The value and importance of a strong true anti-oxidant such when we are trying to increase blood flow and/or influencing change in brain stability as far as personality, anxiety, stress, depression and or bipolar reactivity or personality. The more potent anti-oxidants have been shown to make certain parts of the brain that control behavior and reaction more stable or less reactive and thus less erratic.
So what is the difference between a direct anti-oxidant (polyphenol that has a displaced hydroxyl group) that alters the oxidative reaction in and around the cells through interaction with the cell membrane proteins directly (intermolecular interactions of hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic reactions) of the brain, versus the other phenols containing products that merely reduce the ROS (reactive oxygen species) that is reduce the effects of oxidative changes after it has actually happened.
The importance of the direct antioxidant affect is that it both altars and protect certain proteins from being altered where they stay in their normal functioning state. Where as other antioxidants that are indirect all they do is remove the reactive oxygen species is but don't actually protect the actual protein of the cell of the cell wall.
Therefore the strong antioxidants actually prevent protein and cell membrane changes while the other phenols just remove the residual effects of the damage to prevent or reduce further damage, if the cell or membrane changes have actually occurred then no protection can occur.