Natural Compounds and Products from an Anti-Aging Perspective
Geir Bjørklund,
Mariia Shanaida,
Roman Lysiuk,
Monica Butnariu,
Massimiliano Peana,
Ioan Sarac,
Oksana Strus,
Kateryna Smetanina,
Salvatore Chirumbolo
Affiliations
Geir Bjørklund
Council for Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (CONEM), Toften 24, 8610 Mo i Rana, Norway
Mariia Shanaida
Department of Pharmacognosy and Medical Botany, I. Horbachevsky Ternopil National Medical University, 46001 Ternopil, Ukraine
Roman Lysiuk
Department of Pharmacognosy and Botany, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, 79010 Lviv, Ukraine
Monica Butnariu
Chemistry & Biochemistry Discipline, Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Massimiliano Peana
Department of Chemical, Physical, Mathematical and Natural Sciences, University of Sassari, 07100 Sassari, Italy
Ioan Sarac
Chemistry & Biochemistry Discipline, Banat’s University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine “King Michael I of Romania” from Timisoara, 300645 Timisoara, Romania
Oksana Strus
Department of Drug Technology and Biopharmaceutics, Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University, 79010 Lviv, Ukraine
Kateryna Smetanina
Department of Organic Chemistry and Pharmacy, Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University, 43025 Lutsk, Ukraine
Salvatore Chirumbolo
Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, 37134 Verona, Italy
Aging is a very complex process that is accompanied by a degenerative impairment in many of the major functions of the human body over time. This inevitable process is influenced by hereditary factors, lifestyle, and environmental influences such as xenobiotic pollution, infectious agents, UV radiation, diet-borne toxins, and so on. Many external and internal signs and symptoms are related with the aging process and senescence, including skin dryness and wrinkles, atherosclerosis, diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders, cancer, etc. Oxidative stress, a consequence of the imbalance between pro- and antioxidants, is one of the main provoking factors causing aging-related damages and concerns, due to the generation of highly reactive byproducts such as reactive oxygen and nitrogen species during the metabolism, which result in cellular damage and apoptosis. Antioxidants can prevent these processes and extend healthy longevity due to the ability to inhibit the formation of free radicals or interrupt their propagation, thereby lowering the level of oxidative stress. This review focuses on supporting the antioxidant system of the organism by balancing the diet through the consumption of the necessary amount of natural ingredients, including vitamins, minerals, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), essential amino acids, probiotics, plants’ fibers, nutritional supplements, polyphenols, some phytoextracts, and drinking water.