by Melissa Zimmerman |
First there were superfoods. Today’s latest food trend is foods that are supercharged! Like their super-friends before them, supercharged foods are the whole foods that will provide you with a big nutritional bang for your buck; they are bursting with beneficial vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.
Replacing a diet full of processed foods with one of whole superfoods can help curb your appetite, leave you feeling full and satisfied long after your meal is done, lead to a slimmer waistline, and even improve your overall health. So grab a fork, and let’s find out how to supercharge your next meal.
Begin With Broccoli
Broccoli isn’t always the most loved of vegetables, but if you aren’t eating broccoli you are missing out on some amazing health benefits. Broccoli contains sulfur-containing metabolites known as glucosinolates, which help to reduce inflammation. People who eat cruciferous vegetables like broccoli have been shown in studies to have a reduced risk of colorectal cancer. Broccoli is also very high in antioxidant vitamin C, and it promotes and regulates the body’s natural cellular detoxification process. That is one supercharged green!
Keep Eating Kale
Kale may seem like a super trendy food right now, but there is a good reason for its popularity. Kale is a dark leafy green that is loaded with antioxidants, and an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, and vitamin C. Kale contains specific substances known as bile acid sequestrants, which can lower cholesterol levels. This green vegetable is particularly beneficial to those avoiding dairy products, since kale is a rich plant-based source of calcium.
Save Space For Spinach
Are you finding a green theme in our list of supercharged foods? Leafy green vegetables, like spinach, are some of the most nutrient-dense, healthiest foods on the planet. Spinach offers impressive amounts of vitamin K, vitamin A, manganese, folate, and magnesium, and researchers have identified over a dozen different compounds in these leafy greens that fight inflammation and may even be cancer-protective. Many nutritionists recommend eating extra greens if you are trying to overcome sugar cravings, making spinach and other greens even more beneficial.
Snack On Seaweed
One green you may not have thought to add to your plate recently is seaweed. Seaweed is actually a sea vegetable that is a member of the algae family and rich in fiber. Seaweed is extremely rich in minerals, and provides the broadest range of minerals of any food. One of these minerals, iodine, is missing from almost every other food. Getting enough iodine is crucial for a healthy thyroid gland, hormones, and body mass. You can use seaweed sheets as wraps, make a salad with sea lettuces and season it with sesame oil, or add it to soups.
Bring On The Berries
Blueberries have enjoyed their reputation as a supercharged food due to their high concentration of antioxidant flavonoids, particularly anthocyanins that help protect against aging and DNA damage. Did you know that blueberries can also modify the good bacteria in your gut to enhance your immune function, as well? Studies have shown that blueberries actually diversify gut bacteria and improve the overall immune system.
Get Nutty
What can a handful of nuts do for you? How about provide healthy fats, protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and the amino acid arginine. There is evidence that arginine improves blood flow in the arteries of the heart, reduces blood pressure, and it is even thought to help with erectile dysfunction. Some nuts, like walnuts, have been shown in studies to have a positive impact on male fertility, as well.
Raw Garlic Keeps You Healthy
Garlic doesn’t just keep hungry vampires at bay; it has antibacterial and antiviral properties that can help keep a cold away, too. Eat plenty of fresh raw, or even dried, garlic and you may also experience improved cholesterol levels, and lower blood pressure. The benefits of garlic don’t stop there. Sulfur containing compounds in garlic may even reduce the inflammation that in the body associated with obesity.
Wild About Salmon
Everyone knows that salmon is an incredibly healthy protein and great source of beneficial omega-3 essential fatty acids that can help fight inflammation and protect the heart. What you may not know is that wild salmon is healthier than farm-raised. Wild salmon has less calories, less fat, and is higher in minerals including potassium, zinc, and iron compared to farmed salmon.
Eggs Are Excellent
Put down the carton of egg white substitutes and embrace eggs. After decades of being villainized, the truth is out. Eggs are extremely healthy. They are a great source of high quality proteins, vitamins, and minerals. Egg yolks are an important source of choline, which is needed for brain development. A choline rich diet has been associated with sharper memory and a reduced risk of cognitive decline and brain changes associated with dementia.
Don’t Forget Fermented Foods
Fermented foods such as pickles, sauerkraut, and kimchi are teaming with beneficial living microorganisms. Once you eat them, these “good bacteria” populate your gut to help improve your immune system, keep bad bacteria at bay, and help you absorb nutrients from the other foods you eat. Fermented foods are more potent than any probiotic supplement that you could buy for digestive and immune health. Interestingly enough, the act of fermenting foods can actually increase the beneficial nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and enzymes that are in the vegetables to begin with.
If you want to supercharge your diet, add these nutrient-dense foods daily. Whole foods such as greens, berries, nuts, salmon, eggs, and fermented foods will fill you up with nutrition, and not with extra calories. And that is super news for your health, and your waistline.
