How to Get More Antioxidants into Your Diet

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This isn't a textbook, so here's a short explanation: antioxidants make you healthier, so here's how to arrange your diet accordingly.

Step 1: Drink tea
Start your morning with a cup of tea. Black and green versions contain flavonoids -- a type of antioxidant which has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease.

Step 2: Drink coffee
If tea isn’t your cup of, well, tea, then have coffee instead. It’s America’s most common source of antioxidants.

Step 3: Snack on nuts, fruits and veggies
Snack on nuts and increase your fruit and vegetable intake. There are several forms of antioxidants in these food groups.

Tip
Vitamins A, C and E aren’t just vitamins; they’re antioxidants as well.

Step 4: Eat specific foods for specific antioxidants
Eat specific foods for specific antioxidants: carrots for beta-carotene, spinach for lutein, tomatoes for lycopene and berries for anthocyanidin.

Step 5: Try other foods for more types
Try other foods for their antioxidants: onions and apples for flavonols, grapes for proanthocyanidins, pears for phenols and broccoli for dithiolthiones and sulforphane.

Tip
These were just a few examples. Visit health and diet websites for complete listings of foods and antioxidants.

Step 6: Nibble on dark chocolate
Lastly, nibble on some dark chocolate; it’s heavy on antioxidants, which should remove some of the typical guilt.

Did You Know?
Some studies suggest that antioxidants reduce the speed of aging, fight several types of cancer, reduce arthritic inflammation, and improve brain function and vision.