One of the big themes from last week's post "Eat Yourself Young" was that you can apply products and get procedures done (at The Otto Clinic, of course!) which can make a big difference on the outside but what you do on the inside is equally important: the absolutely crucial ingredient to a long life, rude health and glowing skin is the food you eat! And if you read Glow last week, you will know that that means Antioxidants are a must-have in any modern diet. The question is which foods have them and how can we ensure we are eating enough?
Panic not! Glow is about to answer all your questions with our easy to follow table of the top 50 ORAC foods and some additional helpful hints. Now we also mentioned last week that the US Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Ageing (HNRCA) has produced a measure index called ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) which lists in order of importance the foods highest in Antioxidants - in other words the best foods to eat to neutralise Free Radicals and protect the body from disease and ageing.
As a general rule of thumb, brightly coloured fruit and vegetables such as blueberries, strawberries, oranges and kale score highest, along with dried fruit which is the richest of all. According to the experts, you should be aiming to consume between 3,000 and 5,000 ORAC units per day every day in order to raise Antioxidant protection levels for every cell in your body so check out our table below to see the ORAC levels per 100g of the top 50 Antioxidant foods:
The ORAC Top 50 Foods - values determined per 100g (3oz):
Prunes: 5,770 Red Grapes: 739 Cantaloupe Melon: 252
Raisins: 2,830 Red Peppers: 710 Bananas: 221
Blueberries: 2,400 Cherries: 670 Apples: 218
Blackberries: 2,036 Kiwi Fruit: 602 Tofu: 213
Garlic: 1,939 Baked Beans: 503 Carrots: 207
Kale: 1,770 Pink Grapefruit: 483 Stringless Green Beans: 201
Cranberries: 1,750 Kidney Beans: 460 Tomatoes: 189
Strawberries: 1,540 Onions: 450 Courgettes: 176
Spinach: 1,260 White Grapes: 446 Apricots: 164
Raspberries: 1,220 Sweetcorn: 400 Peaches: 158
Brussels Sprouts: 980 Aubergines: 390 Squash (Yellow): 150
Plums: 949 Cauliflower: 377 Lima Beans: 136
Alfalfa Sprouts: 930 Peas: 364 Pears: 134
Broccoli: 890 Potatoes: 313 Iceberg Lettuce: 116
Beetroot: 840 Sweet Potatoes: 301 Watermelon: 104
Avocados: 782 Cabbage (raw): 298 Honeydew Melon: 104
Oranges: 750 Leaf Lettuce: 262
Go to http://www.michaelvanstraten.com/mineralsandvitamins.php?id=7 for further reading on ORAC food values.
So How Much ORAC Is Enough?
It is believed that at least 7 portions of brightly coloured fruit and vegetables are now required to give your body maximum protection and anti-ageing benefits. In order to boost your daily ORAC score, try the following tips:
Snack on fruit rather than chocolate or crisps
Add a tablespoon of raisins and blueberries to morning porridge/any cereal
Get your ORAC in first thing and make your breakfast a big bowl of berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries)
Make sure your lunch plate is half filled with salad/greens
Likewise make sure that your dinner plate is half filled with vegetables
What Benefits Can I Expect?
By consistently eating foods high in ORAC, plus other essential nutrients (many of which occur naturally in these foods anyway e.g. prunes, raisins and spinach also contain iron), you could slow down the development of wrinkles, protect joints from arthritis, reduce risk of heart disease and cancer, and protect your nervous system from diseases such as early Dementia and Alzheimers.