Orac value of different foods allowed in the Beta HCG diet

Orac value of different foods allowed in the Beta HCG diet

ORAC Values are the most common standard of measuring the antioxidant capacity of fruits and vegetables. ORAC stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbency Capacity. This standard has been adopted by the US Department of Agriculture, and has come to be accepted as some kind of "official" standard.

ORAC values measure the time an antioxidant takes to react to free radicals, as well as the amount of antioxidants in the specific food. It combines these elements into one measurement.

Foods with a higher ORAC value, in general, have a greater antioxidant potential than those with low values. The foods that tend to rank the highest in ORAC values are fruits with bright pigmentation: berries, red grapes, cherries and apples are some examples.

Based on scientific evidence, daily antioxidant intake should increase to 3,000 to 5,000 ORAC units per day to reach a significant antioxidant capacity in blood plasma and other tissues. According to the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), current intake is about 1,200 units per day.


One can still obtain the 3000-5000 ORAC recommended on this diet, if you include herbs in your seasoning, and combine your foods for maximum effect. One can also drink herbal tea.

Tea has a high ORAC score: USDA researchers, using a test tube measure called ORAC, found that an 8-ounce serving of black or green tea is more effective in neutralizing free radicals than individual servings of more than 33 commonly consumed fruits and vegetables.


Orac values per 100 grams or 3.5 ounces

Strawberry 1540

Apple 218

Grapefruit 483

Orange 750




Spinach, raw 1260

Spinach, steamed 909

Onion, yellow sauteed 1220

Onion, raw 1034

Celery 552

Tomato red, ripe 406

Asparagus 2252

Red Cabbage 2496

Cabbage raw 508

Romaine Lettuce 1017

Beet greens 1946

Radish 1750

Fennel bulb 307

cucumber with peel 232

cucumber without peel 140



Tea brewed prepared with tap water 1128



100 grams of other foods for comparison

blueberries 6552
raspberries 4882
Zucchini 176


values from oracvalues.com or consult the USDA nutritiondata website



The Seven Super Spices (so christened by spice manufacturer McCormick) include cinnamon, ginger, oregano, red pepper (including chile powder, crushed red pepper flakes and paprika), rosemary, thyme and yellow curry. Even better, all of these are easy to implement into your regular eating habits: Try cinnamon on your breakfast cereal, oregano and red pepper on lunchtime soup or pizza, and rosemary makes dinnertime mashed or roasted potatoes that much better. Or you can start from scratch and follow one of the recipes provided here. See our ORAC comparison chart below, then check out each spice’s page for more information and recipes.


Spice Serving Size ORAC Units
Cinnamon 1 tsp 6956
Ginger 1 tsp 519
Oregano 1 tsp 3602
Red Chile Pepper1 tsp 376-615
Rosemary 1 tsp 364
Thyme 1 tsp 407
Yellow Curry 1 tsp 970