Radicals Radicals are produced in the body from both beneficial processes and detrimental processes. Macrophages make superoxide and this is converted to hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide can then form hydroxyl radicals. Macrophages use these hydroxyl radicals to destroy the components of the invaders that they have ingested. Hydroxyl radicals are also produced from a process called lipid peroxidation.
Lipids are fats.
These peroxidized lipids then decompose to form hydroxyl radicals. These hydroxyl radicals then cause tissue dammage. High fat diets are associated with an increased in risk of colo-rectal cancer, and this lipid peroxidation mechanism may be involved. Polar molecules Polar molecules result when there is unequal sharing of a bond pair of electrons. Unequal sharing results from a difference in electronegativity.