Small Steps, Sensible Choices, Superior Health.

Arm Yourself with Antioxidants

Antioxidants are your anti-aging friend.  Our bodies age because of the damage that free radicals cause.   

An excess of free radicals cause premature aging in our bodies.

Antioxidants help stop the damage.  They generously donate the missing electron needed to neutralize free radicals.

You can't stop all free radical formation.  It's a normal process but the body is equipped to handle them.  

We will try to shed some light on making healthy choices to help you in the anti-aging battle.  

Definition of Antioxidants

If "anti" means against, then the word antioxidant means that these are the "good guys" that fight against oxidation (aging) which is caused by free radicals.

By flooding our body with enough of these "good guys", they can neutralize free radicals by donating electrons to all the unstable molecules (free radicals) in the body.

They provide a powerhouse of protection because:

Anti-Aging Food Choices

There is good reason why our grandparents told us to eat our fruits and vegetables, they used to provide the necessary nutrients to keep them healthy.

The USDA guidelines recommend 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.

Choose fruits and vegetables from a good color spectrum.

Bright, vibrant colored fruits are generally the best.

Berries of all types top the list followed by cherries, grapes, kiwi, pomegranate, prunes and plums. Touted as the Top Super Food by Dr. Nicholas Perricone, the powerhouse, acai berry is a very good choice.

Deep and brightly colored vegetables like artichokes, beets, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, kale, red pepper and sweet potatoes are all good healthy choices.

But the honors in this category go to the legumes, red, black, pinto and kidney beans!

Other notable mentions are herbs, spices, chocolate, teas and nuts.

ORAC Scores

If you try to do some homework on this topic, you'll hear about ORAC scores. ORAC is an acronym for Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity.

Scientists have created a test to determine the free radical scavaging activity of substances. Generally, the higher the score the better the food choice.

Just be aware of the unit of measurement if you are comparing foods and supplements. Make sure you're comparing apples to apples. For more information on the orac scores of more than 3100 different foods click here.

Benefits Against Disease

Scientists believe rampant free radical activity is linked to many diseases including, cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease.

Our lifestyle and the American diet has changed over the last several decades as evidenced in a rise in diseases, especially in young adults.

When taking health histories, doctors and dentists are alarmed at the number of young adults that are on medication for high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Antioxidants are also important for good eye-health, learn more here.

What Can You Do?

Take a proactive approach.

Other Resources

Visit Free Radical Page

Visit Acai Berry Page

Visit Exercise Page

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