Hi there

As I mentioned in my journal today, I got tested at the Twin Cities Marathon expo for my antioxidant levels. It is a laser skin test that they do on your hand

The doctor had asked me how many fruits & veggies I eat, and I told him quite a bit - in my regular diet I generally eat one apple, 2 cups of romaine lettuce salad with red peppers, cucumbers and green onions in it - and at least one veggie for supper - broccoli, asparagus, green beans, cauliflower, etc

My antioxidant reading came back "Low Average". He and I were both suprised. I did a bit of research on antioxidants, and the latest USDA study had the following foods as the top 20 in antioxidant levels

1 Small Red Bean 1/2 cup 13727
2 Wild blueberry 1 cup 13427
3 Red kidney bean 1/2 cup 13259
4 Pinto bean 1/2 cup 11864
5 Blueberry 1 cup 9019
6 Cranberry 1 cup 8983
7 Artichoke hearts 1 cup 7904
8 Blackberry 1 cup 7701
9 Prune 1/2 cup 7291
10 Raspberry 1 cup 6058
11 Strawberry 1 cup 5938
12 Red Delicious apple 1 5900
13 Granny Smith 1 5381
14 Pecan 1 ounce 5095
15 Sweet cherry 1 cup 4873
16 Black plum 1 4844
17 Russet potato 1 cooked 4649
18 Black bean 1/2 cup 4181
19 Plum 1 4118
20 Gala apple 1 3903


Not a whole hell of a lot of veggies on there!

But my googling has turned up a lot of results on antioxidants, many of which reference veggies as the best source. In short - HELP - I need help on antioxidants, I would like to increase my intake but the information out there seems to be wildly inconsistent