The reactions that provide the energy for the production of ATP (aka the bulk of all usable energy in every living cell) are oxidation reactions, but the reduction of the oxygen also produces trace amounts of peroxides, which then turn into free radicals that can cause cancer.
So as I tell my students, the number one carcinogen in the world is oxygen…
Lol this is actually true to an extent. Oxidation causes several issues in human tissue, including exacerbating aging.
The reactions that provide the energy for the production of ATP (aka the bulk of all usable energy in every living cell) are oxidation reactions, but the reduction of the oxygen also produces trace amounts of peroxides, which then turn into free radicals that can cause cancer.
So as I tell my students, the number one carcinogen in the world is oxygen…
Thats why antioxidants are so good for us. Cancer is just your body getting rusty.
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One of the ways radiation does damage is by breaking the water in your cells apart into O- and -OH ions.