oxidative stress?
Oxidative stress happens when there are more free radicals than your body can neutralise. A free radical is a cell that is unstable because it is missing an electron. Cells generally have a proton, a neutron and an electron (remember your biology GCSE?!). You can think of a free radical like an unsteady person bumping into others and causing damage while trying to rebalance.
In small amounts, free radicals are normal and even useful. As with stress, your body is designed to thrive from a little bit of it in the right circumstances. Free radicals help fight infections and support cell signalling. But when they build up due to environmental toxins, chronic stress, inflammation or chemical exposure, they begin to damage cell membranes and DNA.
Over time, this damage is linked to ageing, inflammation, metabolic disease, neurodegeneration and even cancer.
What is an antioxidant?
Antioxidants are essential for the survival of all living things. They neutralise free radicals before they can damage your cells. Antioxidants work by donating an electron to the free radical, calming it without becoming unstable themselves.
Your body makes some antioxidants naturally, the most important being glutathione, often described as the body’s master antioxidant. Others come from food, plants and microbes.
Without enough antioxidants, oxidative damage builds silently over time.
What do antioxidants do in the body?
They help to:
• Reduce chronic inflammation
• Support healthy immune responses
• Protect DNA from damage
• Protect mitochondria (your cells’ energy centres)
• Support normal cell growth and repair
Importantly, antioxidants don’t stop all oxidation, they keep it in balance. Health depends on balance, not elimination.
How are free radicals generated?
Free radicals can be generated by:
• Inflammation
• Air pollution
• Pesticides and chemicals
• UV radiation
• Heavy metals
• PFAS and other “forever chemicals”
Left unchecked, they damage cells and interfere with normal biological processes.
How do free radicals contribute to abnormal cell growth and cancer?
This is one of the most well-studied areas of biology. Free radicals can damage DNA. When DNA is damaged and not repaired correctly, mutations occur. Over time, repeated mutations increase the risk of cells growing out of control; this is one of the hallmarks of cancer.
Oxidative stress is now recognised as a key driver in cancer initiation and progression, particularly when combined with chronic inflammation.
It’s important to say: antioxidants are not a cancer cure. But maintaining healthy antioxidant defences, especially through diet and biological support, helps reduce unnecessary DNA damage over a lifetime.
Do PFAS, or forever chemicals, increase free radicals and unstable cells?
This is where newer research, like this recent BBC Panorama investigation, highlight a significant link in the story.
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are often called forever chemicals because they do not break down easily in the environment or in the body.
They are found in:
• Non-stick cookware
• Water-resistant fabrics
• Food packaging
• Firefighting foams
• Contaminated water supplies
Emerging research shows that PFAS exposure is linked to:
• Increased production of free radicals
• Reduced activity of antioxidant enzymes
• Higher levels of oxidative stress
• DNA damage
In other words, PFAS appear to weaken the body’s antioxidant defences while increasing oxidative load, which is a dangerous combination.
Some PFAS, including PFOA, are now classified as carcinogenic to humans, partly because oxidative stress and chronic inflammation are known pathways to cancer development.
How can I boost antioxidants in my body?
The best way to get antioxidants is through a varied diet. Focus on a rainbow diet for diverse nutrients, because antioxidants occur naturally in whole, living foods, especially those grown in healthy soil.
Some examples are:
• Deeply coloured vegetables and fruits
• Herbs and spices
• Fermented foods
• Polyphenol-rich plants
• Foods grown in biologically active soils
Diversity matters more than large doses. A varied, whole-food diet supplies many different antioxidants that work together, rather than relying on a single compound.
How our probiotic supports antioxidant production
Your gut is one of your most important antioxidant organs. Certain beneficial microbes can help to produce antioxidant compounds, reduce inflammation and strengthen the gut barrier which reduces toxin absorption.
Our liquid probiotic is built around living, soil-based microbes, fermented with traditional plants and minerals. It mirrors the way humans have evolved with microbes through soil, food and nature. Rather than acting like a single isolated antioxidant, microbz supports the systems that regulate oxidative balance.
Recently, we tested one of our formulations - sustain - for its antioxidant properties. At the lab, they filled a petri dish with free radicals and added our product to monitor the result. They found that sustain neutralised 86% of the free radicals in the petri dish. This means that it is an incredibly powerful antioxidant and can support the body’s resilience.
Research shows that when microbial ecosystems are supported, rather than suppressed, the body becomes better equipped to manage modern environmental pressures, including chemical exposure.
We cannot avoid all free radicals.
We cannot eliminate all toxins.
But we know how to strengthen the systems that protect us. Naturally.
References
Chaudhary, P., Janmeda, P., Docea, A.O., Yeskaliyeva, B., Abdull Razis, A.F., Modu, B., Calina, D. and Sharifi-Rad, J. (2023). Oxidative stress, free radicals and antioxidants: potential crosstalk in the pathophysiology of human diseases. Frontiers in Chemistry, 11, Article 1158198. https://doi.org/10.3389/fchem.2023.1158198 Frontiers+1
National Cancer Institute (NCI) (2017). Antioxidants and Cancer Prevention (Fact Sheet). (Reviewed/updated by NCI; page includes discussion of free radicals, DNA damage and cancer risk, and why supplement trials are mixed.) Cancer.gov
Soares, L.O.S. et al. (year as indexed in PubMed). Antioxidant system alterations and oxidative stress caused by PFAS exposure (review). PubMed record. (Mechanistic overview of how PFAS may disrupt antioxidant systems and increase oxidative stress.) PubMed
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (2023). IARC Monographs evaluate the carcinogenicity of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS). (Summary of Working Group conclusions: PFOA Group 1; PFOS Group 2B.) IARC+1
Gunn, T. and Brooks, S. (2023). PFAS and cancer: what do we know about forever chemicals? Cancer Research UK News, 11 December 2023. Cancer Research UK - Cancer News
BBC Panorama (2025). The Truth About Forever Chemicals. (Panorama investigation; reporter Catrin Nye.) IMDb+1
Manchester Metropolitan University (2025). Revealing hidden dangers of ‘forever chemicals’ on BBC Panorama. (News item highlighting the programme and MMU academic contribution.)
