By Lynn Keegan, RN, PhD, HNC, FAAN, and Gerald T. Keegan, MD, FACS
Most high antioxidant foods are vegetable matter (i.e., tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, and peppers). Fruits and vegetables that have rich hues of color contain phytonutrients, which are nutrients concentrated in the skins of many vegetables and fruits and are responsible for not just their color, but scent, and flavor as well. Phytonutrients are the best antioxidant foods that exist in nature.
For example red onions, rather than white ones contain the antioxidants. If you like grapes, eat the red ones. Instead of green peppers, try yellow, orange, purple, or red. Remember, the deeper and richer the color of the fruit or vegetable, the more phytonutrients that are present in it. Blueberries and bilberries are two of the best antioxidant foods and are very rich in phytonutrients. Table 1 depicts 20 food sources of antioxidant foods.
Table 1:
Best sources of food antioxidants:
Top 20 fruits, vegetables and nuts (as measured
by total antioxidant capacity per serving size)
Keegan L, Keegan GT. Foods High in Antioxidants. Altern Ther Women's Health 2004;6(8):60.
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