If you're having trouble consuming enough vitamins and antioxidants through your normal diet, you may want to try taking antioxidant supplements. You can find these online, in grocery stores and in health food stores. By taking a supplement, you ensure you are getting the recommended amount of ORAC units (Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity - a way to measure the amount of antioxidants you consume daily) without having to watch your diet.
While most scientific studies show your body will benefit more if you consume your daily allowance of antioxidants through the consumption of whole foods, taking supplements is a good idea if you know you won't do it through diet alone.
Choosing Between Antioxidant Supplements
There are dozens of supplements on the market. While a number of companies make wonderful supplements from grape seed extract, goji berries, curcumin (derived from the Indian spice turmeric) and other difficult to find sources of antioxidants, there are a number of companies who manufacture equally beneficial supplements made from common sources of antioxidants such as oranges, lemons and grapefruit.
It really doesn't matter if the supplement you choose uses the rare goji berry or the common orange. What you want to look for is the number of ORAC units or antioxidants units delivered in each dose. Make sure the company is certified by the FDA or another similar oversight organization, that the company has been in business for a while (and is therefore reliable) and the price is not outrageous. One of the advantages of buying an antioxidant supplement made from a common source of antioxidants is the fact that the price per dose will be less expensive - and yet just as effective.
Make sure the dosage is palatable, whether that means the capsules are sizes and textures that you can handle or that the tonic or juice supplement is tasty enough that you will be willing to take it every day. Investigate the reputation of the company before you buy so you won't get scammed, and trust the ORAC level more so than the miracle claims in ads.
Remember that it's best if you can get most of your antioxidants from whole foods, so try to fit as many legumes, fruits and vegetables into your diet as possible. Then you can spend less money on supplements while getting the same health benefits.
 | Antioxidants work with the body to protect cells from the harmful effects of free radicals. Antioxidant vitamins include vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C, selenium, and carotenoids like beta-carotene, lyopene and lutein. |
 | You're heard how good antioxidants are for your diet-they improve your skin, your health, fight cancer and extend your life expectancy-and now you want to get more antioxidants into your diet. Fortunately, it's easy to find foods high in antioxidants. |
 | Maybe you've heard antioxidants are good for you or been puzzled when a coworker joked that her chocolate bar wasn't so bad since it delivers a boatload of antioxidants. But what are antioxidants and how antioxidants work? |
Working together or separately, antioxidants seek out and neutralize free radicals, unstable molecules that compromise the structure and activity of healthy cells. |
Wouldn't you be interested in an antioxidant that was many times more potent than vitamins C and E? What if this substance reinforced your body's own antioxidant system? |
