July 29, 2014

NADH Helps in Eliminating Cancer-Causing Free Radicals

NADH is an abbreviation for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide. The last H stands for a high energy hydrogen and shows that it is a reduced form of the coenzyme 1 which is another term for NADH. The coenzyme 1 is present in the entire human as well as the animal cells. The coenzyme 1 helps the body in producing cellular energy so as to function properly. It is also very important as it triggers the production of dopamine and serotonin. Coenzyme 1 has been found to relieve symptoms such as fatigue, loss of concentration, jet lag, muscle injury, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s as well as memory loss. This coenzyme 1 has also been proposed by researchers to have an effect on cancer cell growth and metastasis.

Biologically, enzymes are known to catalyze processes and help in creation of products that our bodies need to continue living. It is the enzymes that help in the breakdown of foods as well as uptake of the digested foods for use by the body. The enzymes however can be able to accomplish these processes if another factor collaborates with them to complete these functions, this factor that is needed for enzymes to accomplish these biological processes is called a co-enzyme. Without the coenzymes the enzymes will not be able to work properly. Coenzyme is a necessity for enzymes to be active and work favorably.

Coenzyme 1 is an enzyme that helps in the production of energy at the cellular level. In case the NADH is not sufficient, the production of energy in the cells will be slowed and the little energy available will not be able to let the cells work normally. The common symptom for this is fatigue. The coenzyme is the fuel that drives the machines that generate cell energy and it is needed in sufficient supplies to produce more energy. NADH is such an important coenzyme, however it declines in level with aging. Enzymes that are dependent on NADH also reduce in levels as you grow old. This may lead to energy deficiency at the cell level.

Is naturally found in foods

Just like other most valued nutrients, NADH can be found naturally in the foods we eat. This coenzyme is present in all living cells be it animal cell or plant cell. It can therefore be found in the foods we eat daily. Meat, fish and poultry have the highest levels of coenzyme 1. In fact meat contains higher levels of NADH as compared to fruits and vegetables. This is against the dietary common belief that all vital nutritional components can only be found in fruits and vegetables. However, the way we cook our foods kill this vital coenzyme. Scientists advice that even if we were to eat raw meat we would still lose some of the NADH as the stomach gastric acid degrades the NADH in the foods when they reach the stomach. Typically, the NADH is found in high levels in the animals as they need it to produce energy for movement and locomotion. It can also be found in birds particularly in the heart and their flight muscles.

Due to the fact that plants do not move from place to place, they do not need much energy, therefore their NADH production is much lower than in animals. Vegetarians have had cases of deficit in the coenzyme 1 which leads to low energy in the cells. They can get the needed coenzyme by using supplements of the stabilized NADH popularly known as Enada to enable their bodies to work optimally.

This coenzyme is helpful in curbing cancer as it is very good at reducing the free radicals that are known to cause cancer. These free radicals are often produced when the cells during metabolic processes. The body has antioxidants that help it defend the normal cells from being damaged irreversibly by the free radicals. One of the body’s most vital components of the antioxidative protection shield is the NADH as it is very rich in reduction abilities of any compounds in the cells.

The intercellular content of the free radicals increases greatly in the presence of free radicals inducers such as radiation or cytostatics. The body’s protective system against the free radicals is not always maimed by the internal fluctuations in the production of free radicals. However the antioxidative protection system may be overwhelmed by high levels of free radicals that invade the body from outside. The higher the amounts of free radicals in the cell the greater the damage it can cause to the cells. In most cases the DNA make up of the cell will get altered which leads to formation of cancerous cells.

NADH To avoid cancer, it is important for the body to eliminate the large amounts of the free radicals. In most cases due to the toxicity of the outside environment, the body may have too much free radical for it to handle. Eating foods that are rich in NADH helps in eliminating free radicals as NADH is the most potent antioxidants which are also known to scavenge for the free radicals, eliminating them from the body thereby reducing cancer risk. Since the levels of NADH production declines with age, it is advisable that the aged should supplement NADH to avoid their bodies being overwhelmed by the toxic free radicals. The same applies to vegetarians, vegetables do not contain lots of NADH and so it is better for them to use NADH supplements.

