To understand how phytochemicals protect us, we first need to understand that free radicals are very dangerous and quickly damage DNA in our cells. In the same way that free radicals accumulate within plants under stressful conditions, free radicals can also accumulate in our bodies, damage our DNA, and cause serious diseases. Humans cannot make phytochemicals and we therefore rely on eating enough plants to get the healthy phytochemicals we need to protect us from free radicals. These phytochemicals function as antioxidants. Think of antioxidants as sponges, mopping up all the free radicals. This way, they can get rid of the free radicals that accumulate within our cells due to stressful conditions or unhealthy eating (like "junk" food). In the same way that UV rays from the sun can cause stressful conditions for your skin, "junk" food can also cause stressful conditions inside your body. These "junk" foods often have lots of free radicals, making them unhealthy for our bodies. .

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