The term “superfood” is something very common to refer to foods of excellent quality and beneficial for health. However, many times they refer to exotic, expensive or difficult-to-access products, that’s why we show you seven superfoods that are at your fingertips.
What is a superfood
The term superfood was born more as a strategy of marketing to designate those foods concentrated in good nutrients and with a positive impact on health.
Some dictionaries define a superfood as a nutrient-dense foodespecially in fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals or unsaturated fatty acids that are beneficial for health.
However, the term superfood is controversial and even subjectivesince we find at our disposal a variety of products and foods with healthy nutrients and it is not easy to know which is a remarkable product due to its qualities or its impact on our body.
Popular and Affordable Superfoods
Given this definition of a superfood and considering that It is often a strategy of marketing to refer to foods with remarkable qualities in nutritional terms; We can mention the following popular and accessible superfoods that we have been consuming all our lives:
Almonds, a very nutritious dry fruit
The almonds They are, like other nuts, foods concentrated in quality nutrients, but according to a study that evaluated more than 1,000 ingredients for their impact on the body and its components, almonds stand out among many.
It is a concentrated source of vegetable proteins and unsaturated fats beneficial for the organism but also, they are a good option to add potassium, vegetable calcium and vitamins of group B to our usual diet.
Clearly, it’s a very accessible dry fruit and that we can easily incorporate into our table to enrich it with healthy nutrients.
Extra virgin olive oil: liquid gold
Extra virgin olive oil, typical of the Mediterranean diet, is another food that is within reach of our hands and is source of quality fats and phenolic compounds with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action in our body.
For these qualities, and above all for its great impact on the health of the body that can help us control body weight by increasing metabolic expenditure, as well as prevent cardiovascular or degenerative diseases such as cancer; he extra virgin olive oil It is another superfood that we can easily incorporate into our daily diet.
Avocado: a remarkable fruit
Unlike other fresh fruits, the avocado constitutes a excellent source of fatty acids with a reduced proportion of carbohydrates, being at the same time concentrated in fiber, vitamins, minerals and with a higher proportion of proteins than many other plant foods.
Also, the avocado It is a very versatile food that has been associated with good control of body weight, as well as its richness in monounsaturated fatty acids, it can help prevent cardiovascular diseases and easily enrich our diet, especially since it can be used to replace other less fatty acids. healthy.
Kale or collard greens: few calories and lots of nutrients
Kale is one of the most recognized superfoods, yet the cabbage of a lifetime and that we get very easily in the market can be a good alternative, also concentrated in quality nutrients and very low in calories.
Cabbage stands out for its great contribution of vegetable proteins as well as for its wealth in calciumin vitamin C and other antioxidant compounds.
At the same time, like other cabbages, it offers a high content of potassium, B vitamins and flavonoids that they can have a anti-inflammatory effect in our body.
Peanuts, soybeans, kidney beans and other legumes
The legumes In general, they are excellent sources of nutrients for our body and we recommend including them in the regular diet whenever possible.
Among the most outstanding specimens that we can call superfoods within reach of our hands are the peanut and the soy sources of protein in high proportions and unsaturated fats that are beneficial to the body, as well as beans concentrated in quality vegetable protein, fiber and micronutrients.
Also, all legumes are vegetable source of iron, potassium, B vitamins and polyphenols that have anti-inflammatory action in our body.
Turmeric, to give flavor and color to many dishes
The turmeric It is a spice that we can easily obtain today in markets and supermarkets and that we can use to flavor different dishes.
It constitutes an excellent source of antioxidants as well as vitamins and minerals, but above all its richness in curcumin, a component with anti-inflammatory effect in our body that can greatly benefit the health of the organism.
Green tea: a super infusion
Among other superfoods that we can easily incorporate into our regular diet is Green Tea, an infusion that is widely consumed among the Japanese and that concentrates polyphenols with very beneficial properties for our body.
green tea is source of catechins that raise our metabolism and considerably help maintain body weight while also offering phenolic compounds that can keep us away from metabolic and degenerative diseases such as cancer.
We always recommend consume green tea without added sugar and incorporate it as a regular infusion, since in addition to benefiting from its compounds will contribute to proper hydration of the organism.
These are seven superfoods that are at our fingertips and how easily we can incorporate our diet; and even probably we have already been consuming them for a long time without realizing it.
As we can see, it is not necessary to spend a lot of money or go crazy trying to get exotic berries or roots to incorporate a superfood into our diet, but rather, many foods with remarkable qualities are around us and probably some are already in our pantry.
In DAP | A “superfood” of a lifetime: the pistachio. Properties and benefits
Image | Cover Photo: Maddi Bazzocco, Photo 1: Jocelyn Morales, Photo 2: Jumpstory, Photo 3: Jumpstory, Photo 4: Marisa Morton, Photo 5: Jumpstory, Photo 6: Jumpstory, Photo 7: Jumpstory.