Antioxidants are your first line of defense and are used to
neutralize the free radicals that can damage your body. 

What are Oxygen Radicals?

Oxygen Radicals are chemicals that are constantly inside our bodies. They are a normal everyday part of living. But, even though we all have these oxygen radicals, they are bad for us. These oxygen radicals can damage our cells. They do this damage by a process called oxidation. If our bodies can neutralize or cancel these oxygen radicals before they do damage, then they won't hurt us.

What is Oxidation?

Oxidation is a natural process that occurs around us all the time. One example of oxidation is rusting. For instance, you can think of a metal bridge that is rusting. Rusting is oxidation. What happens when metal rusts? It becomes weak and flaky. It doesn't serve its function anymore. It can't support the weight of the bridge. It doesn't do what it's supposed to do, because it is damaged be becoming old or weathered. THIS EXACT SAME PROCESS HAPPENS IN YOUR BODY! Just like a rusting bridge, the cells, organs, and other parts of your body can be made weak by oxidation. This can lead to diseases, like cancer and heart disease.

Is there anything I can do to stop this oxidation damage from happening in my body?

YES!! One of the best ways to stop oxidation is by choosing the right foods to eat. This is where ORAC is important. ORAC is a way to measure how many oxygen radicals a specific food can absorb. The more oxygen radicals a food can absorb, the higher its ORAC score. The higher its ORAC score, the better it is at helping our bodies fight diseases like cancer and heart disease.

Which foods are best at fighting disease? Which foods have high ORAC scores?

This is easy. Plant foods have the highest ORAC scores! Plant foods are best at fighting disease. By plant foods we mean: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and many other things. Brightly colored foods are the ones with the highest ORAC scores. This means these are the foods that help fight disease the best by stopping oxygen radicals from causing damage in our bodies. Think bright reds, greens, oranges, blues, purples, yellows, and oranges. What foods do these words describe? Strawberries, spinach, blueberries, blackberries, eggplant, yellow peppers, carrots, and oranges. Nearly all of the ORAC protection is in the skin of these foods. Any brightly colored fruits and vegetables that you can think of are good for you to include in your diet EVERY DAY! As a matter of fact, research shows that people who eat more of these plant foods have lower risk of cancer. See the following chart for an understanding of the relative anti-aging protection of various foods.

The Highest ORAC Nutritional Product that I have found is the Maqui Berry.  The new Patagonian Maqui Juice is a superfruit blend that tastes great and has an ORAC Value of 94,500! This superfruit product is over three times stronger than Acai or Goji.

The Aloe Vera, Resveratrol and Ionic Sea Minerals make this an awesome nutrtional product that is high in B vitamins, minerals, amino acids and helps to reduce inflammation and pain and helps type 2 diabetics.

Essential 7 is my favorite whole food antioxidant product that has 50 fruits and veggies plus probiotics, fiber and protein.  I give this product to my children and they love it, especially the Chocolate shakes.  Anti-Aging News: Seven Essentials tested recently at 21,010 ORAC units in a single serving... making it the highest rated anti-aging food that money can buy.