(NaturalNews) Fall has arrived and with the crisp weather comes a
cornucopia of delightful fruits and vegetables that not only taste
great but are excellent health boosters, as well! Fruits and vegetables
are packed with powerful antioxidants that can lower your risk of heart
disease, cancer, diabetes-related damage and even slow down the body's
natural aging process. So grab an apple and read on…
What
exactly are antioxidants and why do we need them? Antioxidants are
nature's way of fighting off potentially dangerous molecules in the
body. Such molecules come in the form of synthetic chemicals such as
pesticides, plastics, and chlorine byproducts and are called
free radicals.
Free radicals are unstable molecules that essentially feed off of
otherwise healthy molecules in order to survive. Every day tens of
thousands of free radicals are generated within the body, causing cell
damage that can lead to chronic and degenerative diseases if left
unchecked.
The body sometimes creates its own free radicals in
order to destroy viruses or bacteria. To balance out these unruly
molecules, the body also creates
antioxidants,
which have the sole purpose of neutralizing free radicals. The body is
only designed to create a certain amount of antioxidants on its own
however, and as we are faced with an ever-growing number of
environmental toxins, the body is less capable of fighting off the
unwanted harmful invaders.
Fruits and
vegetables
provide the body with an added source of antioxidants that is needed to
properly wage war against free radicals. Without the necessary intake
of healthy
fruits and vegetables, free radicals can spread and eventually lead to stroke, heart attack, arthritis, vision problems, Parkinson's
disease, Alzheimer's disease and various types of
cancer.
The benefits of getting your daily dose of
fruits and vegetables are numerous! The
antioxidant,
Vitamin E, is wonderful for your heart. Vitamin E has the ability to
essentially "mop up" the LDL ("bad") cholesterol in your arteries,
allowing for the necessary elasticity and
blood
pressure levels to keep your heart pumping safely. Cholesterol, if left
untreated, builds up as plaque on the inside walls of the arteries,
impeding blood flow LDL and forcing the heart to work overtime to
continue functioning. Eventually, plaque buildup can become so severe
that it can create a blockage in the artery, leading to heart attack or
stroke. By getting enough Vitamin E in your diet you can give your body
the necessary antioxidants to prevent your LDL cholesterol levels from
getting out of control.
Antioxidants can protect you against
diabetes
related damage. Free radicals thrive in the altered metabolic states of
diabetics. But with the necessary antioxidants that fruits and
vegetables can provide, free radicals can be neutralized, protecting
your kidneys, blood vessels, eyes and heart from harmful damage.
Free
radicals cause cancer cells to grow. Many studies have linked cancer,
including those of the stomach, prostate, colon, breast, bladder,
esophagus and pancreas, to free radicals. Eating your fruits and
vegetables may not prevent cancer altogether, but can give your body
the fighting chance that it needs. Antioxidants can neutralize cancer
cells before they develop into a mass. A recent study at Harvard
University found that men who ate the most tomato based
foods
(rich in antioxidants) had a 35% lower risk of developing prostate
cancer than those who ate the least amount of tomato based foods.
Antioxidants
slow the effects of aging! Free radicals damage the cells within our
body that are vital to a youthful appearance and good
health.
Eating fruits and vegetables can slow down the loss of muscle
elasticity that leads to wrinkles, boost your immunity making you less
susceptible to illness, and put the breaks on memory failure, as free
radicals injure the brain cells necessary for retaining information.
Antioxidants are available in supplement form but are the most powerful
when found in whole foods. The best practice is to combine a "greens"
supplement (containing
vitamins,
minerals and antioxidants found in produce) with the recommended 5 to 9
servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Leafy vegetables, like
spinach and collard greens, and orange colored fruits and vegetables
such as mangos, oranges, cantaloupe, sweet potatoes and carrots are all
excellent sources of the antioxidant beta-carotene. Fruits and
vegetables containing lycopene, such as tomatoes, watermelon, guava,
papaya, apricots and pink grapefruit, are also packed with antioxidants.
It
is important that when you are purchasing fruits and vegetables for
yourself and your family that you shop in the organic section. The
produce available in most stores no longer contains the level of
nutrients that it did 100 years ago. Because of pesticides and the
diminished mineral levels in soils used today, eating non-organic
produce will not provide you with the antioxidants (or vitamins and
minerals)
that your body needs. On average, organic produce contains nearly 30%
more nutrients than non-organic and is grown without using harsh
chemicals that can lead to further free radical exposure. Autumn is a
great time to start a new healthy habit that your family will love, and
eating 5 to 9 servings a day of scrumptious organic fruits and
vegetables really can keep the doctor away.
By Leigh Erin Connealy, M.D from
http://www.naturalnews.com/024710.html