Vitality Eleven #5: Oxidative Stress

Picture a brand-new bicycle left out in the rain for twenty years. The rust doesn’t appear overnight, it builds gradually, until the whole thing falls apart.

That’s oxidative stress inside your body.

Your cells naturally produce unstable molecules called reactive oxygen species (ROS) as a byproduct of energy production. In small amounts, they’re actually useful, like a Morse code signal telling your cells to build more antioxidants and new mitochondria.

But chronically high insulin tips the balance. ROS production overwhelms your defences. The rust starts eating your cellular machinery: DNA gets damaged, proteins get mangled, cell membranes chewed up.

Dr Cooper’s research uncovered something fascinating, when insulin remains elevated, your antioxidant defences not only get used up faster, they also stop being replenished. You’re fighting a two-front battle and losing both.

This is where a special fat inside your mitochondria called cardiolipin becomes critical. When ROS damages cardiolipin, mitochondria can lose up to 50% of their energy-producing capacity. You’ll never find a tumour cell with healthy cardiolipin — that’s how vital it is.

The antidote? Your body’s own ketone, BHB. It acts as a direct antioxidant, neutralising free radicals while switching on genes that boost your internal defences.

Clubwell’s Antioxidant Score helps you ensure your diet is supporting those pathways too

Your action today: Open the Clubwell app and check your recent Antioxidant Score. If it's been low, add more berries, dark leafy greens, or dark chocolate to this week's meals. Your cells will thank you.