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Free Radicals & Antioxidants Revised Monday December 17, 2007 |
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Free Radicals and Top Antioxidant Foods
"Free radicals are highly reactive molecules that bind to and destroy our bodies' cellular compounds-- even our genetic material-- and speed the aging process." Michelle Schofffro Cook. Author and doctor of natural medicine. a
Free radical therory Think of free radicals as rust on iron; a process called oxidation. The O2 oxygen molecule is a electron thief, stealing electrons from neighboring molecules within the cell, even from our own DNA. Ouch, that hurts !!!. We are literally rusting away from the inside out as we grow older.
But, the body has a number of mechanisms to reduce and repair free radical damage. The answer-- Antioxidants !!! They're our free radical fighters.
First, lets identify the bad stuff. Free radicals are produced by the following....
Second, lets identify the good stuff. Antioxidants are our allies. They are powerful nutrients that combat free radical activity. These nutrients are found in green leafy vegetables... greener the better. They are also found in fresh fruits. In fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture developed a scale of foods called the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) to identify foods that have high levels of antioxidants....
ORAC units per 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces)
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Dr. Guohua Cao Dr, Guohua Cao, physician and chemist at the National Institute on Aging in Baltimore, Maryland, developed the standardized test for ORAC, adopted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to measure Total Antioxidant Potency of foods and nutritional supplements. |
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