Reactive Oxygen Species Trigger Cellular Aging
What is essential for human survival?
The obvious answer is air. We live by taking in oxygen from the air through breathing.
The oxygen we obtain through breathing is transported to the mitochondria, the small organelles within our cells, where it is used to produce energy in the form of ATP.
In nature, when oxygen interacts with materials, it causes oxidation, leading to decay or the rusting of strong iron, a process that generates heat. We convert this very heat into energy to sustain our life activities.
Thus, oxygen has a chemically reactive (easily changeable) nature. While oxygen is essential for human life, its reactive nature also carries the risk of oxidizing the body and reducing its functions.
You may have heard of the term reactive oxygen species (ROS).
Reactive oxygen species, as the name suggests, are oxygen in an activated state, where they have become unstable due to an electronic imbalance.
Reactive oxygen species are byproducts generated when the body produces energy from oxygen. It is said that about 2% to 3% of the oxygen we take in through breathing is converted into reactive oxygen species.
These electronically unstable reactive oxygen species seek stability by stealing electrons from other cells. This is the essence of oxidation.
When the body oxidizes due to reactive oxygen species, it leads to the deterioration of cells and accelerates aging.
What Are the Benefits of Hydrogen Therapy?
In recent years, hydrogen has gained attention as an effective substance to suppress reactive oxygen species that damage cells in the body.
Hydrogen naturally exists in trace amounts in our bodies. It has the property of reacting with reactive oxygen species and converting them into water.
The chemical reaction of hydrogen is gentle, and it typically only binds with highly toxic reactive oxygen species. Most importantly, when hydrogen reacts, it simply turns into harmless water, so it is considered to have no significant side effects.