Oxidation. That's what iron does when it rusts. It's been thought that our bodies undergo a similar process due to oxidative stress from reactive oxygen & nitrogen species. As the theory goes, dietary antioxidants protect our bodies from a similar fate.
Typically, we think of fruits & vegetables when we think of dietary antioxidants, at least I do. However, it turns out that fruits & vegetables only account for 50% of dietary total antioxidant capacity (TAC). For instance, whole grains, tea & chocolate also contribute greatly to TAC, which enumerated by the well known
ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) value found ubiquitously in advertising for dietary supplements.
Published last week, a population-based, prospective, cohort study of 31,035 women free of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and 5,680 w/baseline CVD, all followed for 12yrs, dietary TAC was inversely associated with total & ischemic stroke in CVD free women and hemorrhagic stroke in women w/baseline CVD.
If you decide to apply this study as part of evidence-based medicine, remember that what happens to the goose may not apply to the gander. More importantly, it appears that comorbidities may affect one's risk for other disease processes. Lastly, don't forget that
correlation does not imply causation.
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