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Breadcrumb Home Advancing Health Healthy Lifestyle Body Systems Primary Care How superfoods work plus a list of the best superfoods. Healthy Lifestyle Body Systems Primary Care How superfoods work plus a list of the best superfoods.

March 2, This article provided by Hannah Kirtley, graduate student in medical nutrition. Examples of phytochemicals: Carotenoids are orange phytochemicals found in carrots, sweet potatoes and orange squash.

Carotenoids limit cancer growth , help your eyesight and support skin health. Antioxidants, found in produce like blueberries, cranberries, broccoli and black plums , protect your body from harmful free radicals. Having too many free radicals may lead to cancer. Vitamin C and vitamin E are antioxidants.

Flavonoids, found in grapefruit, blackberries, chickpeas and elderberry juice, reduce inflammation and slow cancer growth. Can superfoods or phytochemicals fight cancer? Common superfoods include: Beans like kidney beans, black beans and soybeans Berries like blueberries, cranberries, strawberries and blackberries Broccoli Brussels sprouts Cauliflower Fish like salmon, tuna, mackerel, trout, herring and sardines Leafy greens like spinach, kale, collard greens and Swiss chard Nuts like hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds and pecans Olive oil Peas Tomatoes Whole grains like oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice and wheat berries Yogurt Eat the rainbow: Phytochemicals lower cancer risk Get a variety of phytochemicals by eating a colorful variety of veggies and fruits.

Lots of healthy foods offer health benefits as well as great taste. If you don't like a specific superfood, try something else. Increase your proportion of produce. Choose whole produce over juices canned or frozen is OK. Instead of expensive juices and powders, choose colorful fruits and vegetables.

Whole fruits and vegetables keep their fiber, which has lots of health benefits. Talk to your doctor or dietitian, especially if you have a chronic condition. Some superfoods may interfere with medications and treatment. Related articles. Healthy Lifestyle. How healthy are fresh, frozen or canned vegetables and fruit?

Do juice cleanses provide extra health benefits? Conditions and Services. A University of Michigan study shows ginger kills ovarian cancer cells. Other research indicates gingerol a chemical related to capsaicin in hot peppers in ginger may help prevent cells from abnormally dividing in the first place.

Sweet potatoes are a tuber rich in antioxidants. This superfood helps protect against liver disease, heart disease, and cancer.

The chemical glutathione in sweet potatoes is an antioxidant that repairs cellular damage by reducing disulfide bonds formed in proteins in the cytoplasm of cells. Glutathione boosts immunity and improves the efficiency of nutrient metabolism.

It's not an essential nutrient since your body can make the compound from amino acids, but if you lack cysteine in your diet, you may not have as much as your cells can use. Tomatoes contain many healthful chemicals that gain them superfood status. They contain all four major types of carotenoids: alpha-and beta-carotene, lutein, and lycopene.

Of these, lycopene has the highest antioxidant capacity, but the molecules also exhibit synergy, so the combination packs a more potent punch than adding any single molecule to your diet.

In addition to the beta-carotene, which acts as a safe form of vitamin A in the body, tomatoes contain antioxidant vitamin E and vitamin C.

They are also rich in the mineral potassium. Put together, this chemical powerhouse helps protect against prostate and pancreatic cancer and heart disease. According to an Ohio State University study, eating tomatoes with healthy fat, such as olive oil or avocados, increases absorption of disease-fighting phytochemicals by 2 to 15 times.

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Beyond their antioxidant power, flavonoids appear to be able to improve the way cells in our bodies work. Studies have shown that flavonoids may help prevent cancer by helping to detoxify our cells of potentially carcinogenic chemicals and by inhibiting the invasion of tumour cells into healthy cells.

Flavonoids may also support good cardiovascular health by decreasing the inflammation that can lead to atherosclerosis, a heart attack risk.

The flavonoid family of plant pigments consists of lots of similarly-named categories — flavanols, flavanones, flavonols, isoflavones, and flavones to name a few! Two of the more famous flavonoids are anthocyanins and catechins.

Anthocyanins lend a purple or red colour to fruits like berries including blueberries and açaí berries and grapes as well as the wine that some grapes become. Catechins can be found in chocolate, grapes, berries, and apples, and their presence in tea has given the drink a strong reputation as an antioxidant, especially green tea.

