We all know that antioxidants are great for us! But why exactly? And why does moringa have more antioxidants than other greens? Let’s find out!
What are antioxidants really? And why are they so good for you? So antioxidants are micronutrients that serve to protect, prevent, or delay cell damage from occurring. They do this by fighting free radicals.
Free radicals are highly unstable molecules formed in the body from a variety of external stresses, such as cigarette smoke, pollution, and radiation from the sun.
If free radicals aren’t eradicated, they can cause cell damage over time and are thought to lead to a multitude of scary diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and eye diseases such as cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. Eek!
So basically you want a lot of antioxidants in your body, because they form a micronutrient army that fights to keep you healthy in the face of the many external invaders that enter our bodies every day.
The good news is that it is pretty easy to find and incorporate antioxidants into your everyday diet. In fact, you are probably already getting enough of these little disease-fighting powerhouses if you eat a lot of produce.
Antioxidants include:
-Vitamins C (citrus, strawberries, & cantaloupe)
-Vitamin A (milk, eggs, & dark leafy greens)
-Vitamin E (nuts, avocado, & fish)
-Selenium (nuts, fish, & whole wheat bread)
-Carotenoids, such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin (sweet potatoes, carrots, & broccolli)
A good way to easily incorporate more antioxidants into your daily routine is by eating more moringa! Moringa is an amazing source of natural antioxidants. One tablespoon of Kuli Kuli moringa powder contains:
25%* Vitamin C
101% Vitamin A
12.1 mg of carotenoids
90% Vitamin E
*percentages correspond to daily value
So in conclusion, while there is no conclusive data about the direct effects of antioxidants in health, antioxidant-rich diets from natural sources (such as produce) have been shown to play a preventative role for many major diseases. Start sprinkling that moringa powder on your snacks and check out our recipes for easy and delicious ways to get more antioxidants!
Benefits of antioxidants
As mentioned earlier, antioxidants counteract the damaging effects of free radicals, which are naturally produced by the body. However, the production of free radicals mostly surpasses the naturally occurring antioxidants. Hence, to balance it, an external supply of antioxidants is indispensable. For instance; when skin is exposed to high levels of ultraviolet light, free radicals are produced. These damage cellular lipids, proteins, and DNA; which leads to erythema (sunburn), premature aging of the skin, freckles and skin cancers. Antioxidants help to neutralize these free radicals and remove it from the body through the bloodstream. Thus, it can prevent or delay the aging process of the body.
Other Antioxidants have different functions namely:
– Beta-carotene (and other carotenoids) helps to maintain eye and vision health ;
– Lycopene helps to maintain healthy prostate;
– Flavonoids helps to maintain healthy heart;
– Proanthocyanidins is useful for healthy urinary tract;
– Astaxanthin helps to reduce wrinkles, improve skin moisture levels and overall skin health beneficial for boosting immunity, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, etc.
Overall, antioxidants are little powerhouse-fighters and everyone should incorporate it into their diet. Moringa is an easy way to do so, so order your Pure Moringa Powder now and use it into your smoothies, yogurt, oatmeal or sweet and savory dishes!
