You can hardly escape a health-related newspaper or magazine article without reading more about the helpful benefits of antioxidants. So, what exactly are antioxidants?

Antioxidants refer to chemicals contained in certain food and produced by the body that reduce the rate of oxidation reactions within your body's cells. Oxidation reactions have been proven by medical studies to have adverse effects on health for a variety of reasons. Since antioxidants protect the body from these oxidation reactions, they are beneficial and a variety of studies have shown that antioxidants can:

- Help the performance of the body's immune system
- Help prevent many types of cancer through the prevention of damage to DNA
- Improve eye health and reduce the risk for age-related eye diseases
- Reduce the risk of age-related neurological conditions
- Help lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart conditions, and lower LDL "bad" cholesterol.

So, given that antioxidants are so vital to proper health, and have been shown to have a major effect in preventing a variety of debilitating diseases and conditions, how can you make sure you are getting enough? Most health experts agree that the best way to get antioxidants is through the foods that you consume. Different foods have different antioxidant chemicals, and different amounts of those chemicals. So, eating a balanced diet that his high in whole fooods, especially friuts and vegetables in generally considered the best way to make sure you are getting enough antioxidants. Foods often cited as having the highest antioxidant properties include spinach, blueberries, cranberries, dark chocolate and various types of beans. Beverages with antioxidant properties include coffee, green tea and juice from blueberries, cranberries and pomegranates.

Of course, diet alone may not provide the amount of antioxidants your body is looking for. There are a variety of discussions ongoing in the health community in regards to antioxidant supplements, and whether they are effective in helping your body reduce oxidation reactions. Research will continue to improve over the coming years, but many health experts currently recommend that moderate amounts of antioxidant supplementation is a viable strategy for improving health.

If you are considering taking antioxidant supplements, you may want to consult your doctor before beginning. Antioxidant supplements can be purchased at most major vitamin stores, as well as online. Online retailers may often have better prices on antioxidants.