Superfoods are currently all the rage. I mean, if you’re not enjoying an acai bowl or sipping away at your Spirulina smoothie then can you truly say you are living the healthy life?
With superfoods from powdered sea algae to Peruvian roots popping up on our supermarket shelves, it seems everyone has their superfood of choice when it comes to topping up their morning smoothie.
Superfoods claim to have almost magical powers when it comes to improving your health, but could a scoop of this or that in the morning really change everything?
Do we need to start stocking up on superfood powders pronto or is this just another wellness craze that will blow over the minute a hot new trend comes along?
What are Superfoods?
Historically superfoods were believed to be foods that possessed incredibly high levels of certain nutrients and vitamins that could help improve our overall health. People believed superfoods did everything from boosting our immune system, aiding digestion, improving energy or fighting the signs of aging.
The term originally applied to a selection of everyday foods that were readily available and easy to incorporate into you daily life. Although the basis of a superfood remains the same today, the foods that make up this category are dramatically different. Gone are the ingredients you can find in your local market, today’s superfoods are hard to find and often highly priced.
Superfoods can be found in all sorts of forms, from sea algae to exotic berries and seeds. Most supermarkets have picked up on this trend and we can now buy packets of mixed superfood powders, ready to mix straight into meals that promise to solve a whole host of health issues.
Can Superfoods help with Weight Loss?
As much as we’d love there to be a super class of magical foods out there to solve all of our health problems in a mouthful, sadly this isn’t the case.
The truth is that unfortunately the ‘superfood’ is just a marketing term. There is no official ‘superfood’ food sector; instead these are in the same category of the rest of your fruit and veg. They just get a bit more publicity!
Of course there are some foods that do have higher doses of vitamins then others, but you don’t need to buy hyped up superfood mixes get at them. Most of these nutrient dense foods can be found at your local market and have been part of everyone’s diet for centuries.
Key Superfood Ingredients
The best way you can ensure you have all the vitamins and nutrients your body needs is to eat a broad variety of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and healthy fats. Yes, it is as simple as that.
Some of the best old school ‘superfoods’ are blueberries, ginger, garlic, honey and leafy greens, such as spinach and kale. Although they may not be as exciting to shout about, all of these ingredients are bursting with nutrients and vitamins and are also easy to enjoy on a regular basis. That said, by themselves these ingredients aren’t going to give your health a complete makeover, it’s still important to eat a range of natural wholefoods to ensure you get all the vitamins your body needs to feel it’s best.
Verdict: Fad
The term superfoods is more of a marketing term. As long as you eat a range of colourful and nutrient dense foods you don’t need any ‘superfood’ powders to make you healthy – this one is a fad.
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