14 best Superfoods

Recently, I have been working on trends in modern diet. Diets are fascinating because they show, that we are not afraid to experiment and we look for health in many wonderful places. It got me thinking about what the ideal diet should look like. Not many of us think about composing our menus based on recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals and as a result, in my opinion, we have problems with health. There are more and more evidence showing association between poor health and mineral and/or vitamin deficiencies. I think, that it is quite a hot topic. So, I did my own analysis and came up with the list of 14 super foods, which we all should include in our diet.

Do you want to supercharge your life and know which super foods to include in your diet? On my list there are the following: fish, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts, brazil nuts, yogurt, eggs, quinoa, lentils, dark chocolate, olive oil, fruit and vegetables.

It will surprise you but according to my own calculations we do not need to eat meat. Fish is another story. While meat is only a good source of protein, vitamin B and selenium, fish, however, are also a good source of other nutrients like for example calcium, vitamin B12, folate and others. This means, that if we resort only to fish, we will make automatically more room for fruit and vegetables in our diet and this is healthy.

Seeds are powerful and some are more powerful than others. However, they are also a source of phytic acid, so they should be fermented before eating. We do not have to eat them a lot, 100 g of sunflower seeds and 100 g of pumpkin seeds is enough. They are excellent source of many vitamins and minerals. My analysis has shown, that if we do not include sunflower seeds, almonds, or olive oil in our diet, then we will have deficiencies in vitamin E. Other products like avocado or broccoli, which are also good source of this vitamin, will not remedy the scarcity, unfortunately.

Almonds and nuts are the same story. Almonds are selected because of vitamin E and calcium. If you rely on them in your diet, because you need calcium, you should keep in mind, that they are also a source of phytic acid and you should ferment them before eating, otherwise you will not benefit from this nutrient-dense food. Walnuts are famous, because they are excellent source of omega 3 and those not eating fish should regularly consume walnuts. The most impressive and important health benefits of brazil nuts are, that they are the best source of selenium. This is especially significant for vegetarians and vegans and 100g should take care of our needs. Selenium is usually found in meat produce, so every plant eater may have deficiencies in this mineral.

Legumes are also on my list. Personally I find that a mini version of a bean, lentils, is the best. If you are not consuming them already, maybe it is time to re-think the strategy. It is worth it. They are low in calories, but high in fiber and many nutrients.

Grains can also be powerful. The most powerful of them all is quinoa and some call it the best new food superstar. Quinoa is packed with vitamins and minerals, and because it contains all essential amino acids, it is also a good source of protein. So why not switch from rice to quinoa? We will definitely benefit from the switch, providing we remember to ferment it before eating, due to the presence of phytic acid.

Many people say, that dairy is not good for you. I find that eggs and yogurt are excellent and that we should think about them while shopping. Natural yogurt is a great source of probiotics as well as vitamin B12 and calcium. Vegetarians from India rely on legumes in their diet and they consume a lot of yogurt. I believe, that they developed this habit to increase fiber consumption found in high levels in all legumes. The health benefits of probiotics cannot be overstressed. We all should make sure, that we provide enough of them every day.

Potassium, which is good for our heart, can be found in fruit and vegetables. Eating them on regular basis should take care of our daily recommended intake. A good tip to know: 100g of tomato paste contains 30% of our daily recommended intake of potassium so why not prepare a tomato juice?

Lastly, dark chocolate. I just love it and lately it has been my major source of sugar. It is packed with vitamins and minerals and it takes care of sugar cravings, which we all have.

Some say, that superfood is just the marketing term used to describe foods with supposed health benefits. I am not sure why people say this, because obviously superfoods have extra large doses of vitamins and minerals and nutrients, like antioxidants. If you take a look again at my microelement table list, you will no longer doubt, that certain food can only be described as superfood and that without them, we will have hard times to stay healthy.