Five future 'super foods' that are good for you and the planet

If you want to stay healthy and help save the planet, how about a dish of algae followed by some cactus and ancient grains? Once a staple mainly eaten in Bolivia and Peru, quinoa has now become a familiar food across the globe - so what other healthy foods are waiting to be discovered? A new report lists 50 so-called future foods which are both healthy and good for the environment. So which "super" foods are on the menu of the future?

Are Quinoa, Chia Seeds, and Other “Superfoods” a Scam?

Some of the super claims are true: Açaí berries, native to the Amazon rainforest, and goji berries, produced mostly in northern China, are indeed loaded with phytochemicals, plant compounds that seem to protect us from heart disease, brain deterioration, and cancer. And quinoa, the seed of a spinachlike plant grown in the Andes, really does offer a complete, high-quality vegetarian protein. Other boasts are, well, less true: Açaí and goji berries are not really miracle cures for everything from obesity to sexual dysfunction.

Are Superfoods Really Super?

Superfoods are everywhere and can be found on menus and in stores all over Sarasota. From First Watch’s kale tonic and Power Breakfast quinoa bowl to SunniBunni’s line of DetoxBunni smoothies, healthy eating seems to be on-trend. However, while certain buzzword foods like acai, turmeric, and kale might entice a healthy eater, they don’t always denote a healthful product. Many experts say that sensationalized ‘superfoods’ are not the key to a healthy diet. In fact, superfood is not a word that is used by experts.

Forget Kale. Try These Three REAL Superfoods

Don't get me wrong. I'm a fan of kale. But kale is absolutely, positively not a superfood. A superfood is high in protein, low in fat, gluten-free, loaded with omega-3s, bursting with antioxidants and overflowing with folate, fiber and phytonutrients. But the vast majority of what gets called a superfood these days should be called "health food." Yes, health food is a perfectly suitable descriptor for goji berries, pomegranates and chia seeds.

From Kale to Acai: Plot the Arc of a Food Fad

How food researchers know what we’ll eat next; eggs and whole milk are back, sorry, skim.

Move Over, Kale, The New Super Vegetable Comes From The Sea

Eat Kelp. It’s chock-full of nutrients, it mitigates climate change by sequestering carbon, improves oceans by soaking up excess nitrogen and phosphorus, and has potential as a valuable fertilizer and biofuel.

Not so super 'superfoods': From quinoa to blueberries - why they aren't as good for us as we think

It is enough to make you choke on your quinoa, curly kale and chia seed salad. Many so-called superfoods don’t live up to the marketing hype, research has revealed. In fact, in many cases, everyday foods as oranges and Brussels sprouts are just as good for us – and far cheaper. This week’s New Scientist says that while many foods claim to have miraculous health-giving properties, there is precious little evidence to back it up.

So You Want a New Superfood? Meet Moringa

Moringa is a rare plant that contains all nine essential amino acids. Usually this type of amino acid profile is found only in animal foods. The vitamin and mineral content is equally remarkable, with high quantities of vitamin A, vitamin C, iron and calcium.

The 29 Best Superfoods for Weight Loss

Diets, working out and even surgeries have been some ways in which people have tried losing weight. However, one needs to realize that as long as they are consuming unhealthy foods, then weight will always be an issue for them. Hence, the need for one to take into consideration the fact that there are specific superfoods which they may easily be able to access in order for them to remain healthy and actually lose weight in the process.

The Dangers of Superfoods

Kale is either going to kill you or save your life depending on which media report you read. Let’s sort superfood fact from fiction.

The Next Kale: How Superfood Trends Are Made

Kale became a darling of the fruit and vegetable aisle thanks to a viral transformation. Now, publicity firms are helping to create trends around once uncommon produce, touting their nutritional superpowers.

The Superfood Gold Rush

Like quinoa before it, açaí has become a craze among health-conscious Americans — creating a bonanza in the regions where it’s grown.

The Superfoods Every Mogul Should Know About

Enter the era of the superfood. Superfoods equate to super success. Residing under the umbrella of ‘functional foods’, a superfood is usually found in nature and contains a high amount of nutrients that are said to positively impact on one’s health and wellbeing.

The truth about ‘miracle foods’ – from chia seeds to coconut oil

Cancer, diabetes, heart disease, dandruff… can these things really be cured, or at least prevented, by what we eat?

Trendy Superfood Diets Are Causing Food Insecurity In India

Thanks to their collective obsession with eating superfoods of all kinds, hipsters are now helping push indigenous populations in India toward hunger.

Which superfoods have disease-beating powers?

Where most people see a snack, Nora Khaldi sees data. Her Dublin-based startup, Nuritas, performs molecular analysis of foodstuffs to search for hidden health benefits, from preventing disease to killing bacteria.

Why These 5 Ancient Eats Are New Superfoods

Here are five age-old staples (think kimchi, kombucha, and chia seeds) that have recently become up-and-coming new culinary trends—plus, how these popular superfoods can benefit your body, from lowering your risk of disease to improving your digestive health to keeping you slim.