Jill Wendholt Silva, "These antioxidant-rich foods have the power to
change your life", Seattle Times, April 26, 2006,
Link:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/foodwine/2002953277_superfoods26.html

Blueberries are brain food.

If there's one good-for-you food that has cut through the din of
conflicting and controversial diet headlines, it's the tiny indigo
berry native to North America, which scientists have discovered
contains powerful disease-fighters that may improve memory,
intelligence and coordination.

But blueberries aren't the only food with bragging rights.

Pomegranates, kiwi fruit and, yes, even dark chocolate are the latest
buzz, joining such everyday foods as broccoli, spinach, wild salmon,
sweet potatoes, soy, oats, walnuts and tomatoes. Together these
nutrient-dense foods containing health-promoting phytonutrients are
dubbed "super foods."

"Super foods are foods that have longevity and contribute to good
health," says Steven Pratt, an ophthalmologist at Scripps Memorial
Hospital in La Jolla, Calif., and co-author of the best-selling
"SuperFoodsRx" and "SuperFoods HealthStyle" (William Morrow, 2005,
$24.95).

"It's foods that are available in markets around the world and make up
part of a dietary cuisine," Pratt says. "It's also food that has been
studied, and the scientific studies have been peer-reviewed."

Cruise the aisles of any supermarket in America and broccoli is
ubiquitous for three reasons: It's easy to buy, it's inexpensive and
it's easy to cook. It's also one of the most studied, which is how we
know it's one of the most nutritious foods on the planet.

Beyond the traditional vitamins and minerals Mother told us about,
scientists have discovered broccoli is also a good source of lutein, an
antioxidant available in colorful fruits and vegetables that helps
prevents macular degeneration, a condition that can cause blindness in
older adults.

Nutrition experts agree we've only begun to scratch the surface in our
efforts to discover how foods prevent disease in the body. Pratt's
first book featured 14 super foods, a term he believes he coined but
could not trademark. His second book adds 10 more to an ever-growing
list, and there are "sidekicks" galore - related foods that provide
similar health benefits.

One of the most surprising super foods to hit the headlines is dark
chocolate. It is loaded with health-promoting polyphenols -
antioxidants that may help lower blood pressure and promote vascular
health. Cocoa has more polyphenols than red wine or green tea. But to
qualify, the chocolate must contain at least 70 percent cocoa solids.

With the $640 million premium juice market projected to grow to $1.4
billion by 2008, it's no surprise that Naked Juice is already marketing
grab-and-go bottles of juice made from the obscure Brazilian berry
known as acai (pronounced ah-sigh-ee), which is touted to have 10 times
the antioxidants of red grapes.

But typically Brazilians pour an avalanche of sugar on acai to tame its
tartness. Naked Juice chose to combine the tart berry juice with
sweeter apple, banana and white grape juices. "Sometimes with the
higher-antioxidant fruits, you need to find the right mix of fruits,"
says Rachel Kenney, education manager for the California-based company.

In "12 Best Foods Cookbook" (Rodale, 2004, $21.95), Dana Jacobi
highlights foods that are not only loaded with phytonutrients but also
have what she calls a certain "voluptuousness." After all, if a food
doesn't taste good, most of us won't eat it, no matter how good for us.

"I tried to look at foods beyond what its headline fame might be," says
Jacobi, a New York-based food writer and chef who developed the recipes
for her book. "What these 12 foods do - besides providing
phytonutrients - is they cover the whole range of what a balanced
diet is and include variety."

To that end, she made a choice to leave apples out of the cookbook,
even though they taste great, are easy to buy and rate high on the
USDA's list of 20 top antioxidant foods. And she chose chocolate over
red wine and walnuts instead of almonds, even though red wine and
almonds are delicious and possess plenty of proven health benefits.

"What I hope [readers] take from the book is the things that are good
for them and have a good time with them. Not to have them feel like
this is a duty or a sacrifice," Jacobi says.

Food, after all, should taste better than a spoonful of medicine.

12 super foods

When it comes to super foods, there's a lot of compulsive list-making
going on. Some lists focus on a half-dozen foods; USDA scientists have
focused on 100 foods and spotlighted 20. But you can forget the numbers
game and feel good about adding any of these to your grocery cart:

1. Beans

Why? High in folate, fiber and antioxidants, beans can help lower
cholesterol and LDL levels, scavenge free radicals, moderate insulin
levels and reduce cancer risk.

How much? Eat two ½-cup servings a day of cooked or canned beans.

2. Blueberries

Why? A true nutritional powerhouse, blueberries provide more
antioxidants than any other fruit or vegetable. Phytonutrients include
anthocyanins, chlorogenic acid, ellagic acid, catechins and
resveratrol, substances that fight cancer, heart disease and
age-related memory loss.

How much? If possible, eat 1/2 cup fresh or frozen or 1/4 cup dried
blueberries every day. Eat any type of berry at least three times a
week.

