The Rising Importance Of Superfoods

Firstly, let’s address the elephant in the room. Statistically, 95% of the global population is unhealthy.

- Shivam Hingorani

The 2018 Global Nutrition Report stated that a poor diet affects every single continent across the world. Less than 1/5 children between six to 23 months consume a minimally acceptable diet, with 7.5% of children not consuming fruits and vegetables every day. Meanwhile, 30.3% of the youth do not consume fruit and 13.9% do not consume vegetables every day.

Closer to home, the EAT-Lancet Commission’s Food Planet Health was formally released in India earlier this year. Similar to the Global Nutrition Report 2018, this report also highlights that people will be required to substantially shift their diet in order for them to consume healthier food.

As per this report, the consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes will have to double globally while the consumption of sugar will have to see a reduction of more than 50%.

This drastic need for a change in diets across the globe has led people to incorporate beneficial food.

In this process, consumers have come across one widely used term -superfoods.

SO WHAT EXACTLY IS A SUPERFOOD?

While there are many discussions and debates regarding what exactly constitutes a superfood, a commonly accepted definition is that a superfood is a food (such as spinach, avocado, almonds, broccoli, blueberries, etc.) that is rich in compounds (such as antioxidants, fiber, or fatty acids) considered beneficial to a person’s health.

While the term has been in use since the beginning of the 20th century, it began to see popularity after it was endorsed by physicians in medical journals. After we entered the 21st century, research in scientific journals, the press, and communication from the food industry popularized the consumption of these foods.