Super Foods

Again I'm going to share a good article discussing about healthy foods to our body. Hope you like it. (Written by Kathy Matin from Advanced, March 2006)

Fruits and vegetables gain a "super-food" reputation.

If you're the kind of health-conscious eater who eats a new fruit every day and piles broccoli, spinach and sweet potatoes onto your dinner plate, we have a new word for you: guava.

The reputation of these fruits and vegetables as super healthy foods is based largely on their prodigious antioxidant activity. Research being conducted at the US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Citrus and Subtropical Products Lab in Florida shows that guava - along with star fruit - belongs in the super-food league, too.

The work of antioxidants

"Antioxidant"(抗氧化) is a buzzword you've probably heard, but may not fully
understand. Antioxidants are plant chemicals (phytochemicals) that have the power to neutralize (抵銷) free radicals (自由基) - unstable compounds generated by our bodies (and found in pollutants like cigarette smoke) that can wreak havoc on our health. Free radicals cause oxidative damage to human cells that can trigger heart disease, diabetes (糖尿病) and cancer.

Here's an illuminating example, courtesy of Cooking Light magazine: Oxidation is what happens when the cut surface of a banana or apple turns brown. Antioxidant power is what lemon juice brings to bear when it's applied to the fruit and prevents the discoloration.

Think of an antioxidant intervening in your body and preventing free radicals from damaging a piece of DNA that regulates cell growth, thereby nipping a potential cancer in the bud, and you can understand why nutrition and health experts are so excited about their potential.

In the case of lemon juice, vitamin C is the operative antioxidant, but there are countless others. Sulforaphane (蘿蔔硫素) in broccoli, lutein (黃體素) in spinach, lycopene (茄紅素) in tomatoes, catechins (兒茶素) in tea and procyanidins (原矢車菊素) in chocolate are just some of the phytochemicals that have made headlines over the past two decades for their antioxidant power.

Super-food antioxidant sources

The public is catching on to the concept. "Consumers are aware of the term 'antioxidant' - they know they're important; they know that they're good for you, and they know that you should eat foods that have more of them," said Ilene Smith, a vice president and director of nutrition marketing.

This growing awareness is opening up fruitful new avenues for producers, marketers and even publishers. Health-oriented Rodale Press offers a hot title, The 12 Best Foods Cookbook - about blueberries, black beans, broccoli, chocolate, oats, onions, salmon, soy, spinach, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and walnuts. Notice: The most deeply colored fruits, vegetables and legumes are generally the most nutrient-dense.

Experts say two important messages are emerging form antioxidant research. First, that the health benefits of these phytochemicals are derived from whole foods, not from supplements. And second, that "the synergistic effect is powerful" - in other words, that antioxidant activity isn't the function of a single vitamin or nutrient but of countless compounds in a fruit or vegetable working together.

Continuing research

Dietitian Karen Collins, a nutrition advisor to the Americal Institute for Cancer Research, offers caveats. For one thing, she said, scores like the ones reported by the USDA are from lab tests, and determining whether they translate into higher blood levels of antioxidants in people who consume the fruits is a "a huge task." In addition, it is important to remember our understanding of the thousands of potentially health-boosting chemicals in plant-based foods is in its infancy and that new findings are continually emerging.

Just as we can't choose foods only for their vitamin content, Collins said. "It's important to point out that just choosing fruits and vegetables by their antioxidant potential isn't wise, either." With that in mind, she said eating a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes and nuts remains the best way to go.

Wow! From this article, I do learn more about how to eat foods. As it said, never pick and choose what you like to eat, but do eat what your body needs. Also, don't rely on diet supplements such as all kinds of Vitamin ingots. I believe that's the last bottom to defend.