DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2016.v04i04.032

Pages: 1265-1277

From the last few years, there has been a great attention towards the field of free radical chemistry for health point of view. Free radicals reactive oxygen species and reactive nitrogen species are generated by our body by various endogenous and exogenous systems. There should be balance between free radicals and antioxidants for proper physiological function of human body as their imbalance causes numerous diseases. Antioxidants are essential and important for plants and animals’ sustenance. They are substances that protect cells from the damage caused by unstable molecules known as free radicals. This article presents sources, types, mechanism of action and damaged caused by free radicals in human body. To neutralize the effect of free radicals, the role of antioxidants, their classification, types and mode of action has been discussed.