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NADH Helps in Eliminating Cancer-Causing Free Radicals

Amino Acids in Fighting Addiction

July 26, 2014

Amino Acids Aid in Treatment of Addiction

Addiction to drugs has been on a rise over the last century. It has therefore been a concern all over the world to develop medication which would address this problem. Through researches many prescription drugs were developed and many of them have proven to cure addiction. Another concern which has of late arisen is that some of the drugs that are given to us (patients) by doctors as prescription drugs have also turned to be addictive. A good example of these drugs is the opioids which are meant to cure pains. This has prompted need to device medication which can cure any kind of addiction, either resulting from legal and illegal drugs or over the counter drugs. One of the treatments which have proven effective is the amino acid treatment.

What is amino acid?

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. These acids are responsible for building the cells, repairing tissues, also responsible for the production of enzymes not forgetting their role in the mental health. Research has shown that about twenty percent of a human body is made up of proteins.

It is important to note that, although proteins are vital in the human body, the body cannot obtain them directly from the food. These dietary proteins must be broken into their constituent amino acids which the body then uses to build the specific proteins that it needs. In this respect, we can conclude that it is the amino acids rather than protein that are essential nutrients.

amino acids

Why are some amino acids referred to as essential?

There are basically two categories of amino acids. These are the Essential and non-essential amino acids. Yes, they are referred to as essential because the body needs them in plenty but it cannot synthesize in sufficient quantities to satisfy the nutritional requirements for good health and thus they must be included in our diets. On the other hand there are other amino acids which are regarded as non-essential because they do not have to be included in our diets since they are not required in plenty by our bodies and also the body can synthesize enough for itself.

How does amino acid cure addiction then?

Like we mentioned earlier, Neurotransmitters are made from amino acids which is the building block of proteins. The brain nervous system is almost entirely regulated by amino acids and their biochemical companions, vitamins and minerals. In this respect, before we look at how amino acids cures addictions is important to note that there are key neurotransmitters which are affected by addiction and needs to be restored to their normal state for the person to recover from drug addiction, and be free from craving and anxiety during the period of recovery. Amino acid treatment plays this role by restoring the affected neurotransmitters to their normal conditions. These neurotransmitters are responsible for good mental health and they include: – Serotonin, Catecholamine; GABA; and Endorphin. Amino acids in the treatment of addiction address the tyrosine pathway, the glutamine GABA pathway in the treatment of addiction, Tryptophan pathway, Serotonin and Melatonin Pathways, Taurine IV for
addiction

What is the Role of cofactors and coenzymes in Amino Acid treatment?

Let’s start by understanding what cofactors and coenzymes refer to. Cofactors refer to non-protein molecules which are required for effective activity of Amino Acids. These cofactors can be organic or inorganic substances. The organic cofactors are the ones referred to as Enzymes. In this case therefore, enzymes can be seen as protein catalysts that are responsible for lowering the energy barriers of many biological reactions. They do this by lowering the activation energy of the reaction that they catalyze and this allows the metabolic reaction to occur faster that it would under normal temperatures.

What makes cofactors important?

Just like we have mentioned above, the cofactors will catalyze the reaction ensuring sufficient metabolic energy generation. One of the notable important cofactors is the metal ions. These include ions such as Magnesium (Mg⁺⁺), Potassium (K⁺) and Calcium (Ca⁺). These cofactors bind the enzymes and participate in the reaction by removing electrons, protons, or chemical groups from the substrate. In reactions which involve oxidation-reduction, coenzymes remove electrons from the substrate and then pass them to the other molecules. Habitually, the electron is added to a proton to form a hydrogen atom before it is passed on. Through this way, coenzymes serve to carry energy in the form of electrons from one compound to the other.

Is amino acid treatment safe?

Yes, amino acid is a very safe treatment of addiction since it involves providing the body with all what it requires in the process of addiction recovery and allowing it to cure naturally. This treatment seeks to restore neurotransmitters to their initially healthy functioning state that they used to be at before addiction. This gives the patient a permanent solution to addiction. Another advantage of using amino acid treatment is that it ensures that the patient is free from craving effects and unlike some addiction medication methods which leaves behind addiction effects in the long run, amino acid treatment is not addictive. With all these advantages we can now conclude that amino acid treatment is a safe and a recommendable method of addiction treatment.