By Rick Mautz
I find talking about the nutrients that we should add to our diet is much more palatable than talking about the foods that we should stop eating. Who likes to hear that the steak that you love may increase the risk of a heart attack. Wouldn’t you rather just add some more blueberries and flax seeds, or antioxidants, to your morning cereal and know that you are on the path towards a healthier and happier life?
So, let’s talk about the power of adding antioxidants to your diet and how they protect us from oxidative stress. Before you begin thinking, “this is just a little too scientific for me,” let me make it a little simpler. When a car burns fuel it produces exhaust, the byproduct of that combustion process. When the body burns food (fuel), its exhaust is something we call free radicals, the byproducts of metabolism.
The name itself almost gives a picture of dangerous criminals running free and causing all kinds of damage. That’s not too far off. These free radicals are missing an electron, and cells don’t like that. They like their electrons in pairs, so cells will go in search of another electron to make them happy again.
They will steal an electron from any cell they run into causing that cell to become damaged. They will even damage your DNA while trying to steal an electron. And DNA damage is what can lead to cancer. I am guessing that you didn’t know that something so dangerous was going on in your body. And you may ask, “why did God design an energy system that would result in so much damage?”
As in other aspects of life, there are those who take and there are those who give. The takers are the free radicals, and the givers are the antioxidants. Antioxidants have extra electrons, so when they see a greedy free radical trying to steal an electron from a cell, protein, or DNA, they rush in.
I don’t know if God designed it that way as an illustration of how we should live as givers rather than takers, but it certainly is a great analogy on how to live to help and not to harm.
Many aspects of modern life—our diet, lifestyle, environmental factors like pollution, etc.—can cause oxidative stress, or an imbalance between antioxidants and free radicals. Over time, oxidative stress weakens cells and tissues and can leave you more vulnerable to certain health issues, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, cancer, diabetes, and more. And, as beauty marketers are keenly aware, oxidative stress can also speed up the aging process.
Let me tie this into something that we all have seen. Rust is oxidation. When an apple turns brown when exposed to the air, that is oxidation. That happens in our body as well. God’s goal is to have no oxidation or oxidative stress in our body, so He gave us instructions to eat foods that are high in antioxidants, and to avoid foods that lack antioxidants.
As you can see, God’s plan involves us making a choice. Maybe you did not know that your choices would play a part in God’s plan to protect us. So, where do these antioxidants come from and how can I make sure I have lots of them to prevent the damage from the free radicals? Let’s discover how to cooperate with Him in this marvelous plan.
A diet comprised mainly of animal-based foods are low in antioxidant content while diets based mainly on a variety of plant-based foods are antioxidant rich. That is why God’s original diet of plants, high in antioxidants, reduces damage to the body’s natural “exhaust” created by the food we eat being converted into energy.
One easy way to find the best food for antioxidants is to find the brightest color foods, like purple cabbage is better than green cabbage, red onions versus yellow, and so on. So let your eyes do your shopping: find the darkest greens, the reddest apples, the brightest peppers. Also, berries have the most antioxidants, and the darker, the better. Spices are very high as well, so spice up your life and enjoy the protection from oxidative stress and great flavor.
For a list of foods that are high in antioxidants, do a Google search for antioxidant orac scale. Just don’t get too excited when you see dark chocolate high on the list, unless you plan to eat the unsweetened variety.
This topic is a great reminder for me that all God’s instructions are for our good. He designed our body and knows how to protect us as we follow His instructions. This should bring us joy and confidence that we don’t have to guess the best way to live!
—Rick Mautz, PT MS, is RMC director of the Rocky Mountain Lifestyle Center. Photo by Unsplash.
