How to Get More Antioxidants into Your Diet

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.
FACT: Some studies suggest that antioxidants reduce the speed of aging, fight several types of cancer, reduce arthritic inflammation, and improve brain function and vision.