Oxidation – What is Oxidation

What exactly is meant by oxidation and what is the relevance of the classification to an individ­ual's nutritional utilization?

Oxidation is an indicator of the rate of how the body releases energy from the food it consumes. Oxidation is derived from the word oxygen. Oxidation is the process by which foodstuffs taken into the body chemically combine with oxygen to release energy. For a simplistic anal­ogy, oxidation is the basic chemical process of burning. When a piece of wood is burned, it is being oxidized. This energy release occurs at different speeds in nature as well as human be­ings.

The Slow Oxidizer

A slow oxidizer releases energy too slowly to maintain adequate health. This is analogous to a wood stove whose fire is too small to heat the room. To improve his health status and energy level, his metabolic furnace, i.e., oxidation rate, must be increased. The slow oxidizer has ex­hausted thyroid and adrenal glands. These major energy producing glands must be stimulated through proper diet and supplements to restore them to normal function.

The Fast Oxidizer

A fast oxidizer releases energy too quickly to maintain adequate health. This is analogous to a wood stove with a fire that is burning too fast, overheating the room (the body) and quickly running out of fuel. His oxidation rate must be decreased.

The fast oxidizer has overactive adrenal and thyroid glands. Because of their overactivity, these energy producing glands become insuf­ficient. The fast oxidizer's diet and supple­mental needs significantly differ from that of the slow oxidizer.

The Mixed Oxidizer

A mixed oxidizer has an erratic metabolism. Sometimes it is too fast, other times it is too slow. The mixed oxidizer, to achieve a higher energy level, must stabilize his oxidation rate. The mixed oxidizer's adrenal and thyroid gland are out of synchronization, that is, the thyroid gland may be overactive and the adrenal glands underactive, or vice versa. The dietary and sup­plemental requirements are balanced between the fast and slow oxidizer.

Balanced Oxidizer

The balanced oxidizer has the most efficient metabolism. It is neither too slow nor too fast. This system produces the maximum amount of usable human energy. To bring a person into a state of balanced oxidation is the real goal of vitamin and mineral rebalancing programs, inas­much as the more balanced the oxidation rate is, the more continually energetic and healthy the individual is. Stable energy = health.