OXIDATION

Ageing doesn't begin with a wrinkle. It starts with millions of molecular interactions taking place inside your body every single second. While you are breathing, your body is working to protect something far more important than your appearance. Your molecules.

Every minute of every day, your cells produce tiny molecules called free radicals. They are not harmful by design. They are a completely normal by-product of life, created every time your body converts oxygen and food into the energy your cells need to function. The challenge is that free radicals are unstable because they are missing an electron. Think of an electron like a pair of socks. Most molecules like to have a matching pair because it's what keeps them stable. Free radicals only have one sock, so they're constantly looking for another. And they aren't polite about it. They steal from the nearest healthy molecule they can find. That molecule then becomes unstable too, creating a chain reaction of damage. This process is known as oxidation.

Fortunately, your body has evolved an extraordinary defence system to keep this process under control. Antioxidants donate an electron to free radicals without becoming unstable themselves, interrupting the chain reaction before it spreads. Most of the time, this system works remarkably well. The problem begins when your body produces more free radicals than its antioxidant defences can neutralise. This is known as oxidative stress. Ageing is one of the reasons this balance becomes harder to maintain. And how we live life, adds to the challenge. Too much sun, pollution, smoking, poor nutrition and other environmental and lifestyle factors all increase the number of free radicals your body has to manage.

Over time, oxidative stress can damage collagen, DNA, cell membranes and the proteins your body relies on to maintain healthy function. It weakens the skin's protective barrier, contributes to inflammation and slows the body's natural repair processes. Many of the visible signs we associate with ageing begin at this molecular level, long before they appear in the mirror. This is why antioxidants matter. Not because they stop ageing. But because they help your body maintain the balance between damage and repair, supporting the molecules that keep your skin and the rest of your body functioning as they should.