One of the most important reasons why the small purplish grape-sized berry fruit from the Brazilian rainforest has gotten so much publicity in the press, recognition and fame in a few short years of coming out in the public spotlight, is because of its super antioxidant property. In fact, acai berry is now considered one of the foremost fruits in the world that contains super powerful antioxidant properties. This little fruit has proven to have up to 10 times the antioxidants of grapes and at least twice the antioxidant power of blueberries. In addition to that, acai berry is quite rich in Vitamin E, protein, fiber, trace minerals, and contains a high degree of three kinds of omegas and essential fatty acids.
Why are Antioxidants So Important to Us?
The National Cancer Institute have stated that there is actual a lot of laboratory proof revealing that antioxidants can in fact slow or even stop the dangerous growth of cancer. Antioxidants are believed to possess the incredibly unique ability to protect cells from the potential damage that is caused by molecules widely known as “free radicals.” Know that enough damages that are caused by free radicals can eventually lead to some form of cancer in your lifetime. So the many antioxidants in the acai berry fruit can truly help to prevent the destruction that free radicals often cause.
Acai is a Crucial Source of Anthocyanin
The acai fruit is widely becoming well-known as an important source for its antioxidant anthocyanin. Anthocyanin belongs in a group of phytochemicals that are found in red wine and that have almost been proven as fact to have a positive effect on the cardiovascular system. This particular antioxidant has demonstrated itself to help improve circulation, fight cancer, and prevent both blood clots and artherosclerosis. In addition, the acai fruit contains oleic acid which helps maintain a healthy heart.
At the heart of anthocyanin in acai fruit is something called cyaniding-3 glucoside, which is about 3.5 times more powerful in comparison to the anthocyanin that is found in red wine as shown in an ORAC examination. ORAC actually means Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity. This is a method that is used to test the level of antioxidant activity of a property in question. It has been said that the average human being needs around 1670 ORAC everyday. The amazing acai berry provides an astounding ORAC level of 3871.
So now you know why this amazing little fruit from the Amazon rainforest of Brazil has grown in wild popularity in such a short period of time. Read a complete list of all the health benefits that acai berry provides at http://www.acai.vgTarot Readings online by an experienced Psychic

Seems these day you can’t turn on the TV or open up a magazine without seeing an ad touting the latest health product that is “rich in antioxidants.” It is a long word, sometimes difficult to comprehend, but it certainly reads as though it can be beneficial to the body, correct? Indeed, antioxidants are found in a number of dietary supplements designed not necessarily for weight loss, but for overall good health. Yet, before you decide to go head first into a daily antioxidant regimen, it is suggested to know exactly what antioxidants do, where they are found, and whether they truly are helpful to the body.
Antioxidants are generally defined as those products which, naturally, prevent or lessen the body’s oxidation. Oxidation refers to the addition of oxygen, and consequent lessening of hydrogen, from an element – be it the body or something else. Consider silver, for example. When silver or other precious metals are exposed to too much oxygen, they can tarnish and lose their original beauty. Now imagine something similar happening to your body. We need oxygen to survive, yes, but the air we breathe is not one hundred percent pure. An intake of too much pure oxygen can actually cause toxicity.
Antioxidants, therefore, apply a balance by guarding the body from damaging elements. With regards to alternative health, antioxidants are believed to purify the blood. Human blood contains a certain amount of iron, which is broken down by oxygen. Getting back to our metals analogy, metal exposed to too much oxygen can rust. If you can imagine this rust in your bloodstream as the iron is broken down, you will better understand the presence of free radicals in your body that can cause damage. Antioxidants work to get rid of these free radicals and keep you healthy and active.
Where to find antioxidants
Unfortunately, it is believed that antioxidants do not occur enough naturally in our bodies, hence the recent explosion of supplements and products claiming to be high in antioxidants. Many foods, however, are naturally rich in antioxidants and make good additions to a healthful diet. Just a few foods include:
Acai – This exotic purple berry is indigenous to the Amazon rainforest, and used in drinks, energy bars, powders and shakes. Brazilians have used acai for years as a healthful supplement for foods.
Blueberries – These tart little berries are good for more than garnishing cereals and filling pies. Blueberries are rich in antioxidants and provide a good source of vitamins.
Dark Cocoa – The darker the chocolate, the higher the health properties. While it isn’t recommended to eat too much of it, an occasional bite can boost your antioxidant level.
For a balanced diet with antioxidants to assist well-being, consult a physician or diet professional to see what you need to eat, and how much you need daily. By knowing what is good for your body can you improve your overall well-being. Kathryn Lively writes for AcaiGogo, quality acai retailers.asap travel scarborough

