These Foods Have The Most Antioxidants In The World
Incorporating antioxidants into your diet is crucial for healthy aging. Their numerous health benefits, particularly their ability to slow the aging process, can help you feel younger for longer. This underscores the importance of regularly consuming antioxidant-rich foods, which nourish your body at the cellular level and maintain its protective defenses.
The Benefits of Antioxidants
Extensive research on antioxidants has provided us with insights into the foods that contain the highest levels. Some of these top antioxidant foods are relatively unknown and might surprise you. For instance, lutein, a carotenoid found in green leafy vegetables like kale and spinach, is a powerful antioxidant. There are also many common foods high in antioxidants that can easily be added to your shopping list.
In This Video
In this video, we will take an in-depth look at the importance of antioxidants, why they should be a part of your diet, and which foods are the best sources.
The Superpower of Antioxidants
Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Aging Properties
Antioxidants are remarkable for their anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties, significantly enhancing overall health. Their primary function is to neutralize free radicals within your body. Free radicals are unstable molecules generated by both normal bodily processes and external factors such as chemicals in food, UV radiation, and environmental pollutants.
Combatting Free Radicals
These free radicals are harmful due to their highly reactive nature, leading them to attack other molecules in the body, causing cellular damage known as oxidative stress. Research shows that accumulated oxidative stress accelerates aging, causes chronic inflammation, and increases the risk of various chronic diseases, including heart disease.
Balancing Free Radicals and Antioxidants
While limiting exposure to external sources of free radicals is beneficial, antioxidants are crucial in stopping their harmful effects. The superpower of antioxidants lies in their ability to donate an electron to free radicals, rendering them harmless. Additionally, some studies suggest that certain antioxidants can prevent the formation of free radicals altogether. A balance between free radicals and antioxidants minimizes their harmful impact.
Maintaining Antioxidant Levels
However, when free radicals accumulate or antioxidant levels drop, oxidative stress occurs, leading to adverse health effects. Thus, maintaining antioxidant levels is essential. A healthy metabolism is vital for maintaining this balance. Metabolism encompasses the chemical reactions in your body that keep you alive and functioning, including converting food into energy.
The Role of Metabolism
A sluggish metabolism can lead to toxin buildup, increasing oxidative stress and inflammation. By consuming antioxidant-rich foods and maintaining a healthy metabolism, you can protect your cells from damage and mitigate the effects of aging.
The Importance of Consuming Antioxidant-Rich Foods
Essential Antioxidants from Your Diet
While your body can produce certain antioxidants like glutathione and alpha-lipoic acid, many essential antioxidants must come from your diet. For instance, vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that your body cannot produce. It plays a crucial role in slowing skin aging and strengthening the immune system. Quercetin is another important antioxidant with numerous health benefits found in certain plant foods. Quercetin also serves as a plant pigment, meaning it is only produced by plants.
Supplements vs. Whole Foods
Although obtaining antioxidants from whole foods is ideal, a high-quality USDA-certified organic antioxidant supplement can be beneficial. However, be cautious of supplements containing synthetic antioxidants as they might do more harm than good. If you choose to use supplements, opt for those with naturally derived antioxidants.
How Antioxidants Are Measured
ORAC Value System
There are several ways to measure the antioxidant capacity of food, but the ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity) value system has given us one of the most in-depth lists of antioxidant-rich foods to date. ORAC refers to the measurement determined in a lab by using samples of different foods. The purpose of this method is to determine the total antioxidant capacity or antioxidant activity of each food, which is different from simply measuring how much of a certain antioxidant a food has.
Determining ORAC Values
To determine the ORAC value, a food sample is placed in a test tube with two types of molecules: those that generate free radical activity and those that are vulnerable to free radical activity. The food sample is scored by how well it protects the vulnerable molecules from oxidative damage. The higher the score of a food, the higher its protective properties and total antioxidant capacity are.