Several studies showed that people who drink 5 to 6 cups of tea per day have a lower heart disease death rate than those who had a lower intake of flavonoid-rich foods and drinks.

A special kind of phytochemical called resveratrol is often mentioned alongside flavonoids. It has been linked to heart health and cancer prevention, though there is still no definitive evidence that the benefits can be found from simply eating or drinking it in grapes, berries, or red wine.

Resveratrol has also sparked interest as a potential fountain of longevity, though studies have only been done on worms, fruit flies, and fish. Phytoestrogens, a type of flavonoid, are plant compounds that happen to be molecularly similar to estrogen, the hormone primarily produced in a woman's ovaries.

Other areas of the body, such as fat tissue and adrenal glands also produce estrogen, and both men and women have estrogen. Because of this structural kinship, phytoestrogens can do some of the same things that estrogen can do, just not as strongly.

In plants, phytoestrogens protect against insects or fungus. In humans, phytoestrogens may lower levels of bad cholesterol, reduce risk of heart disease and certain kinds of cancers, soothe menopausal hot flashes, and curb bone density loss.

But all evidence is, as of yet, inconclusive. Even without absolute scientific proof, foods loaded with phytoestrogens are worth eating. That's because they are usually high in other important nutrients, too.

A lot of the phytoestrogens we eat are lignans, which can be found in lots of healthy plant-based foods, including broccoli, tofu, strawberries, whole grains, and several kinds of seeds. Flaxseeds sit atop the lignan pile, and they're also a super source of heart-supportive omega-3 fatty acids and fibre.

Soy isoflavones make up a large part of our phytoestrogen food sources. On average, people living in Asia get 11 mg to 47 mg of soy isoflavones each day, mostly from soy products like tofu, tempeh, or edamame. In Western countries, it's much lower — only 2 mg per day. Considering the lower rates of breast cancer in Asian countries, it makes sense that researchers have tried to find the link between soy isoflavone intake and risk.

What Puts the ''Super'' in Superfoods? Build your Knowledge. Phytochemicals The term "superfood" gets used a lot these days. What to eat to get more carotenoids: tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato soup guava apricots mangoes papaya watermelon pink grapefruit bell peppers spinach, kale, turnip greens, mustard greens, dandelion greens summer and winter squash peas broccoli Brussels sprouts sweet potatoes Tip: Heating tomatoes in oil makes lycopene more available to be absorbed by your body.

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This list is incomplete ; you can help by adding missing items. August Food Research International. doi : S2CID Journal of Wine Research. Micronutrient Information Center, Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University. Retrieved 26 November Types of phytochemicals. Types of terpenes and terpenoids of isoprene units.

Acyclic linear, cis and trans forms Monocyclic single ring Bicyclic 2 rings Iridoids cyclopentane ring Iridoid glycosides iridoids bound to a sugar Steroids 4 rings.

Isoprene C 5 H 8 Prenol Isovaleric acid. Ocimene Myrcenes. Limonene Terpinene Phellandrene. Pinene α and β Camphene Thujene Sabinene Carene.

Citronellal Citral Citronellol Geraniol Geranyl pyrophosphate Halomon Linalool. Grapefruit mercaptan Menthol p-Cymene Thujaplicins Hinokitiol Thymol Perillyl alcohol Carvacrol.

Camphor Borneol Bornyl acetate Eucalyptol Ascaridole Umbellulone. Artemisinin Bisabolol Cadinene Cadinol Cedrene Chanootin Farnesyl pyrophosphate Juniperol Longifolene Muurolene Nootkatin.

Phytol Geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate Geranyl-linalool. Retinol Retinal. cis -Abienol Epimanool Salvinorin A. Cembrene Forskolin Manoyl oxide Pimaral Pimarol. Aphidicolin Gibberellin Paclitaxel. Abietic acid Communic acid Dehydroabietic acid Isopimaric acid Lambertianic acid Levopimaric acid Mercusic acid Neoabietic acid Pimaric acid Sandaracopimaric acid Secodehydroabietic acid Palustric acid.