Antioxidants are nutrients that are present in the food that we consume. You can also purchase various nutritional supplements that are chalk full of antioxidants. Antioxidants can repair and prevent oxidative damage that often occurs to our body. Bi-products are naturally produced in our bodies when our body cells use oxygen. This can be very damaging to our health but antioxidants intercept these bi-products and help prevent them from causing such conditions as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.
We know antioxidants more commonly as foods that are rich in vitamin A and cartenoids such as carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes, kale, cantaloupe, peaches, collards, and apricots. Foods rich in vitamin C are the whole citrus fruit family, green peppers, strawberries, tomatoes, and green leafy vegetables. Foods that are rich in vitamin E are whole grains, nuts and seeds, vegetable and liver oils, and again green leafy vegetables. Selenium is also important as an antioxidant and can be found in foods like the fish family, red meat, garlic, chicken, grains, and eggs. If you notice some foods like green leafy vegetables, broccoli, and strawberries show up in multiple vitamin and antioxidant families. These would be fantastic choices as they would provide multiple food benefits.
Antioxidants further break down into other categories such as flavonoids and polyphenols. These include soy, red wine, purple grapes, pomegranates, tea and cranberries. We want to eat foods that are rich in lycopene and lutein such as tomatoes, watermelon, and pink grapefruits, dark green vegetables, especially spinach, brussel sprouts, kiwi, kale, and broccoli.
We are always hearing about the health benefits of antioxidants and how they prevent heart disease, ward off cancers and dementia, and they may even slow the aging process. The above mentioned foods are loaded with antioxidants but antioxidants are also found in some foods that would not necessarily be considered “healthy” foods, like the foods mentioned above, such as chocolate, coffee, and red wine which can deliver many beneficial antioxidants.
Antioxidants are responsible for preventing oxidation but they really do a whole lot more too such as reducing inflammation and to keep our arteries flexible. The way that each antioxidant is delivered will be responsible for the part of the body that it is most effective for. In other words, such foods as berries, which are full of flavonoids, would better improve artery health and since spinach is full of lutein would be best for preventing macular degeneration.
Of course all of us would love to eat a perfectly balanced diet rich in all the above-mentioned foods but that isn’t always reality. Antioxidants are also available in nutritional supplements. The popular acai berry juice is loaded with antioxidants. A small dose once per day is all you need to ensure you’re fighting that free radical damage that can be so harmful to your health. Shannon Pollock has been teaching people about natural health remedies for many years. She is a specialist with experience in herbal remedies for both people and animals.

For more information on the benefits of antioxidants, as well as other natural health related topics, visit Shannon’s website called Natural Health Remedies and MoreHouston Apartment

The power of antioxidants is far reaching and plentiful. Everywhere you look there are antioxidants listed as cures for many ailments and conditions. Antioxidants are present in many healthy foods and beverages and also available in supplements. You may be aware that you need them in your diet, but you may not know all of the many ways that you can find them.
Our bodies are made up of millions of cells and as we age, the cells in our bodies can become damaged by different sources such as poor diet, environmental causes and bad habits. Depending on the extent of how much our cells are damaged, we can develop health problems because of it. Antioxidants work in our bodies to help us repair the damaged cells and prevent the healthy cells from being damaged. Taking enough antioxidants when we are younger can help prevent us from being full of unhealthy cells and health problems.
Antioxidants can counteract the internal and external factors that surround us and cause damage to our cells. Antioxidants can help repair the skin cells and can be used as a very effective means of anti aging skincare.
Antioxidants slow down the oxidation processes in our bodies that lead to the production of free radicals. Free radicals damage the cells in our bodies and the cells of our skin. Free radicals lead us to experience the downfalls of premature aging. Antioxidants work to fight the aging process by regenerating cells and increasing the inhibition of oxidation processes in the body. Because of the work that they do in our bodies, the aging process can actually begin to slow down, and some of the damage that is already done to our cells can begin to reverse.
Antioxidants come in many forms and are found in many kinds of fruits and vegetables. Foods that contain large amounts of vitamins A, C and E are excellent sources of antioxidant supplements for our bodies. There are also a lot of antioxidant products available and natural health and skin care products that contain antioxidants. They not only promote healthy skin, but also a healthy life. The benefits of taking antioxidants include the strengthening of the immune system, the lowering of our chances of developing certain kinds of cancers, preventing certain diseases and reducing the risks of heart attacks and stroke.
There are so many reasons why taking antioxidants are beneficial to your health. Try to make sure you include them in your diet and as part of your healthy lifestyle. Fruit juices that are enriched with antioxidants can also make an excellent choice to supplement your diet. You only stand to improve your health, both mental and physical. Shannon Pollock has been teaching people about natural health remedies for many years. She is a specialist with experience in natural remedies for both people and animals.

