Antioxidants are substances that protect cells from the damage caused by free radicals (i.e.an unstable molecules ).Oxidation is a chemical reaction that transfers electrons from a substance to an oxidizing agent. Oxidation reactions can produce free radicals, which start chain reactions that damage cells. Antioxidants are agents, which scavenge the free radicals and prevent the damage caused by them. Free radicals are continuously produced in our body either naturally or on exposure to environmental stress, food habits and can be implicated in many diseases like cancer, atherosclerosis, arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, aging and other age related problems (Halliwell and Gutteridge, 1989). Antioxidants terminate these chain reactions by removing free radical intermediates and retard other oxidation reactions.