Maillard reaction products (MRPs) are formed during processing by the reaction of reducing sugars with amino acids. Oxidation of low density lipoproteins (LDL) is a crucial step in the development of atherosclerotic lesions.The protective role of several components in plant foods, mostly polyphenolic compounds, against LDL-oxidation in vitro and in vivo is well established and increased consumption of plant food was therefore, related to a reduced risk of heart disease. During food processing, antioxidative activity of food is liable to changes, for example by the degradation of flavanoids. In this study, we have investigated the potential of MRPs to contribute to the overall antioxidative capacity of food to prevent LDL oxidation in vitro. Several amino acids were heated with glucose under different reaction conditions. The activity of the mixtures to prevent oxidation of human LDL was measured. Human LDL were incubated with different test compounds. LDL oxidation was initiated by the addition of copper ions and recorded by measuring UV absorbance at 230 nm. Antioxidative activity was recorded by the length of lag-time and compared to the antioxidative activity of L-ascorbic acid. These reaction mixtures of different amino acids with glucose showed, in the tested concentrations, antioxidative activity. Variation of the antioxidative activity depending on the amino acid moiety was observed. The control mixtures which contained only sugar or amino acid hardly showed any protective activity. Thus it can be concluded that during the Maillard reaction which takes place during heating or processing of certain food stuff, products are formed which can have a protective activity against LDL oxidation. The reaction mixtures are then analyzed by HPLC and five structurally defined Maillard products were tested for their antioxidative activity against LDL oxidation as described before. Some of the Maillard products, particularly those with aminoreductone structures showed similar activity as L-ascorbic acid, whereas other structures proved to be rather inactive. It can be concluded that some of the tested Mailllard products have beneficial effect on health. The concentration of the active Maillard compounds in different foods, their contribution to the total antioxidative activity of plant based foods and their availability in vivo are currently investigated.