Superfoods can help strengthen immunity and fight inflammation, yet a healthy diet involves more than simply choosing particular foods.
Trendy superfoods include quinoa and iron-rich lentils as well as apple’s quercetin* antioxidant. Green tea can also be considered an excellent option; just be mindful of your caffeine consumption when drinking it!
Leafy Greens
Leafy greens contain vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that can support a healthy immune system, strong bones and vibrant skin. Their high fibre content also helps reduce bloating and aid digestion while acting as a natural detoxifier due to chlorophyll’s magnesium and calcium-rich composition.
Dietitians recommend adding vegetables into meals in various ways, from soups and stews to curries or salads and even making dips out of them. Try including spinach, kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, watercress rocket bok choy or spinach into soups stews curries as well as salads or as dips!
Keep your leafy greens safe by thoroughly washing them before eating, especially those grown outside, as their roots and runoff water contain pathogens and bacteria that could potentially be harmful. For added convenience, opt for ready-to-eat leafy greens that have already been cut, washed or triple washed prior to being packaged in sealed packages that ensure freshness and safety.
Root Vegetables
Root vegetables (beets, carrots, parsnips, turnips and rutabagas) are considered superfoods due to their high nutrient density, making them hardy enough for even harsh winter conditions and an excellent source of energy and disease protection.
Though some might turn their nose up at root vegetables for their earthy, bitter flavor and strange looking appearance, these foods can be extremely useful additions to your cooking repertoire and be added year round as delicious dishes – although peak seasons for consumption would be recommended.
Before domestication, our ancestors relied on wild root vegetables such as carrots and beets as sustenance during hard winters. Later cultivated into staple ingredients of regional cuisines and then later part of healthy diets, carrots and beets became part of many healthy diets. For optimal results when selecting these foods look for organic versions available at your local farmers market or root-to-stem cooking trends that use every part of the plant to create delicious side dishes or entrees.
Berries
Berries are packed with essential vitamins and minerals, including antioxidants that fight free radicals to combat premature aging and help slow metabolic issues like type II diabetes. Plus they’re an excellent source of fiber to regulate blood sugar levels – try blackberries, strawberries, raspberries or blueberries in a fruit salad or as a topping on porridge! Blackcurrants, cranberries and boysenberries contain protective plant compounds called anthocyanins which lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels while improving arterial function.
Green tea is another powerful superfood, boasting the polyphenol EGCG to protect against heart disease, cancer and diabetes. You can either purchase it prepackaged in bottles or create it by steeping dried leaves in boiling water. Or opt for matcha powdered green tea which boasts higher concentrations of nutrients for greater strength than regular green tea varieties.
Eggs
Eggs have long been an important staple in diets around the world. Eggs provide a wealth of essential protein while providing essential vitamins and minerals such as D, folate, B12 and choline. Eggs also boast one of the lowest energy-to-nutrient density ratios among all foods; making them an easy source of essential iron and iodine supplements.
Merriam-Webster defines a superfood as any food which provides superior health benefits beyond its basic nutritive value; in other words, a nutritious and high-quality food that promotes healing while helping prevent disease.
Factors including scientific research on the food in question, popular media attention and marketing campaigns by involved food industries all play a part in whether a certain food can qualify as a superfood. While its term has gained widespread use due to perceived health benefits, registered dietitian Beth Czerwony cautions that not every healthy food qualifies.
