Top 20 Age-Defying Foods

The March 2005 issue of Shape magazine has a great list of the Top 20 Age-Defying Foods. According to a study recently released by the US Department of Agriculture and published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the following foods are superstars in their ability to help fight disease and potentially slow down the aging process:

1. Small red beans
2. Wild blueberries
3. Red kidney beans
4. Pinto beans
5. Commercial blueberries
6. Cranberries
7. Artichokes
8. Blackberries
9. Dried plums
10. Raspberries
11. Strawberries
12. Red Delicious apples
13. Granny Smith apples
14. Pecans
15. Sweet cherries
16. Black plums
17. Russet potatoes
18. Black beans
19. Plums (Note: This is how the list reads. Dried plums are #9. Black plums are #16. I suppose the "plums" ranked #19 refer to all other kinds of plums but that is just my best guess.)
20. Gala apples

I’m all for natural ways to keep healthy and look young. Since reading this article, I’ve been trying to incorporate these specific foods and more antioxidants into my diet. See the photo above for some potato (#17) and black bean (#18) action. So far, so good. But somehow I don’t think the pecans (#14) that were sprinkled on top of my salad at dinner tonight would counteract the damage done by the artery-clogging (but very tasty) honey-dijon dressing served with it. Oh well, I’m a culinary work in progress…