The Top Six Highest Known Antioxidant Foods
1. Coffee Cherries (ORAC Value: 343,900)
Coffee cherries, also called cascara, are the fruit that surrounds coffee beans. They may be the healthiest part of the plant given their incredibly high antioxidant content, but they are most often discarded in the process of harvesting the beans. Due to the discovery of how rich in antioxidants coffee cherries are, some companies now sell them in powdered form.
2. Sumac (ORAC Value: 312,400)
Sumac is one of the most antioxidant-rich foods on earth, but it’s still mostly popular only in the Middle East. Technically considered a spice, sumac is made from the dried and ground berries of the sumac shrub, not to be confused with poisonous sumac. The result is a rich red powder that has a tart, lemony flavor. Sumac is a key ingredient in the spice blend za’atar.
3. Indian Gooseberry (ORAC Value: 261,500)
Also known as amla berries, Indian gooseberries are considered by some to be the highest antioxidant food in the world. These light green berries beat out many other super berries, including acai, blueberries, and goji berries. Indian gooseberries come from Asia and aren’t always available fresh in other parts of the world. However, you can consume them in powder form, including the staple Ayurvedic formula known as triphala.
4. Sorghum Bran (ORAC Value: 240,000)
Sorghum is a little-known grain that is naturally gluten-free and high in protein. It can be made into flour, flakes, pearls that look similar to quinoa, and even a version of popcorn. As far as antioxidant content, the highest value is found in the bran, which also happens to contain the most fiber.
5. Baobab (ORAC Value: 140,000)
Baobab is a fascinating superfruit that grows natively in Africa. The six to eight-inch brownish fruits hang from trees that have been nicknamed the “monkey bread tree,” “upside-down tree,” and even “dead rat tree.” Not only is baobab fruit incredibly high in antioxidants, but it is also loaded with calcium, vitamin C, and B vitamins. Outside of Africa, you’ll mostly find baobab as a fruit powder.
6. Acai Berry (ORAC Value: 102,700)
Acai berries have already gained some fame as one of the top antioxidant-rich foods. They have become especially popular in smoothies because of their antioxidant content and rich source of vitamins. The berries come from palm trees native to Central and South America. They have a dark reddish-purple color, with powerful antioxidants called anthocyanins that also give them their coloring. As acai has gained popularity, the berries have become more widely available, often sold in frozen or dried form to retain their nutritional value.
The 13 Most Common Foods with High Antioxidants
Besides the top six standout antioxidant superfoods, there are many more commonly found foods that will add a good amount of antioxidants to your diet. There’s currently no standard recommendation for the amount of antioxidants to consume each day, in part because there isn’t one standard measurement of antioxidant content yet. However, there’s no indication that you can get too many antioxidants from food, so the more the better.
1. Dark Chocolate (ORAC Value: 20,000)
There are many health benefits of dark chocolate, including its high antioxidant content, higher even than blueberries. The ORAC value for your typical dark chocolate is about 20,000, but other forms of chocolate can give you even more antioxidants. Unsweetened cocoa powder has an ORAC score of 55,000, and unsweetened baking chocolate is around 50,000. To keep the highest possible amount of antioxidants intact, eat raw cacao powder or cocoa products.
2. Black Raspberries (ORAC Value: 19,000)
This isn’t the type of raspberry you’ll typically find at the grocery store, but you may be lucky enough to live in a region where they grow wild. These blackish berries with red tints are truly one of the best antioxidant-rich foods, with double the antioxidant content of blueberries. Even if they aren’t native to your local area, black raspberries are easy to grow in a home garden.
3. Pecans (ORAC Value: 18,000)
Pecans aren’t a fruit or vegetable, so it comes as a surprise to see them this far up on the antioxidant list. However, they are indeed packed full of antioxidants as well as healthy fats. They’ve even been shown to raise blood antioxidant levels of those who eat them daily.
