Taking the ‘Super’ out of Superfoods
We have all been exposed to the next big food that will change our health forever. These foods become trendy like the newest smartphones; they are the stars of your local smoothie stands. We see lists of superfoods everywhere from mommy blogs to nutrition magazines. Unfortunately, they never go into much detail about why these foods are so super. Is kale so great that its tasteless form should be allowed into my salad?
When we search superfoods, many different nutrition websites come up, each of them sporting a separate list with a different number of superfoods. Some lists have 25, some have 10, and some have 50. Unfortunately, none of them seem to be able to consensus on what is a superfood.
Today, the superfoods you see listed the most are fruits and vegetables, with the occasional cereal making its way into the mix. That would make sense; natural foods are organically grown in the grassy hills. However, that is not the definition of superfood. Unfortunately, there isn’t an agreed-upon definition. According to the Merriam-Webster definition, a superfood is just a food rich in compounds and considered beneficial to someone’s health. That is an expansive definition, and it seems it would apply to many foods we eat today.
According to the Journal Of Consumer Culture, while superfood has been great for marketing, there is very little evidence that superfoods do what the marketing claims. Essentially, the diet craze that has swept the world makes marketing these foods easy and cost-effective.
Kale got its time in the limelight as a top superfood, but why? It was not for taste, I assure you. Among the taglines of it being jam-packed with vitamins, there are also claims that it lowers your cholesterol, benefits bones, could even help prevent cancer, and benefits those who have diabetes. Undoubtedly, eating healthy food can benefit your health, but should it be put on such a high pedestal?
Now some of the claims made have links to science; there has been evidence that cruciferous vegetables can lower cancer risk. However, that is a broad classification of vegetables. So is there a reason for kale to stand out? The short answer is no. Although kale does have many benefits, it is average compared to other brassica vegetables.
Kale is not the only superfood, this article will not include all of them, but another popular one is quinoa. It has been said that it helps balance blood sugar levels, it is one of the healthiest foods on the planet, it is excellent for diabetes heart health, and aids digestion. According to studies, quinoa is better than other cereals, but it is pretty equal to teff as far as nutritional value goes.
Overall, these foods are not bad by any means. They have great nutritional benefits; however, calling them a superfood is just a marketing tactic. Other foods within their food groups may provide just as many nutritional benefits. The moral of the story; don’t get confused by superfoods.
