💬What is astaxanthin?
Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring pigment that belongs to the carotenoid family. It is found in various plants, algae, and bacteria, but one of the richest sources is Haematococcus pluvialis, a freshwater microalgae. Astaxanthin is responsible for the pink or reddish color in certain organisms like salmon, trout, shrimp, and flamingos. It is considered a powerful antioxidant, meaning it helps protect cells against damage from free radicals and oxidative stress.
💬Sources of astaxanthin: Where does astaxanthin come from?
There are two ways to obtain astaxanthin: synthetic and biological.
Synthetic, astaxanthin is prepared from carotene;
Biological sources are generally three: waste from the aquatic product processing industry, astaxanthin extraction from yeast, and astaxanthin extraction from cultured algae (mainly rhodiopsis pluvialis).
✅Astaxanthin is by far the most powerful antioxidant found in nature and is known as the “king of antioxidants”. Its antioxidant capacity is:
6000 times that of vitamin C,
3000 times that of resveratrol,
1000 times that of vitamin E,
800 times that of Coenzyme Q10,
800 times that of lycopene,
💬What are the benefits of astaxanthin to the human body?
1. Antioxidant
Astaxanthin has strong antioxidant capacity. After the body absorbs this substance, it can synthesize carotene, lutein, and keraxanthin and other intermediate products, which can effectively inhibit the oxidation reaction in the human body, and can remove free radicals and lipid peroxidation in the human body, help maintain cardiovascular health and delay cell aging.
2. Anti-inflammatory
Inflammatory response is a normal physiological process of the body against external adverse stimuli. The main components include inflammatory cells and inflammatory mediators. Oxygen free radicals, as pro-inflammatory reaction mediators, promote inflammatory response. Astaxanthin alleviates skin inflammation by inhibiting the secretion and expression of pro-inflammatory factors such as nitric oxide, tumor necrosis factor α, prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), IL-1β, IL-6, etc. At the same time, through antioxidant function, astaxanthin can block the positive feedback loop between oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory factors.
3. Immune regulation
Astaxanthin plays a role in immune regulation by enhancing cellular immunity and humoral immunity. In terms of enhancing cellular immunity, astaxanthin protects immune cells by inhibiting the cytotoxic effect of singlet oxygen. At the same time, it enhances the specific immune response of Th1 and Th2 cells, increases the number of immune cells and enhances the vitality of B cells. It can improve the activity of serum complement, enhance the ability of interleukin-2 and interferon γ, enhance humoral immunity, and improve the body immunity through both cellular and humoral immunity.
