Super food? Does that mean it has magical powers!

Every week it seems like there are new and improved foods coming out on the market. Kale, wheat grass, Quinoa... (Keen-wha!?!) What are all these foods and where the heck are they coming from! In a world where a healthy diet has been thought of as eating a pound of bacon in the morning, but skipping the fruits and veggies (they have carbohydrates. Oh no!) or that you can loose 10 pounds in a week by sucking down nothing but broth 3 times a day (10 lbs for water and muscle!) I am happy to say that the latest and greatest food trend of super foods has finally got it right! Unfortunately for my poor clients, every time someone asks me "Have you ever heard of, kale, I think its called?" my little healthy heart fills with joy and I talk way more about it then they probably wish to hear. It must be all that awesome energy I have from the kale I put in my morning smoothies.

So, what exactly is a super food and why is it so... Super!

The quality of a food can easily be described as how much bang you get for your buck. The bang being the nutrients it contains, and the buck being the calories you consume, or spend in a sense from your daily "budget" of calories.  Our bodies require a certain amount of nutrients to operate at their maximum capacity, and to make us healthy and keep us healthy. They more nutrients the better. (**Yes, there are some nutrients that you can "overload", but the chances of you doing that are slim, so let's focus on just getting them in for now**) 

However, the same concept does not apply for calories. We want to keep those babies moderate as to not gain weight as we age.  This is where our super foods come into play. 

The above images are the nutrition facts of 1 cup of iceberg lettuce vs. 1 cup of kale, also known as a super food. You will notice that while the lettuce has fewer calories, the kale, with only a slight amount more of calories has almost 200% more of vitamin a, as well as majorly elevated levels or vitamin c, calcium and iron as well as more protein and fiber (and sans the sugar!). If you do the research beyond the nutrition label, you will also find many added health benefits most super foods have. You would have to eat 4 cups of lettuce in order to get the same amount of vitamin a as you do for 1 cup of kale. And who really wants to eat 4 cups of lettuce?

This is one, among many, examples of a super food and why we call them that. 

So, in a few meals this week try swapping your regular fare for these super foods

Lettuce for Kale or Spinach

Regular potatoes for Sweet potatoes 

white for brown rice or quinoa

butter for olive oil

sour cream for greek yogurt 

soda and juice for home brewed tea

cereal for oatmeal

chips and crackers for almonds and walnuts

sweets for fresh fruit 

(to me, all fruit is super when its chosen instead of processed sugar!)

green beans for edamame 

creams and butters for fresh herbs

or try adding to any dish

fresh garlic

frozen spinach

flax seed

ginger

cinnamon 

spicy peppers

sunflower seeds

And make each meal as delicious and nutritious as possible!!