A few months ago, a cousin living abroad had sent a message asking for an Indian diet plan. I told him he didn’t need one, but he found an Indian site anyway that apparently reverses diseases with food (which should have been a big red flag in itself) and then I found a foreign, expensive Sent the diet plan that she did filled with meme foods like chia, quinoa, kale and other new age, yoga postures. seriously!
Superfoods are foods that in themselves are supposed to miraculously improve your health. They change color and name depending on the fashion of the day. A few years ago, it was all about the quinoa and chia. Then banana. At some point, arugula. Odd types of berries including goji berries, turmeric, strawberries and blueberries. Names and lists change faster than the conspiracy theories behind the origins of the COVID-19 virus. A simple Google search will show different superfood lists on different websites in different years, the items that aren’t making the cut are the Big Boss losers that no one really remembers or remembers the next day. Is.
All of these influential and similar sites follow similar patterns and use a similar combination of words below to describe the benefits of these so-called superfoods.
*nutrient dense
*Anti-oxidant
*immune booster
*Detoxifying (as toxins accumulate in our body and need to be cleansed – this is only if you cannot urinate or urinate as a medical condition – toxins not in normal individuals are formed).
*Increased energy and vitality
*anticancer*
A typical statement describing a superfood would usually go like this, “The poppy berry (I just made it up) is an amazing nutrient-rich superfood that boosts immunity while filling the body with antioxidants, without adding toxic calories.” Removes substances, increases energy and vitality and prevents cancer”.
This is not a recent incident. Roots of Ayurveda, a book by Dominic Vujastik that traces the history of Ayurveda through the centuries, describes how garlic became a superfood in the middle of the last millennium and then of course how the fruit of the poppy plant (opium) literally Became part of every doctor’s mortuary in the 16th to 19th centuries (though once you swallow an opium preparation, every meal will look, taste, and feel like a superfood anyway).
So, if you love kale, have this one. If turmeric sparks your passion, definitely take it. If chia seeds tickle your fancy and make you happy… by all means please. But it will be for the pleasure of eating those particular foods, not because you believe that these are ‘superfoods’ whose consumption will suddenly and magically make you healthier.
The problem is us, isn’t it? We all want that one magic bullet to bite, the one thing that will magically make us healthier, or help us lose weight or control our diabetes or high blood pressure or our high LDL levels, or prevent cancer or give us covid – 19, a bullet the big guns (companies and influencers) are able to exploit so beautifully.
And they are so experienced in making you feel inadequate, as if by not consuming these superfoods, you are doing something wrong and not taking care of your body. The guilt trip tempts you to spend money on buying these superfoods and change your eating patterns, instead of focusing on a balanced plant-based sensible eating plan with only calorie intake in mind.
There is no such thing as a superfood. No one food item can make you healthy all of a sudden. What helps is a primarily plant-based diet with lots of fruits, vegetables and nuts, as few ultra-processed foods as possible and some form of caloric balance.
Unfortunately, sensible plans aren’t exactly glamorous. Between someone who told you to add avocado and walnuts and blueberries to your meals instead of apples or chickpeas or millet, who would you be more inclined to follow?
So, what should you and I do? Easy. If you find a food item that has words like ‘immunity’, ‘detox’, ‘antioxidant’, ‘nutrient-dense’ in their packaging or advertising, raise your eyebrows like a Jeeves, give a half smile Who says you know better, drop it and walk away.
And so on, the moment any person, whether he is a doctor or a dietitian or a nutritionist or a health influencer or a trainer or any person who sees himself as an expert in diet and nutrition, the word ‘superfood’ appears. brings. Skeptical, ask questions and if you all get our answers that are “In my experience…”, or “I’ve read…”, or “I’ve seen two cases”, then run away.
Disclaimer
The views expressed above are those of the author.
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