What is ORAC - Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity - Top 100 Food List

ORAC stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. It's a lab test that attempts to quantify the "total antioxidant capacity" (TAC) of food. The Process is done by placing a sample of the food in a test tube, along with certain molecules that generate free radical activity and certain other molecules that are vulnerable to oxidation. After a while, they measure how well the sample protected the vulnerable molecules from oxidation by the free radicals. The less free radical damage there is, the higher the antioxidant capacity of the test substance. There are a handful of different tests designed to measure total antioxidant capacity in this way, but the ORAC is probably the best known and most popular.

The nice thing about this method is that it measures the antioxidant activity of a food rather than the levels of specific nutrients, such as vitamin C or E. There are thousands of unique antioxidant compounds in plants, most haven’t been discovered yet. There’s no way we could measure them all individually. This approach would also capture any synergistic effects between the various nutrients—ways in which nutrients are more effective in combination than they are individually.

This is not medical advice.

Note: The ORAC values in this list are normalized to 100 grams of weight (about 3.5 ounces) because that is the way in which the original database of information was presented. The intent is to ‘normalize’ the various items to simply compare ‘raw value’, NOT ‘amount per serving’.

ORAC Value list, Top 100

1	Cloves, ground	314,446
2	Sumac bran	312,400
3	Cinnamon, ground	267,536
4	Sorghum, bran, raw	240,000
5	Oregano, dried	200,129
6	Turmeric, ground	159,277
7	Acai berry, freeze-dried	102,700
8	Sorghum, bran, black	100,800
9	Sumac, grain, raw	86,800
10	Cocoa powder, unsweetened	80,933
11	Cumin seed	76,800
12	Maqui berry, powder	75,000
13	Parsley, dried	74,349
14	Sorghum, bran, red	71,000
15	Basil, dried	67,553
16	Baking chocolate, unsweetened	49,926
17	Curry powder	48,504
18	Sorghum, grain, hi-tannin	45,400
19	Chocolate, dutched powder	40,200
20	Maqui berry, juice	40,000
21	Sage	32,004
22	Mustard seed, yellow	29,257
23	Ginger, ground	28,811
24	Pepper, black	27,618
25	Thyme, fresh	27,426
26	Marjoram, fresh	27,297
27	Goji berries	25,300
28	Rice bran, crude	24,287
29	Chili powder	23,636
30	Sorghum, grain, black	21,900
31	Chocolate, dark	20,823
32	Flax hull lignans	19,600
33	Chocolate, semisweet	18,053
34	Pecans	17,940
35	Paprika	17,919
36	Chokeberry, raw	16,062
37	Tarragon, fresh	15,542
38	Ginger root, raw	14,840
39	Elderberries, raw	14,697
40	Sorghum, grain, red	14,000
41	Peppermint, fresh	13,978
42	Oregano, fresh	13,978
43	Walnuts	13,541
44	Hazelnuts	9,645
45	Cranberries, raw	9,584
46	Pears, dried	9,496
47	Savory, fresh	9,465
48	Artichokes	9,416
49	Kidney beans, red	8,459
50	Pink beans	8,320
51	Black beans	8,040
52	Pistachio nuts	7,983
53	Currants	7,960
54	Pinto beans	7,779
55	Plums	7,581
56	Chocolate, milk chocolate	7,528
57	Lentils	7,282
58	Agave, dried	7,274
59	Apples, dried	6,681
60	Garlic powder	6,665
61	Blueberries	6,552
62	Prunes	6,552
63	Sorghum, bran, white	6,400
64	Lemon balm, leaves	5,997
65	Soybeans	5,764
66	Onion powder	5,735
67	Blackberries	5,347
68	Garlic, raw	5,346
69	Cilantro leaves	5,141
70	Wine, Cabernet Sauvignon	5,034
71	Raspberries	4,882
72	Basil, fresh	4,805
73	Almonds	4,454
74	Dill weed	4,392
75	Cowpeas	4,343
76	Apples, red delicious	4,275
77	Peaches, dried	4,222
78	Raisins, white	4,188
79	Apples, granny smith	3,898
80	Dates	3,895
81	Wine, red	3,873
82	Strawberries	3,577
83	Peanut butter, smooth	3,432
84	Currants, red	3,387
85	Figs	3,383
86	Cherries	3,365
87	Gooseberries	3,277
88	Apricots, dried	3,234
89	Peanuts, all types	3,166
90	Cabbage, red	3,145
91	Broccoli	3,083
92	Apples	3,082
93	Raisins	3,037
94	Pears	2,941
95	Agave	2,938
96	Blueberry juice	2,906
97	Cardamom	2,764
98	Guava	2,550
99	Lettuce, red leaf	2,380
100	Concord grape juice	2,377

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ORAC Value (umol TE)

10983 - 10g serving

Credit - Source(s) - Modern Survival Blog