In addition, virtually all fruits and vegetables available in supermarkets are more palatable, more digestible, and easier to store and transport than their wild cousins, at the expense of valuable
protective dietary components.
The idea that the
protective effect is not due to any of the [individual plant food]
components, but to a [synergistic] «combined effect» is gaining acceptance... However, based on the relationship of excess
dietary methionine with toxicity to major vital organs, and its likely mechanism of action through increases in [free radical] generation, the possibility exists that the
protective effects of [plant - based] diets can be due, at least in part, to their lower methionine content.»