Why is oxidation bad? page

[Gadsie]

So if I'm correct PUFAs oxidize quickly because there is "open space between the carbon bonds" since there are no hydrogen atoms filling up this space?
But what exactly is oxidation and why is it bad?

[faithy22]

I'm not a biologist or biochemist, but I am a chemist, and really, the human body is just one giant organic chemistry lab. Simply put, most of the reactions in our body happen based on the shape/composition of the reacting species. So if you change the shape/composition (oxidize it), it's not going to behave the same way in the reactions. Or you can just think of it like building a house with really cheap and crappy building materials. If they break down way more quickly than the good stuff, your house is going to fall apart really quickly.

[Lewis]

AFAIK, you get peroxidized fat molecules and those are pretty nasty:

Reactive oxygen species - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[jenn26point2]

I'm not a biologist or biochemist, but I am a chemist, and really, the human body is just one giant organic chemistry lab. Simply put, most of the reactions in our body happen based on the shape/composition of the reacting species. So if you change the shape/composition (oxidize it), it's not going to behave the same way in the reactions. Or you can just think of it like building a house with really cheap and crappy building materials. If they break down way more quickly than the good stuff, your house is going to fall apart really quickly.

Thanks for explaining that scientifically. I appreciate it.