You know by now that antioxidants are good for you, but you are (as you should be) a little leery at trusting every claim on a package that screams out "A Great Source of Antioxidants" or "Packed with Cancer Fighting Antioxidants". Why should you be questioning these claims? Because food companies are not in the business of your health, food companies are in the business of making money. This is completely acceptable, everyone is out to make a profit, it just means that you can't believe everything you read on packages, especially if it seems too good to be true.
Because this is becoming more of an issue, the FDA is attempting to help you better understand what you are buying. According to "Clarifying Antioxidant Claims" from the
October 2008 Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter, if you see "High in Antioxidants" you should be purchasing a product with at least 20% the DRV/RDI (Daily Reference Value/Reference Daily Intake- vary with each type of antioxidant). A package with a claim to be a "Good Source of Antioxidants" does not have at least 20%, but it will have at least 10% the DRV/RDI. And finally, if you see a product that is labeled as a "High Potency" antioxidant product, it must contain 100% of the RDI.
But what do these percentages even mean? Are you really going to add up all your percentages until you feel that you have a sufficient amount? If you are, I am impressed, but more than likely you aren't. The easiest way to make sure you are getting your fill of antioxidants is just to eat a wide variety of fresh foods.
Click here to see another post on antioxidants, with access to a great list of natural antioxidants: fruits and veggies. Most of these don't have packaging, and don't need an advertisement to prove they are good for you.
A smart, healthy consumer is one who critically looks at these health claims, and doesn't always get sucked into the hype.
Because this is becoming more of an issue, the FDA is attempting to help you better understand what you are buying. According to "Clarifying Antioxidant Claims" from the October 2008 Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter, if you see "High in Antioxidants" you should be purchasing a product with at least 20% the DRV/RDI (Daily Reference Value/Reference Daily Intake- vary with each type of antioxidant). A package with a claim to be a "Good Source of Antioxidants" does not have at least 20%, but it will have at least 10% the DRV/RDI. And finally, if you see a product that is labeled as a "High Potency" antioxidant product, it must contain 100% of the RDI.
But what do these percentages even mean? Are you really going to add up all your percentages until you feel that you have a sufficient amount? If you are, I am impressed, but more than likely you aren't. The easiest way to make sure you are getting your fill of antioxidants is just to eat a wide variety of fresh foods. Click here to see another post on antioxidants, with access to a great list of natural antioxidants: fruits and veggies. Most of these don't have packaging, and don't need an advertisement to prove they are good for you.
A smart, healthy consumer is one who critically looks at these health claims, and doesn't always get sucked into the hype.