What are phytochemicals?

Phytochemicals are non-nutritive plant chemicals that have protective or

disease preventive properties. They are non-essential nutrients, meaning
that they are not required by the human body for sustaining life. It is wellknown that plant produce these chemicals to protect themselves but recent
research demonstrate that they can also protect humans against diseases.
There are more than thousand known phytochemicals. Some of the wellknown phytochemicals are lycopene in tomatoes, isoflavones in soy and
flavanoids in fruits.

How do phytochemicals work?

There are many phytochemicals and each works differently. These are some
possible actions:

Antioxidant - Most phytochemicals have antioxidant activity and

protect our cells against oxidative damage and reduce the risk of
developing certain types of cancer. Phytochemicals with antioxidant
activity: allyl sulfides (onions, leeks, garlic), carotenoids (fruits,
carrots), flavonoids (fruits, vegetables), polyphenols (tea, grapes).

Hormonal action - Isoflavones, found in soy, imitate human

estrogens and help to reduce menopausal symptoms and osteoporosis.

Stimulation of enzymes - Indoles, which are found in cabbages,

stimulate enzymes that make the estrogen less effective and could
reduce the risk for breast cancer. Other phytochemicals, which
interfere with enzymes, are protease inhibitors (soy and beans),
terpenes (citrus fruits and cherries).

Interference with DNA replication - Saponins found in beans

interfere with the replication of cell DNA, thereby preventing the
multiplication of cancer cells. Capsaicin, found in hot peppers, protects
DNA from carcinogens.

Anti-bacterial effect - The phytochemical allicin from garlic has antibacterial properties.

Physical action - Some phytochemicals bind physically to cell walls

thereby preventing the adhesion of pathogens to human cell walls.
Proanthocyanidins are responsible for the anti-adhesion properties
of cranberry. Consumption of cranberries will reduce the risk ofurinary
tract infections and will improve dental health.

How do we get enough phytochemicals?

Foods containing phytochemicals are already part of our daily diet. In fact,
most foods contain phytochemicals except for some refined foods such as
sugar or alcohol. Some foods, such as whole grains, vegetables, beans, fruits
and herbs, contain many phytochemicals. The easiest way to get more
phytochemicals is to eat more fruit (blueberries, cranberries, cherries,
apple,...) and vegetables (cauliflower, cabbage, carrots, broccoli,...). It is
recommended take daily at least 5 to 9 servings of fruits or vegetable. Fruits
and vegetables are also rich in minerals, vitamins and fibre and low in
saturated fat.

Future of phytochemicals
Phytochemicals are naturally present in many foods but it is expected that
through bioengineering new plants will be developed, which will contain
higher levels. This would make it easier to incorporate enough
phytochemicals with our food.

