Food rich in antioxidants can significantly help you boost your blood antioxidant levels to efficiently fight oxidative stress and lower the risk of heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. But that’s not all.
We should start with the fact that antioxidants protect your cells from damage caused by possibly dangerous molecules dubbed free radicals. Curious to find out more?
Here are 7 healthy foods high in antioxidants you should try.
Goji Berries
Goji berries contain some unique antioxidants linked to a decreased risk of cancer and heart disease and might help fight skin ageing. How cool is that?
Based on a FRAP (ferric reducing ability of plasma) analysis, these dried fruits contain up to 4,3mmol od antioxidants/ 100gr. In addition, studies have shown that senior people who consumed a milk-based goji berry drink daily for 90 days had raised blood antioxidant levels by 57 %.
Artichokes
This nutritious and delicious vegetable is not very common in people’s diets, but it was the real deal back in the day. For example, people used artichoke leaves to treat various liver conditions.
You should know that the antioxidant content of this vegetable may vary, though, depending on how you cook them. If you choose to steam artichokes, the antioxidant content increases 15 times while boiling them by 8 times.
Artichokes contain 4.7mmol of antioxidants/ 100gr.
Beans
Beans come in different sizes and shapes, and they’re incredibly high in fiber, not only antioxidants. Green broad beans, for instance, contain up to 2mmol of antioxidants/ 100gr.
Also, pinto beans contain an antioxidant known as kaempferol that can highly reduce chronic inflammation.
Dark Chocolate
Dark chocolate is a delicious and healthy treat, rich in minerals and antioxidants. The FRAP analysis shows that dark chocolate has up to 15mmol of antioxidants/ 100gr, which is genuinely fantastic.
Studies have found a link between cocoa intake and blood pressure in people with high blood pressure and healthy people. Consuming dark chocolate reduced the diastolic (the lower value) blood pressure by an average of 2.5mmHg, and systolic (the upper value) blood pressure by an average 4.5mmHg.
Red Cabbage
Red cabbage is rich in all the cool vitamins, such as vitamin C, A, and K, filling up a great nutrient profile.
Red cabbage contains up to 2.2mmol of antioxidants/ 100 gr, but if steamed, the antioxidant content can reduce by almost 35 %.
Blueberries
It is said that blueberries are low in calories, but did you know they’re incredibly rich in antioxidants?
The FRAP analysis shows that blueberries have up to 9.2mmol of antioxidants/ 100gr. And that’s not all.
Studies have shown that blueberries might delay the decline in brain function that could happen with age. According to scientists, the antioxidants in blueberries are super essential and responsible for that effect.
Kale
Kale, aka the most nutritious green on the planet, is also rich in antioxidants! Just 100gr of kale is 2.7mmol of antioxidants, as per a FRAP analysis.
Red varieties of kale, including red Russian kale or redbor, are even better – up to 3.5mmol of antioxidants/ 100gr.