Phytosterols Campesterol Citrostadienol Cycloartenol Sitostanol Sitosterol Stigmasterol Tocopherols Cholesterol Testosterone Cholecalciferol Ecdysones. Betulin Lanosterol Saponins Serratenediol Squalane Acids Oleanolic acid Ursolic acid Betulinic acid Moronic acid.

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Using plant extracts with known antimicrobial properties can be of great importance in food preservation. On the other hand, alternative sources of natural products, such as plant extracts, either as pure compounds or as standardized extracts, provide unlimited opportunities for control of microbial growth owing to their chemical diversity.

The use of natural antimicrobials as phytochemicals is organic acids, essential oils, or plant extracts and could be a good alternative to ensure food safety [ 6 ]. To inactivate or inhibit the growth of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms during preservation of food, there are several processing techniques used including the use of chemical preservatives and synthetic antimicrobials [ 5 ].

However, these techniques have not been considered natural antimicrobial agents in food preservation. But, naturally derived compounds in plant extracts can be good control agents for pathogenic microorganisms.

The use of synthetic chemicals is increasingly restricted in many countries. Nowadays, the recent trend has been for the use of natural preservatives due to the adverse health effects of synthetic ones.

The alternative methods preserve foods and reduce pest and pathogen injury, with the use of resistant varieties or integrated cropping strategies in which plant secondary metabolites may improve crop protection [ 6 ].

Antimicrobials are called traditional when they have been used for many years and many countries approve them for inclusion in foods. Although many synthetic antimicrobials are found naturally benzoic acid, sorbic acid, citric acid, malic acid, tartaric acid , the perception of natural has become important for many consumers.

The safety and shelf life of food ingredients can also be improved by application of novel technologies to avoid or delay microbial growth like packaging in modified atmosphere, nonthermal treatments, activated films, irradiation, etc.

Both glucosinolates and leaf surface waxes are important phytochemicals that also play an important role in protecting plants from pest and pathogen injury [ 17 ].

These factors that positively affect plant protection also minimize crop damage by pests and pathogens. Increasing oxidative stress results in produce losing keeping quality, not only in terms of microbial contamination, excessive softening and browning but also in terms of significant depletion of phytochemicals, such as phenolics, flavonoids, ascorbic acid and carotenoids.

The addition of AA minimizes oxidative deterioration in processed fruits and vegetables. Phenolics and their metabolites are common constituents of fruits and vegetables that play an important role as to provide astringency and aroma constituents [ 15 ].

Polyphenolic compounds are important as food preservatives that inactivate free radicals giving them an important role fighting against pathogenicity, infestation and photooxidation [ 1 , 15 ].

However, due to the possible negative effects of synthetic antioxidants, food industries prefer natural ones and can be used as food additives or pharmaceutical supplements [ 13 ]. First of all, they protect plants from biotic and abiotic stress factors.

Secondary metabolites present in plant foods, such as alkaloids, phenolic compounds flavonoids, isoflavonoids and anthocyanins and terpenoids, have gained importance because of their antioxidant, antiviral, antibacterial and anticancer effects [ 19 ].

These phytochemicals are mixtures of several components, including phytophenolics in herbs and spices, phenolics, flavonoids and acids in fruits and glucosinolates in cruciferous vegetables mustard [ 5 ]. As shown in Table 1 , Rubus cloudberry and raspberry extracts have antimicrobial effects against food spoilage and poisoning bacteria [ 21 ].

In general, antioxidant compounds have important protection effects from fruit insects and microbial organisms during storage [ 23 ]. Secondary metabolites are very important in medicine and agricultural science due to the activity of chemotherapeutic compounds or pesticides.

Phenolics and flavonoids provide very important defense mechanisms against postharvest diseases [ 23 ]. For example, walnut seed coats contain gallic acid which is a phenolic compound that prevents aflatoxin biosynthesis by Aspergillus flavus Table 1 [ 23 ].

Therefore, polyphenol compounds have antiviral activities to some various types of viruses [ 23 ]. It is abundant in most of the fruits and vegetables such as apples, grapes, lemons, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, broccoli, etc.

Flavonoids are also known as one of the largest groups of natural phenolic compounds in plants [ 27 ]. These natural compounds have important effects against a variety of microorganisms [ 27 ].

