What are Superfoods and Why are They Important?

To put it simply, super foods are nutritional powerhouses. 

You may inherently know that eating fruits and vegetables is a great way to ensure you’re filling your nutritional needs each day, but just how important are they to our diet? Super foods offer a little health protection with every bite, so it’s no wonder these foods are associated with the word ‘super.’ Today we’ll explore what exactly super foods are, and why they are important to overall health and well-being. 

Though the term was initially used for marketing purposes instead of classifying a specific food group, ‘super foods’ have risen in popularity for being nutritionally dense and having numerous health benefits. Super foods are extremely high in micronutrients like vitamins, and minerals, as well as antioxidants, enzymes, and healthy fats. These food items have a great nutrition profile. They pack more nutrients per calorie, fulfilling your nutritional needs better than others, with fewer calories. All of these nutrients are essential to your body so you can thrive, fueling your body to fight nutrient deficiencies and chronic diseases.

Benefits of Super foods

Incorporating super foods into your diet is just one of the ways to reach your nutrient needs and help keep diseases at bay. Super foods can help prevent heart disease and cancer thanks to their high content of antioxidants and flavonoids, which decrease inflammation and improve immunity. 

Antioxidants in superfoods can help solve many health issues

Another common characteristic of super foods is that they contain antioxidants, the molecules that occur naturally in foods. Antioxidants are powerful molecules that neutralize free radicals that have close links with many health problems including cancer, arthritis, stroke, and more. This is why super foods are considered effective in keeping health problems away.

Super foods are high in fiber

One similarity shared by all super foods is the fiber factor. The fiber content in super foods can help prevent diabetes and digestive problems, as well as help you maintain a healthy weight. Fiber primarily helps in regulating your digestive system, which includes maintaining your gut health and tackling digestive problems like constipation. This nutrient also aids in lowering cholesterol levels, controlling blood sugar levels, and weight loss.

Super foods are full of vitamins and minerals

Super foods are known to have high nutritional value, including a good amount of vitamins and minerals. Responsible for carrying out hundreds of roles in the body, vitamins, and minerals strengthen your bones, heal wounds, and improve your immune system. They also convert food into energy and repair cellular damage.

Super foods have healthy fats that promote heart health

Super foods are sometimes recommended for improving heart health as some of them contain healthy fats that are great for the heart. These fats are also essential for providing energy to the body and supporting cell growth. Other functions of healthy fats include protecting organs, keeping the body warm, helping the body to absorb nutrients, and producing important hormones.