Written by: Dr. Marci L. Hardy, PhD, MA
The nutrients in foods are important for supporting your body’s functions and your overall health. Proteins, fats, and carbohydrates are essential nutrients, providing energy (calories) and components your body needs to function, grow, and repair itself. Specifically, carbohydrates are the primary energy source that fuels your daily activities, proteins build and repair your tissues, and fats support your brain health and the production of hormones. Also, foods contain vitamins and minerals, which support the body’s cells and different body functions. Some vitamins and minerals serve an additional special role called an antioxidant, including vitamins C and E and the minerals copper, zinc, and selenium.
What are Antioxidants?
The term antioxidant is assigned to nutrients that can counteract unstable molecules called free radicals that damage your cells and DNA. To best understand what antioxidants do, you must also understand free radicals.1
What are Free Radicals?
Free radicals occur naturally as part of your body’s everyday processes, such as metabolism, or in response to exercise. In addition, free radicals are produced by your immune system to destroy viruses and bacteria. Free radicals are also produced when you are exposed to environmental dangers such as tobacco smoke, ultraviolet rays, and air pollution. They are unstable atoms (missing an electron) that, if left unbalanced, can damage your cells and potentially lead to health issues.1
How do Free Radicals and Antioxidants Interact?
The relationship between antioxidants and free radicals is one of checks and balances. Antioxidants help balance free radicals, reducing their risk of damaging your cells.1
Imagine your body is like a metal bicycle. Over time, things like pollution, sunlight, and even just using the bicycle can cause it to rust. Inside your body, these unstable free radical molecules cause this internal rusting, which is called oxidative stress. The antioxidants found in the food you eat and some supplements act like rust protectors. They act by neutralizing free radicals, preventing them from damaging your cells. Think of the antioxidants as protectors that address rust damage happening inside you, neutralizing it and keeping your body working efficiently.
Why are Antioxidants Important for Brain Health?
Your brain is a very busy organ that requires a lot of energy to function. As your brain consumes energy, it produces free radicals. This makes your brain especially vulnerable to oxidative stress from unbalanced free radicals. Damage from free radicals can contribute to:
- Memory problems: Free radicals can damage brain cells involved in memory and learning.
- Cognitive decline: Free radical damage can lead to a decline in thinking skills, which can happen as we age.
- Increased risk of brain diseases: Some studies suggest that oxidative stress plays a role in conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
What Foods Contain the Main Brain-Boosting Antioxidants?
You can find antioxidants in a variety of foods, including fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fish, eggs, and dairy products. Some top sources of antioxidants are berries (like blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries) and cherries. Berries and cherries contain special types of antioxidants called:
- Anthocyanins, which give berries and cherries their vibrant red, blue, and purple colors. They have been shown to improve memory and protect brain cells.2
- Vitamin C, a well-known antioxidant that supports overall brain health.
By eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, especially berries and cherries, you’re giving your brain a dose of antioxidants. These protective substances help to keep your brain healthy and functioning well.
Summary
Antioxidants are like tiny protectors that prevent “rust” in your body, especially in your brain. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fish, eggs, and dairy products are all good sources of antioxidants. These foods are packed with antioxidants (protectors), which can help keep your memory sharp and your brain healthy.
- Lee KH, Cha M, Lee BH. Neuroprotective Effect of Antioxidants in the Brain. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Sep 28;21(19):7152. doi: 10.3390/ijms21197152. PMID: 32998277; PMCID: PMC7582347. ↩︎
- Carvalho F, Lahlou RA, Silva LR. Phenolic Compounds from Cherries and Berries for Chronic Disease Management and Cardiovascular Risk Reduction. Nutrients. 2024 May 23;16(11):1597. doi: 10.3390/nu16111597. PMID: 38892529; PMCID: PMC11174419. ↩︎