In addition, flavonoids either have protective effects from microbial attacks or respond as phytoalexins against them. Volatiles are phytochemicals that are either inhibitory or stimulatory to fungal growth. Acetaldehyde, a volatile compound that occurs in fruit during ripening, has a fungicidal effect on postharvest pathogens [ 23 ].

grape variety volatiles have a strong effect on B. cinerea development [ 19 ]. Natural preservatives derived from plant extracts such as phytochemicals and essential oils are used against fungal development in many fruits and vegetables after harvest [ 28 ].

The efficiency of an antimicrobial treatment depends on many factors, such as type, genus, species and strain of the main microorganism, in addition to environmental factors such as pH, water activity, temperature, atmospheric composition and an initial microbial load of the food materials [ 6 ].

Therefore, other important subject to know is type of the microorganism s owing to usually combinations of antimicrobials are more effective than adding just one. The natural antimicrobial preservative activity is not clear since there are many influencing factors, one of the most important being the interaction between phytochemicals and growth of microorganisms [ 6 ].

Processing of foods containing phytochemicals is expected to result in some changes in their phytochemical content. Phytochemicals present in many food stuffs are lost by heat processing such as sterilization, pasteurization and dehydration [ 6 ].

Many investigations have evaluated phytochemical effects on antifungal activity. The potential use of plant extracts as natural antimicrobial agents in food preservation forms the basis for many applications such as grape seed or rosemary extracts that have been used as food preservatives [ 22 ].

Researchers reported that grape extracts of Riesling Vitis vinifera L. The alkaloids, steroids, tannins, flavonoids, saponins and glycosides which were secondary metabolites showed various biological activities and act in plant defense mechanisms.

Flavonoids and their antimicrobial effect are useful as a food preservative to extend the shelf life and safety of foods.

Flavonoids play important roles in biological activities, including antiallergenic, antiviral and antifungal effects [ 23 ]. It is also present in various common fruits and vegetables apples, grapes, lemons, tomatoes, onions, lettuce and broccoli.

The following flavonoids are antifungal agents in plants: isoflavonoids, flavans flavanones. Saponin and flavonoids are found in fruits and vegetables and in general they form a soapy lather after extracted from parts of plants [ 5 ].

Mandalari et al. Okwu et al. Thiosulfinates come from hydrolysis products of garlic and onion. They have a strong potential of producing antimicrobial effects against pathogenic microorganisms [ 5 ]. Moreover, olive leaves Olea europaea are rich in phenolic compounds, with demonstrated strong antimicrobial effects and can be potentially used in food processing [ 5 ].

In addition, Psidium guajava has phenolic, flavonoid, carotenoid, terpenoid and triterpenes that demonstrated strong antimicrobial activity [ 30 ]. Salas et al. The limonoid compounds have important antibacterial and antiviral activity as shown in Table 1 [ 1 ].

Vikram et al. Black raspberry and Chardonnay seed extracts have also antibacterial activity to inhibiting growth of some food pathogen microorganisms [ 33 ].

Tehranifar et al. Another study showed that berry extracts exhibit selective inhibitory properties against intestinal bacteria [ 1 ]. Recently, antifungal activity has been found in all tissue types of strawberry fruit due to the phenolic compounds that inhibit the growth of fungi [ 23 ].

In the last decade, the results of many research have shown the positive effects of phytochemicals in human health. There is a strong correlation of antioxidant consumption with lower risk of many diseases such as cardiovascular cancer, diabetes and hypertension diseases as well as other medical conditions [ 34 , 35 ].

Fruits and vegetables have phenolic compounds, pigments and natural antioxidants; these compounds protect many diseases like cancer and heart disease [ 36 ].

The importance of antioxidant effects on cardiovascular diseases and cancer is especially important [ 23 ] and these antioxidants can be found in various fruits, vegetables and herbs.

Antioxidants in fruits and vegetables have defensive effects and are three main groups: vitamins, phenolics and carotenoids [ 35 ]. Moreover, some carotenoids also have antioxidant activity AOA and shown beneficial effects on the reduction of cardiovascular diseases [ 4 ].

The fruits and vegetables that have phytochemicals are also not only low in fat and saturated fat, cholesterol and calories but also are rich in potassium and sodium, fiber, folic acid and AA [ 34 ].

