by PinkNic

Created on: June 01, 2007

Superfoods' seems to be the new word on the street when it comes to healthy eating. But what is a superfood? And what's the difference between superfoods and normal foods?

Superfoods contain a high level of antioxidants, which are extremely beneficial to our health as they fight off free radicals in the body. In case you're wondering, (here comes the science) free radicals are atoms or molecules with an unpaired electron in their outer ring. As they are lacking an electron, they steal electrons from healthy cells causing inflammation and therefore disease. They are also considered a major factor in the aging process.

To kill these free radicals, we need to eat foods high in antioxidants. The best sources of antioxidants are fruits and vegetables and we should eat as many of these as possible and a wide variety. Fruits and vegetables contain phytonutrients, fibre, enzymes, complex carbohydrates (the ones which release energy slowly and don't cause a sugar rush), vitamins A, B, C, E and K and a whole host of minerals including potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, iodine, lutein, beta carotene and manganese. It's recommended that we eat vegetables raw or lightly steamed as cooking can destroy the important nutrients found within them.

All fruits and vegetables are beneficial to health, but below are some of the best that is, the ones highest in antioxidants, or the superfoods'.

Pomegranates
Pomegranates contain one of the highest antioxidant levels found in a food. They are full of the vitamins A, C and E and high in folic acid which is especially beneficial to women during pregnancy. Consumption of pomegranates can aid the immune system by preventing the build-up of plaque in the arteries and lowering LDL cholesterol the bad cholesterol linked to heart attacks and strokes. It can also reduce the risk of developing certain cancers including breast, prostate and skin cancer. Studies have shown that pomegranate juice can slow down the onset and progression of Alzheimer's disease. Those who drank the juice daily had a fifty per cent reduction in brain degeneration and did better in cognitive tests than those who were given the placebo. The pomegranate also has an age-old reputation for boosting fertility and sex drive.

Garlic
Garlic has been known for hundreds of years to have medicinal properties and is a natural antibiotic. It has recently been regarded as being at least as potent as aspirin. The active compound in this wonder herb is allicin, which is produced

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