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The prefix phyto is of Greek origin and means plant, and it is used because phytonutrients are obtained only from plants.
Phytonutrients are plant compounds like carotenoids, lycopene, resveratrol and phytosterols that are thought to have health-protecting qualities. They are found in plants such as fruits, vegetables and tea. Phytonutrients are best taken in by eating the foods that contain them rather than taking the supplements or pills.
Benefits of Phytonutrients:
Phytonutrients are the basis for more than 40 percent of medications today and have become a great resource of treatment of a wide range of diseases such as pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, obesity and cancer.
Phytonutrients are are know to fight free radical damage.
Source of Phytonutrients
Phytonutrients chemicals are a large group of plant-derived compounds hypothesized to help in disease protection and which can be found in a diet high in fruits, vegetable, spouted beans, sprouted grains and plant based tea.
Medicinal Plants include plants such as aloe vera and arnica oil which also work as an anti-inflammatory.
Herbs and Spices. Herbs are fresh from the plant and spices have been dried from the leaves of the plant. Numerous herbs and spices have therapeutic properties including: the natural diuretic properties of dandelion tea; the stimulant for the central nervous system found in black peper; and the anti-obesity properties in cardamom (elettaria cardamomun).
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