4. Blueberries (ORAC Value: 9,600)
Blueberries used to be the highest superfruit before more exotic berries like acai and goji berries became popular. They still remain one of the best sources of antioxidants and have the added benefit of being widely available. If you have access to local wild blueberries, they have nearly double the antioxidant content of normal commercially grown blueberries.
5. Artichokes (ORAC Value: 9,400)
Artichokes are one of the best vegetables you can eat to get a high amount of antioxidants. They contain a good amount of fiber and minerals as well. Boiling or steaming artichokes actually raises their antioxidant content, so try preparing them one of these ways.
6. Cranberries (ORAC Value: 9,000)
Raw cranberries are another one of the top antioxidant-rich foods. Although they haven’t gotten much attention as a potential superfood, perhaps they should be considered a superfruit since they are close to wild blueberries in antioxidant content and contain a high amount of vitamin C and minerals.
7. Red Kidney and Black Beans (ORAC Value: 8,500)
Beans are another somewhat surprising source of antioxidants. Red kidney beans and black beans have the best antioxidant content, with pinto beans not much further down the list at an ORAC value of 8,000.
8. Prunes (ORAC Value: 8,000)
Known for possessing fiber that can relieve constipation, prunes are also something of a dried superfood. They have a very high antioxidant content and contain a good amount of potassium, vitamin K, vitamin A, and iron. Just one or two a day goes a long way.
9. Blackberries (ORAC Value: 5,900)
As you can see, berries are arguably the most prevalent source of antioxidants. Blackberries have a lower content than wild black raspberries, but their antioxidant content is still quite high, and they are much easier to find at the store.
10. Red Raspberries (ORAC Value: 5,000)
Red raspberries come in right behind blackberries as far as antioxidant content. This could be due to their different coloring since most black raspberries and blackberries have antioxidants related to their dark black-purple pigments.
11. Almonds (ORAC Value: 4,500)
Almonds are a very healthy food with a high amount of antioxidants, fiber, protein, vitamin E, magnesium, and manganese. They even have the power to make you feel full for longer, decreasing your overall calorie intake.
12. Goji Berries (ORAC Value: 4,300)
Also known as wolfberries, goji berries are considered by many to be a superfood. They are an excellent source of antioxidants, although their content isn’t as high as other berries on this list. However, they also have over 500% of the recommended daily value of vitamin A and a good amount of vitamin C and iron.
13. Strawberries (ORAC Value: 4,300)
Rounding out the list of antioxidant-rich foods is the common strawberry. This everyday fruit is rich in vitamin C and manganese along with folate and potassium. It’s an excellent source of antioxidants and easy to find in stores or grow yourself.
Other High-Antioxidant Foods
Other foods high in antioxidants include red grapes, spinach, oranges, turnip greens, lemons, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, beet greens, collard greens, tomatoes, garlic, ginger, green tea, limes, cabbage, and bell peppers.
Top Antioxidant Herbs and Spices
Herbs and spices are some of the most potent sources of antioxidants. They hold many of the top spots on the ORAC list, though they aren’t technically considered foods. Here’s a look at the top 15:
1. Cloves (ORAC Value: 290,000)
2. Oregano (ORAC Value: 175,000)
3. Rosemary (ORAC Value: 165,000)
4. Peppermint (ORAC Value: 160,000)
5. Thyme (ORAC Value: 157,000)
6. Cinnamon (ORAC Value: 131,000)
7. Turmeric (ORAC Value: 127,000)
8. Vanilla Bean (ORAC Value: 122,000)
9. Ginger (ORAC Value: 100,000)
10. Allspice (ORAC Value: 100,000)
11. Rose Hips (ORAC Value: 96,000)
12. Marjoram (ORAC Value: 92,000)
13. Parsley (ORAC Value: 74,000)
14. Gotu Kola (ORAC Value: 70,000)
15. Nutmeg (ORAC Value: 69,000)
Thank you so much for watching this video. I hope you learned something about antioxidants and how beneficial they are for your health. I hope you can start incorporating some of these superfoods into your diet. Subscribe for more tips.
