Free radicals are unstable molecules that can wreak havoc on your health over time. According to FamilyDoctor.org, the damage that free radicals inflict on your DNA, cells and body chemicals can accelerate aging and increase your risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. By eating foods that are high in antioxidants, you can help your body fight the effects of free radicals. Antioxidants can transform these free radicals into stable molecules, preventing damage. The USDA has researched more than 100 common fruits, vegetables and nuts to determine which ones are the highest in antioxidant content.
Beans
You can't avoid the environmental factors that cause free radicals to form, unless you can figure out a way to live without oxygen. The mere experience of being exposed to oxygen is one of the leading causes of free radical formation, as oxidation alters chemicals in your body, making them unstable. Fortunately, you need look no further than the humble bean when seeking foods that can help you reverse the effects of oxidation.
Beans are a great source of powerful antioxidants that can help protect you from the effects of free radicals. Four items on the USDA's top-20 list of foods high in antioxidants are beans. Small red beans are the cream of the antioxidant crop at number-one on the list of high antioxidant foods. Red kidney beans, pinto beans and black beans also make the top-20 cut.
Berries
In addition to the musical fruit, another food type that comes in tiny bite-sized morsels gained multiple mentions on the USDA top-20 list. Many varieties of berries are packed with antioxidants, but for the berry best you may have to pick your own: Wild blueberries take the number-two spot on the list of super antioxidant foods, whereas cultivated blueberries lag a few places behind at number five.
Berries have a helpful effect on your brain as it ages, according to EurekAlert!, due to their high content of compounds called polyphenols that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.
Apples
Your mom was probably right when she told you apples would help keep you out of the doctor's office. Three different varieties of apple, Red Delicious, Granny Smith and Gala, earned placement in the USDA top-20 list of antioxidant foods. To get the full effect of their free radical fighting nourishment, don't peel your apples. The Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry published research in its January 2003 edition that found that apple peels are particularly high in phenols, which are rich sources of antioxidants. According to K. Wold of Cornell University, of the four apple varieties studied, Idared apples were found to have the highest antioxidant activity in their peels.