For more information on the benefits of antioxidants, as well as other natural health related topics, visit Shannon’s website called Natural Health Remedies and MoreWP Robot

Instead of thinking about things you should not eat, consider foods you can add to your eating plan to help fight disease. One disease or condition that is common to all animals and people is called oxidation.
Like rust on a car, oxidation can cause damage to cells and may contribute to aging. Oxidation causes the formation of substances called free radicals, which is the primary cause of age related skin wrinkles and pigment discoloration.
During exercise, oxygen consumption is increased by 10 times or more, which leads to a significant increase in the production of oxidants. This results in damage that contributes to muscular fatigue during and after exercise. Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), which is an inflammatory response that occurs typically within 24 hours after strenuous exercise, is also associated with oxidative stress.
Worse yet, the brain is uniquely vulnerable to oxidative injury, due to its high metabolic rate and elevated levels of polyunsaturated lipids, the target of lipid peroxidation (creation of unstable molecules containing more oxygen than usual).
Project Swole Chemistry 101
Before we can understand free radicals, we must understand a bit about cells and molecules. The human body is composed of many different types of cells, which are composed of many different types of molecules. Molecules consist of one or more atoms of one or more elements joined by chemical bonds.
Atoms consist of a nucleus, which in turn consist of neutrons, protons and electrons. The number of protons (positive charge) in the atom’s nucleus determines the number of electrons (negative charge) surrounding the atom. It is the electrons that are involved in chemical reactions and are the substance that bonds atoms together to form molecules.
Electrons orbit an atom in one or more rings or shells, which are filled from the inner most ring to the outer most ring, with each ring containing 2n^2 where n is the ring number. For example the first ring (n = 1) contain 2(1)^2 = 2 electrons, while the third ring (n = 3) contains 2(3)^2 = 18 electrons, etc…
The number of electrons in an atom’s outer shell is the main factor that determines that atom’s chemical behavior. Atoms strive to fill all of their rings with electrons and will rapid engage in chemical reactions when their outer rings have one or more missing electrons, while an atom with a full outer shell (an inert atom, which has maximum stability) tends not to participate in chemical reactions.
Atoms try to reach maximum stability by:
* Stealing or dropping electrons to either fill or empty the outer shell
* Sharing the electrons in the outer shell by bonding together with other atoms
Free Radicals
Bonds do not normally split in a way that leaves an atom with an odd, unpaired electron. But when this does happen (with weak bonds) free radicals are formed. Free radicals are very unstable and react quickly with other compounds, trying to recapture the needed electron to gain stability.
Free radicals generally attack the nearest stable molecule in an attempt to steal its electron. When the molecular victim loses the electron that once made it stable, it becomes a free radical itself, thus beginning a chain reaction. Once this cycle has begun, it can often have a cascading waterfall effect that results in the disruption of the overall living cell.
Some free radicals arise normally during metabolism, while other free radicals are purposefully created by the body’s immune system to neutralize viruses and bacteria. Environmental factors such as pollution, radiation, cigarette smoke and herbicides can facilitate this process, creating unnecessary free radicals.
The body can usually handle a normal amount of free radicals, unless antioxidants are unavailable. If free radical production becomes excessive or antioxidants are used up, cellular damage can occur. The free radical damage that accumulates with age is particularly important, and can be partially protected against by ingesting as many antioxidants as possible.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants help prevent oxidation, may help increase immune function, and possibly decrease risk of infection and cancer. Most people can benefit by adding foods rich in antioxidants, naturally occurring plant substances that help block bad free radicals in our bodies.
Antioxidants neutralize free radicals by donating one of their own electrons, ending the electron-stealing reaction. The antioxidant nutrients themselves do not become free radicals by donating an electron because they are stable in either form. They act as scavengers, helping to prevent cellular damage and disease.
Acai berries have one of the highest total antioxidant concentrations of all fruits and vegetables on the planet, which has led many people to include an acai berry supplement in their diet and to search for acai berry diets and acai berry weight loss strategies.
Here are some other healthy foods you can eat to help boost antioxidant levels:
* beans: red beans, black beans, pinto beans, and lentils
