ORAC - Questions and Answers
What does ORAC mean?
ORAC means Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. According to the University of Michigan, Comprehensive Cancer Center, the measurement of ORAC is just a fancy way of saying, "How well does a certain food help my body fight diseases like cancer and heart disease?" The higher the number... the more that food will help you.
What are Oxygen Radicals?
Oxygen Radicals are chemicals that are constantly inside our bodies. They are a normal everyday part of living. But, even though we all have these oxygen radicals, they are bad for us. These oxygen radicals can damage our cells. They do this damage by a process called oxidation. If our bodies can neutralize or cancel these oxygen radicals before they do damage, then they won't hurt us.
What is Oxidation?
Oxidation is a natural process that occurs around us all the time. One example of oxidation is rusting. For instance, you can think of a metal bridge that is rusting. Rusting is oxidation. What happens when metal rusts? It becomes weak and flaky. It doesn't serve its function anymore. It can't support the weight of the bridge. It doesn't do what it's supposed to do, because it is damaged be becoming old or weathered. THIS EXACT SAME PROCESS HAPPENS IN YOUR BODY! Just like a rusting bridge, the cells, organs, and other parts of your body can be made weak by oxidation. This can lead to diseases, like cancer and heart disease.
Is there anything I can do to stop this oxidation damage from happening in my body?
YES!! One of the best ways to stop oxidation is by choosing the right foods to eat. This is where ORAC is important. ORAC is a way to measure how many oxygen radicals a specific food can absorb. The more oxygen radicals a food can absorb, the higher its ORAC score. The higher its ORAC score, the better it is at helping our bodies fight diseases like cancer and heart disease.
Which foods are best at fighting disease? Which foods have high ORAC scores?
This is easy. Plant foods have the highest ORAC scores! Plant foods are best at fighting disease. By plant foods we mean:
fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and many other things. Brightly colored foods are the ones with the highest ORAC scores. This means these are the foods that help fight disease the best by stopping oxygen radicals from causing damage in our bodies. Think bright reds, greens, oranges, blues, purples, yellows, and oranges. What foods do these words describe? Strawberries, spinach, blueberries, blackberries, eggplant, yellow peppers, carrots, and oranges. Nearly all of the ORAC protection is in the skin of these foods. Any brightly colored fruits and vegetables that you can think of are good for you to include in your diet EVERY DAY! As a matter of fact, research shows that people who eat more of these plant foods have lower risk of cancer. See the following chart for an understanding of the relative anti-aging protection of various foods:
Do ORAC rating and antioxidant value mean the same thing?
Yes. They are essentially synonymous.
Now, that you know what ORAC is and how important it is, you should know Seven Essentials scored off the above scale... exceeding the far right side of the scale by 3,000 percent (30 times better than the best food, which was blueberies). Seven Essentials ORAC value per 100 grams (similar to above chart) is nearly 96,000 units.
 Absolutely nothing can comes close to the value of Seven Essentials in terms of protecting the body against aging, cancer and other diseases... and at the same time, it is delicious and very easy to incorporate into one’s life.
We urge you to drink delicious Seven Essentials and add years of healthy living to your life. With more antioxidant protection than any other food... you’ll be doing the smartest thing possible to stay healthy.
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