International Specialty Supply
Supplying Sprout Companies Throughout the World
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International Specialty Supply Supplying Sprout Companies Throughout the World
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820 East 20th Street Cookeville, TN 38501 USA 931 526 1106
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Foods
that Score High in an Antioxidant Assay Called ORAC May Protect Cells and their
Components from Oxidative Damage, According to Studies of Animals and of Human
Blood. USDA
ARC Human
Nutrition, ARS Quarterly Report, January - March 1999 ORAC,
short for Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity, is a test-tube analysis that
measures the total antioxidant power of foods and other chemical substances.
Early findings suggest that eating plenty of high-ORAC fruits and
vegetables—such as spinach and blueberries—may help slow processes
associated with aging in the brain and other parts of the body. In other
research studies, consuming high-ORAC foods has so far been shown to (1) raise
the antioxidant power of human blood 10 to 25 percent; (2) prevent some loss of
long-term memory and learning ability in middle-aged rats; (3) maintain the
ability of brain cells in middle-aged rats to respond to a chemical stimulus, a
function that normally decreases with age; and (4) protect rats' tiny blood
vessels—capillaries—against oxygen damage. The thesis that oxidative damage
culminates in many of the maladies of aging is well accepted in the health
community. The evidence has spurred skyrocketing sales of antioxidant vitamins.
But several large trials have had mixed results. Combinations of nutrients found
in foods may have greater protective effects than each nutrient taken alone, the
researchers contend. The 10 highest ORAC fruits, in descending order, are
prunes, raisins, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, plums,
oranges, red grapes and cherries. The 10 highest ORAC vegetables are garlic,
kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, alfalfa sprouts, broccoli florets, beets, red
bell peppers, onions and corn.
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