3. Broccoli

Why? Cruciferous vegetables are loaded with antioxidants. Broccoli
contains cancer-fighting sulforaphane, indoles and carotenoids plus
beta-carotene, lutein and zeathanin that promote eye health and ward
off macular degeneration.

How much? Eat 1/2 cup raw or 1 cup cooked broccoli every day.

4. Oats

Why? Oatmeal's mighty nutrition profile.

How much? Eat at least three servings of whole grains a day. A serving
equals one cup cooked oatmeal, 1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats or 1/4 cup
steel-cut oats.

5. Soy

Why? An important source of vegetable protein, soy also contains
isoflavones, estrogenlike substances that protect and maintain bone
strength. Soy also contains important omega-3 fatty acids, which
promote heart health.

How much? Eat one serving of soy foods a day. The size depends on the
form of the food. Try edamame for snacking out of hand.

6. Spinach

Why? Spinach contains more than a Popeye-sized dose of iron. When it
comes to antioxidants, it's packed with carotenoids such as
beta-carotene and lutein for eye health.

How much? Eat at least 1 cup cooked spinach or other dark leafy green
vegetable a day.

7. Sweet potatoes

Why? Loaded with beta-carotene, sweet potatoes boost the immune system.
They also reduce cholesterol buildup in the arteries and help fight
age-related macular degeneration and a variety of cancers.

How much? Eat at least one 1/2-cup serving of sweet potatoes or other
beta-carotene-rich produce (carrots, butternut squash, pumpkin and
orange bell peppers) a day.

8. Tomatoes

Why? Tomatoes contain lycopene, plus a range of beneficial
phytochemicals that protect against heart attack, cancers and
age-related macular degeneration. Cooked tomatoes contain more lycopene
than raw tomatoes.

How much? Eat one serving a day with a little bit of healthy fat, such
as olive oil, to help absorb the lycopene. Serving sizes are one medium
raw tomato, about 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 1/2 cup sauce, 1/4 cup puree,
2 tablespoons paste or 6 ounces juice.

9. Walnuts

Why? If you're looking for an excellent source of "good"
polyunsaturated fats, walnuts are one of the few plant sources high in
omega-3 fatty acids. Walnuts are the only nuts that contain ellagic
acid, a cancer-fighting antioxidant. The amino acid arginine can reduce
the risk of heart attack.

How much? Eat 1 ½ ounces of nuts per day. One ounce equals 14 walnut
halves.

10. Wild salmon

Why? Wild salmon contains large amounts of omega-3, a fatty acid that
reduces the risk of heart disease and heart attack by lowering blood
pressure and bad cholesterol. Omega-3s also reduce inflammation that
triggers arthritis and autoimmune diseases.

How much? A serving is just 3 ounces, roughly the size of a deck of
cards, or 1/4 cup canned. Eat 12 ounces a week.

11. Extra-virgin olive oil

Why? The monounsaturated fats of olive oil are considered "good" fat
that reduces cardiovascular disease, lowers blood pressure and prevents
some types of cancer.

How much? Eat 1 tablespoon most days.

12. Dark chocolate

Why? Dark chocolate has the highest antioxidant content of any food.
The darker the chocolate, the higher the count.

How much? Eat a 1-ounce serving daily. Also, try grapes, red wine and
green tea, which are high in polyphenols, which boost good cholesterol.
In addition to dark chocolate candy, try raw cocoa nibs. Although
somewhat bitter, they have an intense, tannic flavor, like wine.

Some new superstars

When it comes to phytonutrients, experts say we've only scratched the
surface. With each new study, watch for more antioxidant-rich foods to
arrive at a store near you. Here are a few creating new buzz:

Pomegranate: The newest research points to pomegranates as the next
great super-food powerhouse, with three times more antioxidant power
than green tea and red wine. Pom, the marketing machine behind
pomegranates, has trademarked the term "The Antioxidant Superpower."

Acai (ah-sigh-ee): Touted to contain 10 times more antioxidants than
red grapes and 10 to 30 times more anthocyanins than red wine, the
little berry from the Brazilian rainforest is poised to samba its way
into American hearts and diets. The acai contains vitamin A, vitamin C
and omega fatty acids 6 and 9.

Gogi or goji (go-gee): A berry from Tibet that is high in antioxidants,
goji is described at www.livesuperfoods.com as a cross between a cherry
and a cranberry. "There's not a lot of science on it, but you know
there's no bad berry on the planet," says Steven Pratt, author of
"SuperFoods HealthStyle" (Morrow).

Gold kiwi fruit: An odd-looking, fuzzy fruit originally from New
Zealand, it has become a mainstream supermarket item. Rich in vitamin
C, it has more vitamins and potassium than a banana and more fiber than
a bowl of bran flakes, according to Zespri Kiwifruit.

Quinoa (keen-wah): With the whole-grain emphasis in the 2005 Dietary
Guidelines, watch for less-familiar grains to make it into the
mainstream. A staple of the ancient Incas, quinoa is considered a
complete protein because it contains all eight essential amino acids.

Sources: "12 Best Foods Cookbook" and "SuperFoods HealthStyle"