You Become What You Eat:
Antioxidants
And the Hunt for Free Radicals

This reading provides students with a somewhat simplified explanation of the terms "free radical" and "antioxidant." Since many phytochemicals have been identified as antioxidants, this explanation is important for students' understanding of phytochemicals. If you want students to investigate further, you might have them find as many references to the terms "free radical" and "antioxidant" in magazine advertisements, on food labels, etc., as possible. It might also be interesting for students to investigate the claims being made by some companies about the ability of antioxidants to cure disease and sustain good health.

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Publications from the Carcinogenic Potency Project — comprehensive discussion of diet and cancer from the University of California at Berkeley.