List of plants containing phytochemicals

Vegetables

Broccoli

Fennel

Garlic

Tomato

Wasabi

Fruits and Nuts

Acai

Almond

Bilberry

Black Raspberry

Blackberry

Blackcurrant

Blueberry

Cranberry

Grape

Guarana

Hazelnut

Mangosteen

Maqui Berry

Noni

Olive

Orange

Pomegranate

Red Raspberry

Sea Buckthorn

Wild Strawberry

Wolfberry

Medicinal Plants

Comfrey

Common Broom

Echinacea

Ginkgo

Goat's Rue

Lesser Celandine

Lungwort

Opium Poppy

Passion Fruit

Periwinkle

Red Bryony

Valerian

Wintergreen

Common Herbs

Aloe vera

American Ginseng

Clary Sage

Common Mallow

Common Yarrow

Cornsilk

Dandelion

Ground Ivy

Hawthorn

Hop

Hyssop

Indian Cress

Korean Ginseng

Lemon Balm

Lemon Verbena

Licorice

Marigold

Milk Thistle

Red clover

Rooibos

Rosemary

Sage

Schizandra

Stinging Nettle

Sweet Clover

Tea

Verbena

Wild Carrot

Wild Pansy

Woodruff

Beans and seeds

Cacao

Flaxseed

Soy

List of phytochemicals

Alkaloids

Monoterpenes

Caffeine

Geraniol

Theobromine

Limonene

Theophylline

Anthocyanins

Organosulfides

Allicin

Cyanidin

Glutathione

Malvidin

Indole-3-Carbinol

Isothiocyanates

Sulforaphane

Carotenoids

Beta-Carotene

Lutein

Lycopene

Other Phytochemicals

Damnacanthal

Coumestans

Digoxin

Flavan-3-Ols
Flavonoids

Phytic acid

Phenolic Acids

Epicatechin

Capsaicin

Ellagic Acid

Gallic acid

Rosmarinic acid

Tannic Acid

Hesperidin
Isorhamnetin
Kaempferol
Myricetin

Naringin

Nobiletin

Phytosterols

Beta-Sitosterol

Saponins

Proanthocyanidins

Quercetin

Rutin

Tangeretin

Stylbenes

Hydroxycinnamic Acids

Chicoric acid

Coumarin

Ferulic acid

Scopoletin

Pterostilbene

Resveratrol

Triterpenoids

Ursolic acid

Xanthophylls

Astaxanthin

Beta-Cryptoxanthin

Isoflavones

Daidzein

Genistein

Lignans

Silymarin

Monophenols

Hydroxytyrosol

Antioxidants
Antioxidants are phytochemicals, vitamins and other nutrients that protect
our cells from damage caused by free radicals. In vitro en in vivo studies
have shown that antioxidants help prevent the free radical damage that is
associated with cancer and heart disease. Antioxidants can be found in most
fruits and vegetables but also culinary herbs and medicinal herbs can contain

high levels of antioxidants. Dragland S and colleagues showed in their study

entitled "Several Culinary and Medicinal Herbs are Important Sources of
Dietary Antioxidants", and published in the Journal of Nutrition (2003 May)
that the antioxidant level of herbs can be as high as 465 mmol per 100 g.
A study in 2006 by Thompson HJ showed that a botanical diversity of fruits
and vegetables plays a role in the biological effect of antioxidant
phytochemicals. The consumption of smaller quantities of many
phytochemicals may result in more health benefits than the consumption of
larger quantities of fewer phytochemicals.

Herbs are usually considered as plant with aromatic properties and are
mainly used spice foods and for preparation of herbal teas. Herbs also
contain many phytochemicals including antioxidants. The aim of this study
was to determine the daily intake of antioxidants present in culinary and
medicinal herbs. To determine the level of antioxidants in herbs use was
made of the FRAP (Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma) method. The results
show that there are large differences in antioxidant levels: the herb with the
highest level of antioxidants contains 1000 times more antioxidants than the
herb with the lowest level. The herbs with the highest levels of antioxidants
are oregano, sage, peppermint, lemon balm, clove, cinnamon, Cinnamomi
cortex and Scutellariae radix.
The levels of antioxidants found in culinary herbs were influenced by crop
year and season of harvesting. These are some levels of antioxidants in
common culinary herbs grown and harvested in Norway, (expressed as
mmol/100g):
Oregano
Sage
Peppermint
Thyme
Lemon Balm
Marjoram
Hyssop
Tansy, leaves
Purple Coneflower, flowers
Roseroot, stem
Chamomile
Angelica, leaves and stem
Roseroot, root and leaves
Angelica, root
Coriander

138
102
79
75
75
56
38
37
23
18
18
15
6
5
3

These are antioxidants levels found in dried commercial herbs (expressed as

mmol/100g):
Clove
Allspice
Cinnamon
Rosemary
Thyme
Marjoram
Bayberry leaves
Ginger
Nutmeg
Mustard
Cayenne
Garlic
Coriander

465
102
98
67
64
54
24
22
20
10
6
2
2

The researchers also tested some medicinal herbs, mainly Chinese and
Japanese herbs. These were the levels of antioxidants found (expressed as
mmol/100g):
Cinnamomi Cortex
Scutellariae Radix
Cimicifugae Rhizoma
Paeonaiae Radix
Glycyrrhizae Radix
Angelicae Radix

120
112
64
55
12
3

The researchers concluded that the intake of herbs contribute significant to

the overall daily intake of antioxidants. Intake of 1 g of culinary herbs may
contain 1 mmol antioxidants. Culinary herbs are even a better source of
antioxidants than other foods such as fruit, vegetables and cereals.