OMC News and Updates

Common herbs and spices have the highest antioxidant content of all food groups, according to a recent study published in the January 2010 edition of the Nutrition Journal. The multinational authors of the study analyzed the oxidative content of more than 3000 different foods from around the world, including berries, beverages, cereals, chocolates, seafood, fruit, grains, legumes, meat, fish, nuts and seeds, vegetables and oils. Authors concluded, "Spices, herbs and supplements include the most antioxidant rich products in our study, some exceptionally high." The analysis found that the culinary herbs and spices that have the greatest antioxidant content were clove, allspice, peppermint, cinnamon, oregano, thyme, sage and rosemary. Moreover, the average antioxidant activity of spices was 300% higher than that of berries, 2300% greater than that of other fruit, 3600% higher than that of vegetables and 600% more than that of nuts. These result back up a similar study published in the July 2006 edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In this earlier, smaller survey, culinary herbs and spices were also found to have the highest antioxidant content of all food types. The authors of the 2010 study go on to suggest that with respect to plant based antioxidant compounds, "We suggest that both their numerous individual functions as well as their combined additive or synergistic effects are crucial to their health beneficial effects." Additionally, they stated: "It is hypothesized that antioxidants originating from foods may work as antioxidants in their own right as well as bring about beneficial health effects through other mechanisms, including acting as inducers of mechanisms related to antioxidant defense, longevity, cell maintenance and DNA repair." The conclusions that they draw suggest that a VARIETY of antioxidant-rich plant foods should be consumed and propose that such dietary diversity will boost the synergistic and additive effects of the beneficial, bioactive compounds in these foods.