Growing old is a condition that most people are not happy about. This is particularly true of women. There are women who wish that the lines on their faces would disappear, there are others who are concerned with bringing back the vitality that youth offers. The ability to move around and do work with that spring in the step is something that most miss with the passing years.

There is a school of thought that says that when hormonal changes turn down the inner thermostat in our body, aging occurs. So then if the hormone levels are replaced to those of a young healthy adult it would restart our brain, so to speak and the cell receptor sensitizers would do the needful.

One of the reasons for depression, mood swings, fatigue, loss of memory and weight loss that has no explanation, is that there is an imbalance between the estrogen and progesterone levels. There are over-the-counter medicines available to correct this imbalance like soy products and creams that provide the extra hormones when absorbed by the skin.

It has also been found that free radicals are becoming increasingly dangerous to our health. Free radicals are defined as unstable renegade molecules of oxygen. When these collide with other tissues in our body they cause a burst of light. Then they look for other molecules to combine with them and gain some stability. The free radicals which are good for you will help your body fight to keep itself healthy and keep the muscle tone smooth. These muscles, in turn, keep your internal organs working properly.

On the same note, an excess of these free radicals tend to run wild and cause damage to healthy and unhealthy areas of the body. This is where the incidence of problems like cancer and heart diseases come up. In defense of these attacks by excess of free radicals, the concept of antioxidants has come up. These have proved to be an effective shield against these free radicals.

Antioxidants are seen to alter cancer growth and do the job of anticarcinogens. They work on the principle of donating an electron to the free radical and helping it convert to a relatively harmless molecule. It protects against damage to blood vessel membranes which in turn ensures a good supply of blood to the heart and the brain thereby preventing problems.

Antioxidants can be found in fruits, vegetables and grains. Among the many antioxidants, some of the important ones are Lycopene, Lypoic, Xanthones, Dopamine and Carnosine. Lycopene is found in tomatoes and is needed by the adrenal and prostrate glands, the liver, colon and the testes and it is effective in protecting the digestive tracts from cancer.

Lypoic can quench the free radicals found in water and fat cells. It is an acid and aids converting carbohydrates into energy and antioxidants by breaking down sugars.

Xanthones is a bitter compound that has very strong antioxidant effects on the person's nervous system. It is useful in treating depression, is able to reduce the appetite and take care of other obsessions. Here a series of hormonal reactions leads to the release of dopamine that exists in the brain's pleasure centers. Dopamine is an energizing neurotransmitter that aids reduction in appetite and stimulates the pituitary gland. This gland's job is to release the growth hormone and works to improve the immune system. There is an incidence of motor dysfunction that comes with aging and blueberries are considered a good source of dopamine which plays an important part in decreasing the rate of aging.

And finally, Carnosine found in the muscle tissues, the brain and the lens of the human eye is a natural antioxidant and an important amino acid. It can protect cell membranes and structures and works to cope with stress reduction, hyperactivity, muscle fatigue and improves sleep patterns.