Free radicals are highly reactive molecules. They’re a natural byproduct of metabolism, but the body also produces them in response to nutritional deficiencies as well as ­exposure to ultraviolet radiation, pollution, certain medications, and toxins. There are ­always free radicals circulating in our bodies, but an excess of them can lead to cellular damage, chronic diseases, and accelerated aging.

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Antioxidants neutralize harmful free radicals. Some, such as vitamins C and E, come exclusively from dietary sources. Others, such as glutathione, are mostly produced in the body (the superhero antioxidant, glutathione, battles toxicity, chronic disease, and premature aging. Find out what makes it so powerful at “8 Ways to Boost Glutathione.”)

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Melatonin is an antioxidant that’s both produced in the body and ­derived from dietary sources — though we make more than we can get from food.

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“Melatonin is a direct scavenger. It gobbles up free radicals like Pac-Man.”

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“Melatonin is a direct scavenger. It gobbles up free radicals like Pac-Man,” says Russel Reiter, PhD, one of the world’s leading melatonin experts. “Vitamin E and vitamin C are go-to antioxidants, but they don’t compare to melatonin.”

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Several factors make melatonin a potent antioxidant. First, unlike vitamins C and E, it’s both water- and fat-soluble, so it can move freely through all types of cells and tissues, offering protection throughout the body.

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Second, because melatonin is produced within our ­cellular ­mitochondria, where free radicals are created, it can quickly neutralize troublemakers ­before they have a chance to do damage.

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Finally, melatonin and its meta­bolites can scavenge up to 10 free radicals, while most antioxidants can vanquish only one.

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Nutrition scientist Deanna Minich, PhD, CNS, IFMCP, compares melatonin to a set of Russian nesting dolls. “When melatonin gets one free radical, it changes into the next doll down, which gets another free radical, et cetera. All of a sudden, 10 dolls later, it’s cleaned up quite a number of bad things in the body.”