The Benefits of Astaxanthin
Nature's Strongest Antioxidant

What is Astaxanthin? Astaxanthin (pronounced asta-ZAN-thin) is one of a group of natural pigments known as xanthophylls (pronounced ZAN-tho-fils), a subcategory of the carotenoid family. Other examples of similar carotenoids would include lutein and zeaxanthin.

Carotenoids are produced by both plants and animals as part of their survival mechanisms. In plants, carotenoids act as a natural sunscreen, protecting them from ultraviolet light from the sun using the carotenoid's natural antioxidant properties.

Sea animals with a red or pinkish color, such as salmon, lobster, shrimp and crab get this color from a diet of krill and other small organisms that eat astaxanthin-rich algae and plankton.

One of the most powerful benefits of astaxanthin is best demonstrated by salmon swimming upstream to spawn. They often go without food for days, drawing on their own reserves while swimming upstream. Astaxanthin is credited for giving salmon the endurance they need to accomplish this feat.

The Benefits of Astaxanthin
Reach Every Part of Your Body

Astaxanthin has been shown in the lab to be the strongest natural antioxidant known. It has been measured to be many times more potent in some ways than vitamin E or vitamin C, beta-carotene, lutein or pycnogenol.

Several factors help explain this:

• Astaxanthin can reach into every part of the cell, inside and out, similar to lipoic acid.

• Astaxanthin can cross the blood-brain barrier to protect the brain and nervous system.

• Astaxanthin can cross the blood-retinal barrier and bring protection to the eyes.

• Astaxanthin works in every part of your body, organs and skin.

The Benefits of Astaxanthin
for Inflammation

Inflammation is your body's response against infection and the mechanism it uses for repairing injured tissue. When a virus attacks your cells, your inflammatory system kicks in to fight it off. If you sprain an ankle, your inflammatory system works to repair the damage. Other examples of inflammation include the swelling from arthritis and sunburn.

"Silent" Inflammation Underlies Many Diseases. While occasional inflammation is a normal, healthy process, chronic inflammation can be devastating. Another term used to describe this condition is systemic or "silent" inflammation.

This chronic inflammation is now being associated not just with asthma and arthritis, but also with ailments such as atherosclerosis, strokes, ulcers, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, cancer, diabetes and more.

Common treatments for inflammation include aspirin, acetaminophen and the prescription drug Celebrex. All of these, however, have significant and sometimes dangerous side effects. These side effects result in 103,000 hospitalizations and 16,500 deaths per year in the United States, and represent 43% of drug-related emergency visits.

Go to wikipedia to learn more about the side effects of aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NAIDs).

When you add up the pros and cons of the various anti-inflammatory treatments, astaxanthin is the clear choice. It doesn't work as quickly as an drug, but it's completely safe, and is effective for a large percentage of users.

You can find a huge selection of astaxanthin supplements at my iHerb store.

Astaxanthin has been shown to be a very effective remedy for all types of joint pain, including tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritis, and joint soreness after strenuous exercise. Astaxanthin can help reduce pain and inflammation in tendons, joints and muscles.

A health survey of 247 astaxanthin users showed that over 80 percent of those reporting back pain and symptoms from osteo- or rheumatoid arthritis reported an improvement from supplementing with astaxanthin.

The benefits of astaxanthin for serious athletes are significant. Regular users report that supplementing with astaxanthin:

• increases strength and stamina
• reduces recovery time
• prevents joint and muscle soreness after exercise
• reduces lactic acid levels

Many competitive and endurance athletes have become believers in astaxanthin supplements for all of the above reasons.

One of the most frequently-reported benefits of astaxanthin is an improvement in skin quality. There is evidence that astaxanthin not only prevents UV sun damage from occurring, but may actually help to reverse external signs of aging from the inside out. This has been clearly demonstrated in human clinical trials.

Many users of astaxanthin supplements report that they are able to spend significantly more time out in the sun without burning than they were able to before. This is due to the powerful anti-inflammatory properties that astaxanthin has. A sunburn is essentially an inflammation of your skin.

Dr. Nicholas Perricone, one of the world's leading antiaging experts, highly recommends astaxanthin for reducing wrinkles and age spots, improving moisture levels, elasticity and smoothness, and for giving your skin a beautiful, healthy glow.

Several cosmetic manufacturers have begun to use astaxanthin as an ingredient in facial and body creams to provide UV protection and heal damaged skin.

Other Reported Benefits of Astaxanthin

Astaxanthin benefits cover virtually the entire spectrum available from antioxidants. Aside from those previously mentioned, here are some other benefits of astaxanthin:

• boosts immune system by increasing antibodies
• helps prevent heart attacks
• helps prevent the initiation of cancer cells
• helps prevent macular degeneration
• helps prevent Alzheimer's and Parkinson's

• normalizes blood pressure
• relieves prostate problems
• gives you better resistance to colds
• prevents and relieves diabetes

• prevents gum disease
• enhances reproductive health
• protects the eyes and skin from UVA and UVB damage
• protects all parts of the cells from oxidative damage

Supplementing with Astaxanthin

As you can see from the exhaustive list of benefits, Astaxanthin is certainly one of the most important antioxidants you could add to your daily diet. You might even consider putting it at the top of your list — it's that powerful and versatile. Since the amounts you would get from food sources are very limited — only about 2 mg. or less in a 4oz. serving of salmon — supplements are the only way to get all the benefits of astaxanthin.

See my page on Astaxanthin Supplements for more information on how to add this valuable carotenoid to your diet.

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