* green tea
* red grapes (or wine, but be careful as developing a wine habit will add excessive calories to your daily intake)
* blueberries
* cherries
* white potatoes
* artichokes
* whole grains
* nuts and seeds
In general, fruits and vegetables provide many important nutrients including antioxidants such as vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and lycopene.
Vitamin C and Vitamin E
The vitamins C and E are thought to protect the body against the destructive effects of free radicals.
* Vitamin E is the most abundant fat-soluble antioxidant in the body. This is one of the most efficient chain-breaking antioxidants available, and is the primary defender against oxidation and lipid peroxidation.
* Vitamin C is the most abundant water-soluble antioxidant in the body. This acts primarily in cellular fluid, and is the most efficient at combating free-radical formation caused by pollution and cigarette smoke. Vitamin C also helps return vitamin E to its active form.
Foods containing a high concentration of vitamin C:
* citrus fruits: oranges, limes, lemons
* green peppers
* strawberries
* guava (tropical)
* plums
* grapefruit
* black currant
* tamarillo
* rosehip
* persimmon
* kiwi
* melon: honeydew, cantelope, watermelon
* jujube
Foods containing a high concentration of vitamin E:
* wheat germ oil
* almonds, dry roasted
* sunflower seed kernels, dry roasted
* sunflower oil
* safflower oil
* liver oil
* hazelnuts, dry roasted
* peanut butter
* peanuts, dry roasted
* corn oil
* spinach
* soybean oil
* whole grains
* green leafy vegetables
Carotenoids, Beta-carotene, and Vitamin A
A few of the better known antioxidants include carotenoids, which gives fruits and vegetables their deep rich colors. Plant carotenoids are the primary dietary source of vitamin A worldwide. The most efficient pro-vitamin A carotenoid is beta-carotene, which is abundant in yellow and orange fruits.
Vietnam gac has by far the highest content of beta-carotene of any know fruit or vegetable, 10 times higher than carrots, for example. Unfortunately, gac is quite rare and unknown outside its native region of SE Asia.
Foods containing a high level of carotenoids:
* apricots
* mangoes
* papayas
* pumpkin
* cantaloupes
* sweet potatoes (yams)
* carrots
* red peppers
* Vietnam gac (Momordica Cochinchinensis Spreng)
* green leafy vegetables: spinach, kale, sweet potato leaves, and sweet gourd leaves
* broccoli
* squash
* tomatoes
* kale
* collards
Foods containing vitamins C and E are also good sources of antioxidants, as well as selenium and zinc.
Lycopene
Lycopene is a pigment that gives vegetables and fruits, such as tomatoes, pink grapefruit and watermelon, their red color. In recent years, lycopene has received a lot of attention from researchers because it also has strong antioxidant capabilities. Several studies indicate that consumption of lycopene-rich foods is associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer and cardiovascular disease.
You can only obtain the benefits of lycopene by eating lycopene-rich foods, as it is not manufactured by the body. Canned tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, tomato juice, ketchup and pizza sauce are by far the major sources of lycopene for most Americans. Other fruits and vegetables such as watermelon and pink grapefruit also provide lycopene, but in smaller amounts.
Other Antioxidants
There are some other important antioxidants that we haven’t really gone over yet, such as:
* selenium
o fish & shellfish
o red meat
o grains
o eggs
o chicken
o garlic
* phytochemicals
o flavonoids / polyphenols
+ soy
+ red wine
+ purple grapes
+ pomegranate
+ cranberries
+ tea
o lutein – dark green vegetables such as kale, broccoli, kiwi, brussel sprouts and spinach
o lignan
+ flax seed
+ oatmeal
+ barley
+ rye
* antioxidants with additional vitamin qualities
o Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10)
o glutathione
* antioxidant enzymes made by the body
o superoxide dismutase (SOD)
o catalase
o glutathione peroxidase
Antioxidants work in a variety of ways to reduce the effects of free radicals. They can greatly decrease the damage caused by free radicals, stop them from forming to begin with, or oxidize them through a stabilizing chemical reaction to neutralize their harmful effects.
There are many vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and herbs that act as antioxidants or aid in the production of them. The best way to make sure you have covered all the bases in neutralizing free radicals is to eat the right foods and to supplement with a wide variety of antioxidants.
The best antioxidant supplements that I have found include:
* Extreme Acai Berry, which helps with weight loss
* Enhanced Green Tea, also helps with weight loss
* Pomegranate Cleanse, antioxidant digestive cleanser
Start seeing and feeling the results of antioxidant supplementation today! Steve Hanson has 10 years experience in the fields of exercise science and sports nutrition. He writes articles on all forms of athletic training and nutritional theories. View the blog to learn more about your favorite exercise and nutrition topics.

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