One of the most important flavonols is quercetin, which is higher in onion red and yellow , broccoli, kale, French beans, apple, red grapes and cherries.

In a conclusion, potentially a great number of phytochemicals including some of the vitamins, flavonoids, terpenoids, carotenoids, phenolics, phytoestrogens, minerals and antioxidants in plant materials are used as alternative preservative agents for controlling postharvest physiological disorders or microbial pathogen injuries of both fresh fruit and vegetables in the food industry.

Many publications have focused on the potential protective nature of these natural phytochemical compounds against fungal and bacterial attacks. Moreover, these natural compounds have become interesting candidates not only for plant protection but also human and animal health protection from fungal and bacterial diseases because of their lower toxicity or absence of toxicity.

Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3. Edited by Viduranga Y. Open access peer-reviewed chapter Phytochemicals in Fruits and Vegetables Written By Ayse Tulin Oz and Ebru Kafkas.

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IntechOpen Superfood and Functional Food An Overview of Their Processing and Utilizati From the Edited Volume Superfood and Functional Food - An Overview of Their Processing and Utilization Edited by Viduranga Waisundara and Naofumi Shiomi Book Details Order Print.

Chapter metrics overview 10, Chapter Downloads View Full Metrics. Impact of this chapter. Abstract Fruits and vegetables are the most important sources of phytochemicals. Keywords phytochemicals food preservatives food spoilage food phenolics.

Introduction Fruits and vegetables are consumed as fresh or processed and known to be among the most important sources of phytochemicals for the human diet. Name plant Effects References The cranberry juice Inhibition of E. coli Howell et al.

grape B. cinerea Makkar et al. italicum , R. stolonifer and B. cinerea Tehranifar et al. Table 1. The effects of fruit and vegetable extracts on food pathogens. References 1.

Patra AK. Dietary Phytochemicals and Microbes. Phytochemicals in Fruit and Vegetables. Plant Sci. Waterhouse AL. Wine Phenolics. Phytochemicals and antioxidant activity of juice, flavedo, albedo and comminuted orange. Tajkarimi M, Ibrahim SA. Chapter ;— In: Patra AK.

DOI Negi PS. Plant Extracts for the Control of Bacterial Growth: Efficacy, Stability and Safety Issues for Food Application. Food Microbiol. Soledade M, Pedras C. Fungal Attack and Cruciferous Defenses: Tricking Plant Pathogens.

in: Gang DR. The Biological Activity. of Phytochemicals. Springer New York Dordrecht Heidelberg London. Harborne JB, Williams CA. Using Superfoods in cooking consistently and changing those superfoods each season is an easy way to continue to stay in balance and strengthen your immunity. When diet is wrong, medicine is of no use.

When diet is correct, medicine is of no need. Next to breathing, eating is our most vital bodily function. From a holistic standpoint, we nourish ourselves by converting the energy and information of our environment into the biological intelligence of our body.

Ayurveda teaches that to create and maintain a healthy overall physiology:. Ideal nutrition results from consuming a variety of foods deliciously prepared and eaten with mindful awareness.

Think of eating the colors of the rainbow. Plant foods with deep pigments are dense with vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Not only that, but a colorful plate also appeals to us visually, encouraging hunger and meal appreciation.

A whole spectrum of colors is represented here, for example, Beets, raspberries, carrots, oranges, broccoli, asparagus, blueberries, plums, cauliflower, and pears.

Are you ready to transform your relationship with food and move into an optimal healthy lifestyle? Geneviève Nedder is the director and founder of Body Fundamentals, Inc. She is a certified Perfect Health Lifestyle educator, trained by Dr.

Deepak Chopra and his team, an Ayurvedic Consultant, and a Certified Health Coach. She specializes in the mind-body connection. She consults clients locally and internationally on living an optimal lifestyle. She teaches , group classes, and corporate wellbeing programs. This year she celebrates her 31th anniversary of practicing and teaching Pilates full-time.

In addition to specialized and comprehensive Pilates certifications, Geneviève is a Chopra Global Health Educator. Ayurveda teaches that to create and maintain a healthy overall physiology: Our food must be nourishing.

Our digestive power strong.