So much hype surrounds a group of compounds contained in food known as antioxidants. Word is that they can do a lot, such as fighting diseases, protecting the memory and preventing aging. They are natures method of fighting off potentially harmful molecules found in the body. Such molecules come in synthetic chemicals such as pesticides, chlorine byproducts and plastics. Below is an overview of the importance of an antioxidant diet.
Antioxidants help in fighting oxidation, a normal chemical process that takes place in the body daily. Habits like smoking, taking alcohol or having stress can catalyze the process. Free radicals that are quite unstable molecules and likely to cause damage are formed in case the natural oxidation process is disrupted. The formation of destructive molecules of that type is triggered by oxygen, and can cause damage of body cells if not contained.
Oxidative stress is likely to occur if free radicals production overwhelms the bodys protective defenses. This stress combined by cell damage caused by free radicals is likely to trigger the early stages of cancer and heart disease. Free radicals are also linked with development of diabetes, Alzheimers disease, cataracts, kidney disease as well as age related blindness.
For protection against such damage, the human body has defenses. It generates antioxidants for eliminating the free radicals and to protect cells from oxygen attack. Safe interaction with the radicals results in the chain of damage being slowed down before it can move on to the cells. To gain such helpful molecules, all one has to do is include them in a diet.
Some vitamins such as vitamins E and C are antioxidants, together with minerals like manganese and selenium. There are plant compounds like lycopene and carotene that also act as antioxidants. Many foods that can be included in a diet are good antioxidant sources. The main thing to bear in mind is that they are primarily found in plant foods. Manganese and selenium are found in seafood and meats in small quantities, but plant foods are the primary food antioxidant source.
There may be a wide range of antioxidant systems out there. However, scientists are yet to figure out how the different systems in a human body work together to protect it against damage from free radicals. There is no one antioxidant that can provide the protection offered by several of them working together. Therefore, diets must be inclusive of as many of them as possible.
An ideal way of incorporating various antioxidants into a diet is through consumption of foods representing all the colors of a rainbow. Each color has its own unique antioxidant effect. Deep bright orange and yellow fruits and vegetables like carrots, apricots and sweet potatoes provide one antioxidant type, while red fruits like tomatoes provide another kind. Green vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage as well as blue or purple ones like blueberries and eggplant each have antioxidants packages.
Reducing the risks associated with certain diseases is what comprises the importance of an antioxidant diet. To come up with such diets, one has to incorporate vegetables, fruits and whole grains in large amounts. Failure to do will result in a higher likelihood of getting heart disease or cancer, which can be prevented easily.
Antioxidants help in fighting oxidation, a normal chemical process that takes place in the body daily. Habits like smoking, taking alcohol or having stress can catalyze the process. Free radicals that are quite unstable molecules and likely to cause damage are formed in case the natural oxidation process is disrupted. The formation of destructive molecules of that type is triggered by oxygen, and can cause damage of body cells if not contained.
Oxidative stress is likely to occur if free radicals production overwhelms the bodys protective defenses. This stress combined by cell damage caused by free radicals is likely to trigger the early stages of cancer and heart disease. Free radicals are also linked with development of diabetes, Alzheimers disease, cataracts, kidney disease as well as age related blindness.
For protection against such damage, the human body has defenses. It generates antioxidants for eliminating the free radicals and to protect cells from oxygen attack. Safe interaction with the radicals results in the chain of damage being slowed down before it can move on to the cells. To gain such helpful molecules, all one has to do is include them in a diet.
Some vitamins such as vitamins E and C are antioxidants, together with minerals like manganese and selenium. There are plant compounds like lycopene and carotene that also act as antioxidants. Many foods that can be included in a diet are good antioxidant sources. The main thing to bear in mind is that they are primarily found in plant foods. Manganese and selenium are found in seafood and meats in small quantities, but plant foods are the primary food antioxidant source.
There may be a wide range of antioxidant systems out there. However, scientists are yet to figure out how the different systems in a human body work together to protect it against damage from free radicals. There is no one antioxidant that can provide the protection offered by several of them working together. Therefore, diets must be inclusive of as many of them as possible.
An ideal way of incorporating various antioxidants into a diet is through consumption of foods representing all the colors of a rainbow. Each color has its own unique antioxidant effect. Deep bright orange and yellow fruits and vegetables like carrots, apricots and sweet potatoes provide one antioxidant type, while red fruits like tomatoes provide another kind. Green vegetables such as broccoli and cabbage as well as blue or purple ones like blueberries and eggplant each have antioxidants packages.
Reducing the risks associated with certain diseases is what comprises the importance of an antioxidant diet. To come up with such diets, one has to incorporate vegetables, fruits and whole grains in large amounts. Failure to do will result in a higher likelihood of getting heart disease or cancer, which can be prevented easily.
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