Radicals and "damaging"

[DanielleNario1A]

Radicals "damage" DNA because they are highly reactive?

[Kyle Golden Dis 2G]

Yes. This is because radicals only have one free electron instead of an electron pair.

[Amy Dinh 1A]

Because radicals have unpaired electrons, they are highly reactive and therefore cause a dangerous amount of damage.

[Tarika Gujral 1K]

Taking antioxidants (vitamins) can help offset some of the damage.

[Max Hayama 4K]

What causes the formation of radicals? If they are in a more stable state prior to being a radical, why are they left with 7 valence electrons?

[Chloe Qiao 4C]

I believe usually it is the intake of energy that breaks a more stable molecule into parts and cause radicals to form. For example, Dr. Lavelle talked about the energy of photon can cause H2O to separate into H and OH in upper atomsphere while OH is a radical.