The Latest On Super Foods

The term "superfood" is one of the most successful marketing triumphs of the 21st century. Walk down any grocery aisle and you’ll find labels boasting the "super" powers of kale, acai, goji berries, and ancient grains. But if you consult a medical textbook or a clinical nutritionist, you’ll find that the term "superfood" doesn’t actually exist in the world of science.

The truth about superfoods is a mix of genuine nutritional value and clever branding designed to justify a higher price tag. The concept of a superfood isn't rooted in a laboratory, but in a boardroom. One of the earliest examples was a marketing campaign by the United Fruit Company in the early 20th century to sell bananas. They branded the fruit as "super" because it was cheap, nutritious, and came in its own sterile packaging.

Today, the label is used to imply that a specific food has extraordinary health benefits compared to "regular" food. While blueberries are undoubtedly healthy, the marketing suggests they possess a near-miraculous ability to ward off disease. In reality, no single food can compensate for a poor overall diet.

When we strip away the marketing, what we are really talking about is . A "superfood" is simply a food that contains a high volume of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants relative to its calorie count. Many superfoods are high in polyphenols, which help neutralize free radicals in the body.The "truth" often hidden by marketers is that the nutrients in an exotic $12 acai bowl are often no more effective than the nutrients in a $2 bag of frozen spinach.

You don't need to spend a fortune on rare powders to get "super" results. Often, a common, affordable food provides the exact same benefits as its expensive "super" counterpart. Rather than spend money on Goji berries, invest in raspberries or blueberries since all are high in Vitamin C and antioxidants.  Instead of Quinoa, use buckwheat or oats since all have complex carbs and high fiber.  Not a fan or wheatgrass, go for spinach or broccoli since these provide chlorophyll and Vitamin K. Finally, replace chia sees with flax seeds for Omega-3 fatty acids and fiber. 

The real risk of superfood culture is the "Magic Bullet" fallacy. This is the idea that adding a handful of kale to a diet otherwise high in processed sugars and trans fats will somehow "cancel out" the damage.

Nutrition is a synergistic process. The nutrients in a sweet potato work better when paired with a healthy fat (like olive oil) for absorption. Focusing on one "miracle" food ignores the fact that a diverse variety of "regular" vegetables, fruits, and proteins is far more beneficial than a heavy reliance on a single, trendy ingredient.

Are superfoods "real"? As a nutritional category, no. As a description of healthy, nutrient-dense whole foods, yes. The actual truth is that the "super-ness" of a food is only as good as the diet it supports. Rather than chasing the latest exotic berry from the Amazon rainforest, the most "super" thing you can do for your health is to fill your plate with a colorful variety of local, seasonal, and whole foods.

Are Superfoods Really Super?

 

You've seen all those claims about certain foods being "super". It is said they provide better nutrients for your healthy diet and lifestyle.  There are cookbooks, articles, and all sorts of things making claims on these foods.  I've seen them, I've tried a few but I also took time to research the topic with recognized health cites such as Harvard medical because they are more likely to have a objective view.  Any business selling these foods is going to try to advertise them in a way to make you want to buy.

Unfortunately, at this point in time, there is no scientifically based or governmental regulated definition of superfoods. However, most foods that are advertised as such tend to offer higher levels. of certain nutrients, is said to prevent certain diseases, or is claimed to provide certain health benefits beyond the nutrients it contains.

The term itself appears to have originated in the early 20th century around the time of World War 1 as part of a food marketing campaign. It was used by the United Fruit Company to promote the bananas it imported into the United States.  They spoke about how nutritional they were, how they could be used, and so much more so people would buy it.

The term started to take off when it began appearing in medical journals as doctors began publishing their results of using bananas to treat various diseases such as celiac's disease or diabetes.  Even the American Medical Association used the term when they announced that a child who regularly ate bananas would either find relief from celiac's disease or be cured of it.  This all lead to a crazy banana diet.

In current times, with the vastness of social media and the internet, the announcement of a "superfood" spreads rapidly across the world.  Thus for people who sell the food, it can translate into multimillion dollar sales because people are willing to pay more for foods that are seen as healthier either naturally or via various claims. This is especially true of people who see food as medicine. In addition, when the food industry markets a food as a superfood, sales of that item are likely to increase so anything with superfood on the label is considered a hot product.  

There have been studies done on many of these superfoods to see how much of what nutrients they offer and their health properties but there haven't really been any studies done to see how these properties apply to a person's diet.  This is due to the fact that the laboratory conditions used to study the food are extremely difficult to apply to a person's diet. It has also been found that the benefits are often of short duration and people would have to eat frequent portions to experience the continued benefits. Finally, most studies look at the food in isolation, not in combination with other foods which is the normal way people consume these products.

Although superfoods are more national in general, the label seems to motivate sales and can cause people to ignore other foods and focus on a select few.  It is important to eat a wide variety of foods for the best nutrition, the best amount of vitamins and minerals, and is so much better for us. So rather than focusing on superfoods, look at eating a well balanced diet containing different foods.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great weekend.