Home > MEDIA > Articles > Basic Vocabulary For Antioxidants


Basic Vocabulary For Antioxidants



                Anthocyanins: 

Anthocyanins are a type of flavonoid, a class of compounds         with antioxidant effects. Found naturally in a number of foods,       anthocyanins are the pigments that give berries, red onions,       kidney beans, pomegranates, and grapes their rich coloring.       In addition to acting as antioxidants and fighting free radicals,       anthocyanins may offer anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and anti-       cancer benefits.




They have long been the subject of investigation by botanists and plant physiologists because of their roles as pollination attractants and phytoprotective agent.


Anthocyanins may enhance heart health, according to a 2010 report published in Nutrition Reviews. The report's authors note that anthocyanins appear to improve cholesterol levels and blood sugar metabolism, as well as fight oxidative stress (a process known to play a role in heart disease).


Beta-carotene
is one of a group of red, orange, and yellow pigments called carotenoids. Beta-carotene can be found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. It can also be made in a laboratory.

Being an important flavonoid compound, beta carotene has powerful antioxidant functions, helps the body scavenge free radicals, thereby limiting the damage to cell membranes, DNA and protein structures in the cell.

Research studies suggest that dietary intake of foods high in β-carotene has positive association with decreased risk of cardio-vascular disease as well as oral cavity, and lung cancers.

When converted to vitamin A in the intestines it has all the functions of vitamin A such as visual cycle, reproduction (sperm production), maintenance of epithelial functions, growth and development.

Carotenoids
the colorful plant pigments some of which the body can turn into vitamin A, are powerful antioxidants that can help prevent some forms of cancer and heart disease, and act to enhance your immune response to infections.
These precursors to vitamin A are sometimes called provitamin A. Bright-orange beta-carotene is the most important carotenoid for adequate vitamin A intake because it yields more vitamin A than alpha- or gamma-carotene.
Some carotenoids, such as lycopene, do not convert to vitamin A at all.
Lycopene, the orange-red pigment found in tomatoes and watermelon, is still of value, however, because it's an antioxidant even more potent than beta-carotene. The other carotenoids are also valuable antioxidants.

Flavonoids
Flavonoids are plant-based compounds with powerful antioxidant properties, which means they reduce inflammation, promote healthy arteries, and help fight aging by preventing -- and repairing -- cellular damage. Flavonoids are the most importantplant pigments for flower coloration producing yellow or red/blue pigmentation in petals designed to attract pollinator animals. Flavonoids may also protect against dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and some cancers. F
lavonoids can be obtained by eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables every day

There are many types of flavonoids, and their concentration in specific foods varies greatly, depending on how a product is grown and processed.


Flavonoids can be found in the following fruits and vegetables:
Apples (flavonoids are in the skin)
Blueberries
Broccoli
Cabbage
Capers
Chocolate (dark, not milk) and cocoa
Onions
Strawberries
Red grapes
Red wine
Tea (all kinds)

Potential Health Benefits:

Research on the potential health benefits of these compounds is mostly focused on the way they interact with other substances, especially in terms of their antioxidant activity. Antioxidant substances are able to change or neutralize the effects of reactive substances called free radicals that can damage cells, leading to disease. Many of the studies on flavonoids have been done on materials in test tubes or animals, so it's not entirely clear how effective they are in humans, but they may lower the risk of a variety of health problems, including cardiovascular disease, age-related degenerative diseases, and cancers. They may also help prevent tooth decay and reduce the occurrence of common illnesses, like the flu.


Polyphenols

Polyphenols act as antioxidants. They protect cells and body chemicals against damage caused by free radicals, reactive atoms that contribute to tissue damage in the body. For example, when low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is oxidized, it can become glued to arteries and cause coronary heart disease.

Polyphenols can also block the action of enzymes that cancers need for growth and they can deactivate substances that promote the growth of cancers. The polyphenol most strongly associated with cancer prevention is epigallocatechin-3-gallate, or EGCG.
Despite their wide distribution in plants, the health effects of dietary polyphenols have come to the attention of nutritionists only rather recently. Until the mid-1990s, the most widely studied antioxidants were antioxidant vitamins, carotenoids, and minerals. Research on flavonoids and other polyphenols, their antioxidant properties, and their effects in disease prevention truly began after 1995 .Flavonoids were hardly mentioned in textbooks on antioxidants published before that date . The main factor that has delayed research on polyphenols is the considerable diversity and complexity of their chemical structures.

Current evidence strongly supports a contribution of polyphenols to the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, cancers, and osteoporosis and suggests a role in the prevention of neurodegenerative diseases and diabetes mellitus. However, our knowledge still appears too limited for formulation of recommendations for the general population or for particular populations at risk of specific diseases.

Much of the evidence on the prevention of diseases by polyphenols is derived from in vitro or animal experiments, which are often performed with doses much higher than those to which humans are exposed through the diet. One purpose of the conference and of this volume was to review some of the evidence for health effects of polyphenols in humans, from both clinical trials and epidemiologic studies. Polyphenols clearly improve the status of different oxidative stress biomarkers.Significant progress has been made in the field of cardiovascular diseases, and today it is well established that some polyphenols, administered as supplements or with food, do improve health status, as indicated by several biomarkers closely associated with cardiovascular risk. Epidemiologic studies tend to confirm the protective effects of polyphenol consumption against cardiovascular diseases .

In Conclusion,

Antioxidants help the body reduce the inflammatory action of singlet or free-radical oxygen. Oxygen atoms like to combine into pairs. Singlet oxygen atoms are unstable and interact with the lipids found in cell walls causing inflammation and damage. Sometimes, your own body uses these free radicals to fight infections and abnormal cells. Most of the time, these free radicals cause inflammation and damage to cells, such as those that line your arteries.
Orange and yellow fruits and vegetables have high vitamin A activity because of the carotenoids they contain. Generally, the deeper the color of the fruit or vegetable is an indication of a higher concentration of carotenoids. Carrots, for example, are especially good sources of beta-carotene. Green, leafy vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, and broccoli also contain large amounts of carotenoids, but their intense green pigment, courtesy of chlorophyll, masks the tell-tale orange-yellow color
are the most abundant antioxidants in the diet. Their total dietary intake could be as high as 1 g/d, which is much higher than that of all other classes of phytochemicals and known dietary antioxidants. For perspective, this is ∼10 times higher than the intake of vitamin C and 100 times higher that the intakes of vitamin E and carotenoids . Their main dietary sources are fruits and plant-derived beverages such as fruit juices, tea, coffee, and red wine. Vegetables, cereals, chocolate, and dry legumes also contribute to the total polyphenol intake.

Orange and yellow fruits and vegetables have high vitamin A activity because of the carotenoids they contain. Generally, the deeper the color of the fruit or vegetable is an indication of a higher concentration of carotenoids. Carrots, for example, are especially good sources of beta-carotene. Green, leafy vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, and broccoli also contain large amounts of carotenoids, but their intense green pigment, courtesy of chlorophyll, masks the tell-tale orange-yellow color