Antioxidant Food

You are very likely not a stranger to antioxidant foods. Growing up, you probably heard your mother often tell you to eat all your vegetables and to eat fruit such as apples. Your doctor chimed in on that as well, no doubt. So you are familiar with these foods.

Besides being a very healthy thing to do to include plenty of fresh produce in your daily food plan, another reason exists that is a big reason behind doctors' insistence on having a healthy amount of fresh fruit and vegetables everyday. It is because these are antioxidant foods.

Antioxidant foods are great vanquishers of free radicals. Tracking down and destroying free radicals a basic function of antioxidant foods.

Free Radicals: What Are They?

Free radicals are chemical substances that are very reactive and are a product of the oxidation the body goes through. The lack of electrons causing them to be unstable is the reason free radicals are so reactive. By stealing electrons from nearby molecules, free radicals attempt to achieve stability and in the process cause severe harm to cell membranes, thus weakening the cell.

The electron stealing by free radicals starts a chain reaction because the electrons they take from other molecules causes them to become free radicals and have the need to do the same. A large number of diseases and disorders result from the severe damage free radicals cause, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, Alzheimer's, senility and many more.

Antioxidant Foods: How Do They Work?

We can not prevent oxidation from happening because it occurs naturally as a process the body goes through. Oxidation takes place every time we take a breath. So, because they are a product of oxidation, we will always have free radicals in our bodies.

Suppose there existed a way for us to slow down free radical development? What if we could stop the endless chain reactions? What if diseases could be prevented by keeping damaging free radicals from forming?

That way does exist! This powerful way comes in the form of antioxidant foods that can intervene to prevent cell damage in the body by neutralizing free radicals. For this reason, the study of antioxidant foods and the healthy affects they have on the body continues by scientists.

Which Foods are Antioxidant Foods?

It was mentioned before that fruits and vegetables contain high levels of antioxidants. A few of these are broccoli, peppers, tomatoes and cauliflower. It should be noted, though, that not all vegetables have high levels of antioxidants. There are fruits and vegetables that are lower in antioxidants than others. One example is white grapes; they do not contain as much antioxidant as the darker grapes from which red wine is made.