The heroic tale of antioxidants
There’s been a whole lot of brouhaha lately about antioxidants and their amazing health benefits. I decided to jump onto the bandwagon and get on the path to great health. So I called up this really healthy friend of mine, a dude who hasn’t had fever or even a cold in over a year. I asked him how I could get myself some antioxidants and he told me I needed to have berries for breakfast, green tea for lunch and dark chocolate for dinner. Obviously I wasn’t very happy with this meal plan so I asked him a bunch of questions -
“What even are antioxidants? Why do we need them? What purpose do they serve?”
He replied with some silence followed by more silence and then –
“Dude, they’re good for health okay. Just have them.”
That’s when I realized that everybody is aware that they should get enough antioxidants but nobody really knows why. So if you’re as clueless as my friend and I are, don’t worry. I’ve got you covered just read on.
In the story of antioxidants, the villains are free radicals.
Why are these free radicals so damn villainous?
Free radicals are atoms or molecules that contain unpaired electrons. They are often formed when molecules in our body interact with oxygen especially as part of the metabolic process. In the right numbers free radicals are important and have a role to play in our body. But they are highly unstable structures and often set off a chain of chemical reactions that damage healthy cells.
Air pollution, cigarette smoke and alcohol consumption are among various factors that contribute to the formation of excessive free radicals.
The state when free radicals largely outnumber antioxidants in our body is called oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress and the resulting cell damage is a suspected cause of cancer, heart disease and also considered a contributor to the ageing process.
How antioxidants save the day (and your body)
Antioxidants are molecules that interact with free radicals to stop the chain reactions before they damage the cells in our body. They do this by donating an electron to the free radicals thus neutralizing them and bringing an end to all the destruction.
So just like in life in our bodies too it’s the act of giving that makes things better.
Being the marvel that it is, the human body produces its own antioxidants, but it is essential to obtain certain antioxidants from food. Especially Vitamin C and Vitamin E. Selenium, manganese and beta carotene are some other antioxidants found in food.
So what should we eat to get these life-saving antioxidants
Plants are the best sources of antioxidants although lesser amounts are found in meat and sea food. A suggested practice to get the right amount and quality of antioxidants is to have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. It’s a great idea to include fruits and vegetables that represent all colors of the rainbow as they all contain different types of antioxidants. Here’s a helpful list
V(iolet) I(ndigo) B(lue) — — eggplants, blueberries.
G(reen) — — spinach, broccoli
Y(ellow) — — turmeric
O(range) — — carrots, apricots
R(ed) — — tomatoes, strawberries.
Apart from fruits and vegetables, green tea, dark chocolate and red wine (don’t latch on too much to this one) are good sources of antioxidants.
Lastly, don’t rely on supplements
Food sources contain a multitude of nutrients that work together in synergy. Taking supplements that contain one or few of these do not provide the same benefits. There is still a lack of clarity within the medical community over the advantages of antioxidants from supplements and these are best avoided. Taking low dose supplements like multivitamins are useful in case of deficiencies, but natural plant based foods are the way to go for your daily quota of antioxidants.
