If you're not already confused with the world of weight loss, with the release of a new fad diet every week that is going to change your world…the world of wellness has now been promoted to a new level. Everywhere you turn, you’re being bombarded with all things health and wellness.
Superfoods are now super celebrities! Move over George and Bradley Cooper; get out off the red carpet Scarlett Johansson and Anne Hathaway!
Drumroll please… It’s time for Kale…Chia seeds…Quinoa…Activated nuts…Goji berries, amongst others to take centre stage. Don’t forget the interesting tasting tonics and elixirs such as kombucha, apple cider vinegar, bone broth and kefir, all smiling for the food, health and wellness paparazzi!
So how have we arrived here and what is the best way for you to navigate your own way through the paparazzi and these food fetishes?
Before I answer that, firstly let me state, I applaud and I’m excited about the food mania that surrounds us. I will give a standing ovation every time for REAL foods.
My definition of real food is simple.
Foods that grow in our soil, under our skies and sun and in our winds and rain; foods that comes from our open paddocks to our plate or from our oceans to our table.
Foods that nourish you and are rich in nutrients.
Foods that support growth, wellness, health and overall wellbeing.
Theses are real foods.
So here we are, we’ve arrived at the Oscars of the wellness world for I believe, all the right reasons.
Let me explain…
The Western world, sadly, has never been sicker or unhealthier than it is right now. People who are overweight, obese, have autoimmune disease and/or diabetes are now commonplace. Interestingly, the rate at which these diseases have increased over the past 40 years mirrors the time when we (read the powers that be) removed fat from our foods and replaced it with sugar. For your sake and for the sake of brevity, I won't continue down this line of thinking, as I will rant somewhat and I don’t need to do that to you! You see I am looking after your wellbeing!
SO where were we?
In all great superhero movies there’s always a villain and the super hero. In this scenario, the main villain is the processed food industry and fortunately for you and I, we have more than one superhero. They are the health and wellness warriors. People who want and promote change. Literally they’re sick and tired of where we are…they’re fed up!
Now more than ever, there is a groundswell of health warriors who know that we can all do it better; that understand we no longer need to travel down this unfortunate path; and are on a mission to make positive change.
Change, that if you choose to implement into your daily routine, will make you a healthier version of you. The you, you deserve to be.
So yes, a lot of the Superheroes are promoting Superfoods. When I googled the word Superfood there were 11,700,000 results in 0.36 seconds! Wow …Google still continues to amaze me!
You may be surprised to discover this…
According to Wikipedia…
“Superfood is a marketing term used to describe foods with supposed health benefits. The superfood term is not in common use by dietitians and nutrition scientists, many of whom dispute that particular foods have the health benefits often claimed by advocates of particular Superfoods.”
According to the Oxford Dictionary…
“Superfood is “a nutrient-rich food considered to be especially beneficial for health and well-being”
So marketing term or nutrient rich food?
I actually lean towards the former. Some foods, as I mentioned, are at an all time high and experiencing celebrity status but do they deserve it?
I’m not going to do a nutritional and comparative analysis of each of the so-called superfoods. There are certain real foods that yes, are more nutrient dense than others, but does that mean your diet should consist of more of these foods?
No it does not.
Your daily intake should consist of a wide variety of real whole foods.
Think…
? A wide variety of vegetables. The more colour you can have on your plate the better – each colour delivers different nutrients. (5 serves a day)
? A selection of fruit – again vary your choice and colour. (2serves/day)
? A healthy Protein source derived from your choice of animal products, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy or legumes.
? Healthy fats from a variety of nuts and seeds, chia, coconut, avocado and their oils.
? A small selection of grains – preferably ancient grains like quinoa, chia, amaranth, millet, wild rice and ancient forms of wheat such as spelt, farro and Kamut.
? Water, water and more water!
? Perhaps the occasional piece of dark chocolate and a glass of red wine!
If you can incorporate the above into your everyday eating while ideally cutting out all processed food, you will reap the rewards. You will be healthier; look and feel better both on the inside and out; and you’ll find a new energy that perhaps you didn’t even realise was missing!
You can become a healthier version of you, you can look, feel and be amazing.. You can be you own Superhero.
