When our mothers told us to eat our veggies because they were good for our health, they weren't lying. Moms all over the world intuitively knew broccoli was a super food, and now intricate nutritional science is backing them up - broccoli is chock full of powerful antioxidants.
Here are a few foods you should be adding to your diet, as well as the reasons why.
- Blackberries, and I am not talking about the PDA. I am talking the actual fruit, the yummy berry. They are high in proanthocyandidins and while it sounds like the name of a dinosaur, it is really a type of antioxidant that might prevent cancer and heart disease. These berries also contain ellagic acid that combats carcinogens.
- Tomatoes are high in the hard to come by antioxidant lycopene, which is also found in pink grapefruit. Lycopene has been associated with decrease risk of prostrate, lung, colon and breast cancer. Tomatoes also contain glutathione, which boosts the immune system. Interestingly enough, cooking tomatoes helps make the antioxidants available to the body.
- Walnuts may just be the new wonder food - they beat out all the other nuts when it comes to antioxidant content. Plus they are high in Omega 3 fatty acids, low in sodium, and they're cholesterol free. Even though they are a super food you should limit yourself to just a handful of nuts a day though.
- You knew it was coming - broccoli is super high in indole -3-carbional (sounds like something my car engine needs), as are other cruciferous veggies like cabbage, cauliflower, kale and Brussels sprouts. Broccoli seems to reduce the risk of breast cancer and other estrogen-sensitive cancers. It is also super high in fiber.
- Red wine and grape juice are both high in the antioxidant resveratol that boost heart health by scavenging those pesky free radicals. Resveratol helps keep blood vessels open and flexible. So raise a glass of red wine and toast to your health. If you don't drink, have some tasty grape juice.
There's a few more, so read more
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Emily And Fin
That's right FitSugar... we mothers know best.
1i LOVE tomatoes
2i put a halved tomato under the broiler last night. plain and simple but somehow DELICIOUS. i recommend trying it!
I will try it. I like them on toasted sandwiches... plain and simple sounds good. Thanks!
3thats awesome about being better for you when they are cooked, because raw tomatoes give me hives! DO yellow tomatoes have the same benifits or is it just the red ones?
4esk, lycopene is a red pigment, so yellow tomatoes wont have as much as red ones, but they still have other phytochemicals that are super good for you.
Also, you must eat fat with the tomatoes in order to absorb lycopene....you'll get more lycopene by eating ketchup on a chicken sandwich than you will eating a tomato by itself. Beta cerotene is the same way.
5Ketchup is made from tomatoes!! Yay! My kids get antioxidants!
Wine - Yay! I get antioxidants!
6See, your moms are right and sooner or later you do listen to us!
I have been adding walnuts to my oatmeal in the mornings for a bit of crunch and now I know that is as good for me as the oatmeal. Woohoo!!!!
7Wow - all things I already like to eat! That never seems to happen on these lists, except for the what not to eat ones.
I am officially adding walnuts to my daily diet. They are by far my favorite nut and they have omega-3s, which I never get since I don't eat fish. Huzzah!
8I love balckberries so much - i will splurge on the expensive buggers now that i know they are so good for me.
9love all those except walnuts!
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