FLAVONOIDS - POWERFUL ANTIOXIDANTS

 Let's know Flavonoids.

Flavonoids are the naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds. Flavonoids are excellent in their antioxidant power. In addition to this, they lower cholesterol levels and have antibacterial, anti-inflammatory effects. 

They are basically naturally found in many fruits, vegetables, roots, stems, tea,wine, flowers, grains etc. These natural products are known to have beneficial effects on us before this compound “flavonoid” came into the trend.

 Generally this compound is responsible for the bright colors of many fruits and vegetables as well as attractive colors of flowers and leaves.

Scientists also have discovered that certain flavonoids found in corn plants can reduce Bowel Inflammation  in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)  in a mouse model. 

Know about antioxidants and free-radicals.

The best property of almost every group of flavonoid is their capacity to act as antioxidants. Catechines and Flavones are the most powerful falvonoids for protecting the body against free-radical damage. Inside our bodies  free-radicals are produced by cells during normal oxygen metabolism and they are important to be flushed out from the bodies as they can result in oxidative stress (linked to heart diseases, stroke, arthritis, respiratory diseases, immune deficiencies, cancer etc).

Pollution, UV exposure, smoking cigarettes and internal factor such as inflammation triggers the production of free radicals in our body.  Flavonoids prevent injury caused by free radicals in different ways. One is to direct scavenge the free radicals. Interesting thing to note here is, flavonoids are oxidized by free radicals, which results in more stable, less-reactive radical.

Apart from an antioxidant activity possessed by flavonoids is, certain flavonoids have memory and mood enhancing properties too. 

  Flavonoids found in foods:

So yes, Cocoa beans are a good source of flavonoids, but knowing;  not every chocolate you eat can retain much of cocoa bean.  If your chocolate isn’t a dark  chocolate then it is just a package of sugars and calories. Go for more than 70% cacao chocolates  for heart health benefits.

Another foods which are rich in flavonoids are: tea (especially green tea),  berries, leafy greens, red wine, citrus fruits, almonds, onions etc.

So, Including more flavonoids in your diet would keep your body and cells healthy and eventually would lower down the risk of health problems too!

-Rhythm Bharadwaj