Compositions and methods are provided for increasing serum antioxidant levels, decreasing serum levels of oxidative chemical species, inhibiting insulin-receptor signaling activity, decreasing triglycerides levels, increasing serum ghrelin levels, and decreasing serum TNF-alpha levels. Compositions provided comprise a mixture of zinc-charged, fragmented proteins derived, for example, from serum or milk. Compositions are administered in a therapeutically effective amount to, for example, reduce oxidative stress levels in a mammalian subject.
