A food scoring highly on a test-tube antioxidant assay tells you almost nothing about what happens after digestion. Claims here are rated on human oxidative-stress markers only.
Antioxidant capacity, oxidative damage markers and polyphenol intake.
19 foods, grouped by the strongest rating any of its claims in this area reaches. Ratings describe the research, not the food. How ratings are decided.
Several human studies point the same way, with real caveats.
Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.
Rubus fruticosus
Dark aggregate fruit of bramble canes, distinguished from raspberries by keeping the central core when picked. Sold fresh in…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited for an effect on human oxidative-stress markers. Blackberries score very highly on laboratory antioxidant assays, but those assays are poor predictors of what happens after digestion and absorption.
Syzygium aromaticum
The dried flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum, one of the most aromatic spices in common use. The USDA entry is per 100 g of…
Oxidative stress markers: Cloves score at the top of laboratory polyphenol and antioxidant assays among common spices, and a small number of human studies report changes in antioxidant markers after clove intake. Laboratory antioxidant rankings say very little about what happens after digestion, and the human work is sparse.
Corylus avellana
The round nut of the hazel shrub, mostly grown in Turkey and Italy and largely destined for confectionery. The USDA reference…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited to small trials measuring antioxidant and oxidised-LDL markers, mostly using skin-on hazelnuts, which are not the form most people eat.
Origanum vulgare
The dried leaf of Origanum vulgare, dominated by the phenols carvacrol and thymol. The USDA entry is per 100 g of dried leaf,…
Oxidative stress markers: Oregano ranks high on laboratory antioxidant assays, and a small number of human studies report modest changes in antioxidant markers. The human work is sparse and uses extracts rather than the amounts used in cooking.
Carica papaya
A soft tropical fruit with orange or red flesh and black seeds, eaten ripe as fruit and green as a vegetable. Its latex contains…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited for an effect on human oxidative-stress markers. Some small trials of fermented papaya preparations report changes in those markers, but the fermented product is not the same thing as the fruit.
Capsicum annuum
Ground dried Capsicum annuum peppers, ranging from sweet to hot and sometimes smoked over oak. The USDA entry is per 100 g of the…
Oxidative stress markers: Paprika oleoresin and its carotenoids have been examined mainly in laboratory and animal work, with only a small number of human studies, and those used concentrated extracts rather than the spice. Laboratory antioxidant scores do not carry over reliably to people.
Petroselinum crispum
A biennial Apiaceae herb eaten fresh in quantity in dishes such as tabbouleh and used as a garnish elsewhere. It is unusually…
Oxidative stress markers: A small number of human crossover studies have looked at parsley intake and antioxidant enzyme activity, with modest and inconsistent findings. The studies are few and used unusually large parsley portions.
Carya illinoinensis
A hickory nut native to North America, close relative of the walnut and similarly rich in unsaturated fat. The USDA reference…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited. Small trials report changes in oxidised LDL and antioxidant markers after pecan meals, with short follow-up and few participants.
Punica granatum
A thick-skinned fruit filled with hundreds of juice-filled arils, each containing a seed. Commercial juice is usually pressed…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited for an effect on oxidative-stress markers. Some trials report changes in markers such as oxidised LDL, but the measures used vary widely and results are not consistent.
Salvia rosmarinus
A woody Mediterranean shrub whose needle-like leaves are used fresh or dried. Rosemary extract is also used industrially as a…
Oxidative stress markers: Rosemary extract is used commercially to slow fat oxidation in foods, which is a chemistry effect in the product rather than an effect in a person. The small number of human studies use concentrated extracts and report inconsistent changes in oxidative markers.
Sesamum indicum
Oil pressed from sesame seeds, sold either as a light-coloured neutral cooking oil or as the dark, strongly flavoured oil pressed…
Oxidative stress markers: Contains compounds associated with antioxidant activity, principally sesamin and sesamol. Human trials measuring oxidative stress markers after sesame oil intake are small and few.
Helianthus annuus
The hulled kernels of the sunflower, one of the densest common food sources of vitamin E. The USDA reference entry is for the…
Oxidative stress markers: Contains compounds associated with antioxidant status, principally vitamin E. Human trials measuring oxidative stress markers after eating sunflower seeds are few and small.
Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.
Ocimum basilicum
The fresh leaves of Ocimum basilicum, used raw or added at the end of cooking because its aroma compounds are heat-sensitive. It…
Oxidative stress markers: Basil is dense in rosmarinic acid by laboratory measurement, but human studies using culinary basil with oxidative-stress markers as an endpoint are essentially absent. Nothing can be concluded from the assay data alone.
Coriandrum sativum
The fresh leaf of Coriandrum sativum, the same plant that yields coriander seed. A well-documented genetic variation in olfactory…
Oxidative stress markers: Cilantro performs well on laboratory antioxidant assays, but human studies using the herb with oxidative-stress markers as an endpoint are essentially absent. There is nothing here to rate yet.
Acer saccharum
Sap from sugar maple and related species boiled down roughly forty-fold until it is about two-thirds sugar, predominantly…
Oxidative stress markers: Maple syrup contains phenolic compounds, several of them unusual, which has generated laboratory interest. The quantities consumed are tiny relative to the sugar delivered alongside them, and human studies of any oxidative endpoint are absent.
Prunus persica
A summer stone fruit of the Rosaceae family, with fuzzy skin and a single hard pit. Nectarines are the same species differing by…
Oxidative stress markers: Peach polyphenols perform well in laboratory antioxidant assays, which is where nearly all of the research sits. There is no dependable human evidence that eating peaches changes markers of oxidative damage.
Penaeus spp.
Decapod crustaceans, the most traded seafood in the world by value and now largely farmed. Their shells contain astaxanthin bound…
Oxidative stress markers: Evidence is limited for shrimp affecting oxidative stress markers. Astaxanthin supplement trials exist, but they use doses far above what a portion of shrimp supplies and no trial has tested the food itself for this outcome.
Sorghum bicolor
A drought-tolerant cereal eaten whole, milled into flour or popped, and free of gluten. The USDA reference entry is for the dry…
Oxidative stress markers: There is not enough human research to say whether the polyphenols in pigmented sorghum affect oxidative stress markers in people; the work so far is largely laboratory-based.