Antioxidant-rich foods became widely known in the 1990s when studies began linking low antioxidant consumption with heart disease, cancer and other chronic illnesses. Food and supplement companies quickly responded by adding them to their products.
Add berries to your oatmeal and yogurt, create colorful salads using colorful ingredients or enjoy tea – it has many antioxidants and is easy to prepare!
1. Berries
Strawberry’s powerful antioxidants offer protection from free radicals that damage cells, cause inflammation, and contribute to disease. Use strawberries in smoothies, oatmeal and salads for an added dose of flavor and nutrition!
Other berries such as blackberries contain plenty of vitamin C and flavonoids for a nutritious boost, too! Use them in stews and desserts or enjoy as a nutritious snack.
Dried fruits such as prunes (7,291), dates (3,467) and figs (2,537) can also provide an abundance of antioxidants – why not include some in your trail mix?
Oranges (4,540), papaya (1,762) and bananas (6,297) are excellent sources of antioxidants; try them as part of a salad or on toast with honey drizzle.
2. Vegetables
Vegetables are an abundant source of antioxidants. Broccoli, cauliflower and bok choy are just three vegetables with high antioxidant levels.
Vegetables contain many phytochemicals known as antioxidants, including flavonoids, carotenoids, tocopherols, lipoic acid and other vitamins and minerals that work to combat free radicals that cause cell damage. These substances help prevent oxidation as well as fight free radicals to protect cells against damage from free radicals.
The Antioxidant Food Database shows that plant-based foods provide significantly more antioxidants in our diets than meat and fish products. Tomato-based sauces, basil pesto and sun dried tomato products have the highest values when it comes to providing antioxidants; other notable results come from dairy categories including dog rose products for infants as well as cheeses such as Roquefort; margarine, butter and canola oil also contain significant amounts of antioxidants compared to meat and fish products.
3. Nuts
Nuts (including walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds and pistachios) contain omega-3 fats and antioxidants in abundance and are low in sodium – two key benefits if you suffer from high blood pressure. Nuts should ideally be eaten raw but roasting them adds extra flavour and nutrition density.
Peanuts, though technically legumes, are sometimes classified as nuts due to having similar macronutrient profiles as other tree nuts and therefore comparable in terms of nutritional value. Peanuts contain high levels of Vitamin E, Magnesium and phytochemicals.
This study’s results demonstrate that plant-based foods such as berries, nuts and chocolate possess significantly higher mean antioxidant contents than meat and fish; however, variations exist as to which foods have greater levels of antioxidants than others.
4. Coffee
Coffee and beverages are among the greatest sources of antioxidants found in Western diets, second only to fruit, vegetables and nuts in terms of total antioxidant content in this study. In fact, coffee products come second in terms of total antioxidant content among products tested here.
Coffee contains higher antioxidant levels than green tea, black tea and berries on average. Coffee also boasts significant amounts of flavonoids such as catechins such as epicatechin gallate (ECG) and epigallocatechin (EGC), which may help regulate mitochondrial function while protecting against oxidative stress and age related damages.
Herbs and spices like cloves, peppermint, allspice, cinnamon, thyme, oregano and rosemary can provide an abundance of antioxidants that add both flavor to home-cooked meals as well as health benefits. Furthermore, these items can easily replace salt in any recipe without the hassle.
5. Dark Chocolate
Researchers have employed various fortification techniques to enhance the nutritional value of dark chocolate, including adding mulberry, buckthorn berries, lemon balm extract and cinnamon as fortifiers. These additions add rosmarinic acid, cinnamaldehyde and flavonoids – increasing its overall antioxidant capacity while improving viscosity rheological properties and viscosity characteristics of this treat.
Antioxidants can help counteract oxidative stress, so selecting foods rich in antioxidants is crucial. But be careful with chocolate as too much of this sweet treat can cause gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Incorporating dark types over milk or white chocolate to maximize flavonoids. Furthermore, spices such as pepper and cinnamon contain significant amounts of antioxidants as well.
