Oxidative stress: Role of natural antioxidant compounds

Abstract

Oxidative stress, an imbalance between the generation of reactive oxygen species and antioxidant defense capacity of the body, is induced by a wide range of factors including UV, pathogen invasion, or oxygen shortage. In oxidative stress, innate antioxidant deference system becomes circumscribed and thus this state becomes sole culprit for induction of highly prevalent diseases such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, atherosclerosis, acute renal failure, and Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Currently, antioxidant supplementation derived from natural source, especially medicinal plants, is more of interest because of mutagenic or toxic effects of synthetic antioxidants like butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT). The implication of oxidative stress in the etiology of many chronic and degenerative diseases suggests that antioxidant therapy represents a promising avenue for treatment. This chapter thus includes basic understanding of oxidative stress phenomena and research reports with experimental studies on dietary antioxidants to mitigate the detrimental effects of oxidative stress.