You might already know about foods you should be eating for your heart or your gut — but what about the foods that protect your cells? Those would be the ones packed with antioxidants, a buzzy term you’ve probably heard before.
Antioxidants occur naturally in plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables, coffee, tea, wine, and chocolate. While there are thousands of antioxidant compounds out there, you’ve probably heard of flavanols (found in chocolate), resveratrol (found in wine), and lycopene (found in tomatoes). Other popular antioxidants include vitamins A (beta-carotene), C, E, and catechins.
Antioxidants help prevent or stop cell damage caused by oxidants. (Get it? Antioxidants.) “Oxidants are free radicals that you find in the environment, but they’re also produced naturally in your body,” says Diane McKay, Ph.D., an assistant professor and researcher at Tufts University’s Antioxidants Research Laboratory.
Your body creates them to help fend off viruses and microbes, but if you have too many, they can cause serious damage and contribute to certain cancers and heart disease. You also get hit with oxidants daily from things like air pollution, cigarette smoke, and alcohol, McKay says. (Gross.)

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