From low-carb and no sugar diets to adding mushroom powder to your coffee and cayenne to your lemonade, keeping up with new health trends can be difficult and exhausting. How can know which diet to follow when new diets and trends keep popping up every other week? Well, our advice remains the same: always focus on nutrient-dense, plant-based foods and avoid pre-packaged processed foods whenever possible. You’ll find some of the newest healthy foods to add to your diet in this article.
Chaga Mushrooms
Resembling a clump of dirt, the chaga mushroom is a parasitic fungus that is commonly found on birch trees in the northern hemisphere. Nutritionists advocate the addition of chaga mushroom to your diet because of the diverse nutritional profile. Containing vitamin D, zinc, potassium, fiber, amino acids, rubidium, iron, manganese, magnesium, copper, selenium, and B-complex vitamins, chaga mushrooms have been known to prevent cell damage, reduce bad cholesterol, fight inflammation, boost immune function, and slow the signs of aging. It is available as a supplement and in the form of herbal tea or coffee. The right dosage will depend on your health and what you are trying to accomplish.
Nutritional Yeast
Nutritional yeast is what vegans commonly use to add an umami or cheesy flavor to various recipes. Instead of using flour or fats to thicken sauces, people can use nutritional yeast. It can also be sprinkled on air-popped popcorn for a healthy, cheesy snack. Nutritional yeast is praised for the B-vitamin content, helping people who don’t eat meat satisfy the necessary B12 intake. Vitamin B12 helps to boost energy levels and the other minerals may assist with lowering cholesterol. Additionally, it is rich in manganese, molybdenum, zinc, selenium, and all nine essential amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own.
Kamut
Available at health food stores and certain grocery stores around the country, kamut is an Egyptian grain that has 30% more protein than wheat. Some people with wheat intolerances or allergies have been able to consume kamut, but not everyone can do this so consult with your primary physician before diving face first into a bowl of this grain. It has a nutty flavor and it is rich in protein, fiber, B-vitamins, selenium, and manganese, a mineral that the body needs to help with amino acid utilization. One serving of kamut can satisfy your recommended daily intake of selenium (55 micrograms per day), which helps to protect the body from cell membrane damage and genetic mutations.
Sugar Kelp
Kale isn’t the only dark green that deserves the spotlight in the world of healthy foods. Within recent years, a sustainable seafood purveyor worked with GreenWave, a small company of ocean farmers that protect the sea, to develop the crop known as sugar kelp. The growth has been rapid and long lines of sugar kelp grow and are harvested in vertical columns like oysters. Sugar kelp is rich in potassium, iodine, magnesium, zinc, calcium, copper, chromium, and vitamins A, B1, B2, D, and E. It can be dried and eaten as a snack or added to broths, stews, or salads. People are predicting that sugar kelp will open the doorway to the tens of thousands of beneficial sea vegetables already in existence.
Fenugreek Seeds
Fenugreek seeds are commonly used for their pungent flavor, brightening curries and adding an almost maple like flavor to sauces or condiments. One important thing to note is that toasting the seeds in a dry frying pan over medium heat helps to release the flavor, but you can also grind them into a powder to add to teas or homemade baked goods. Traditionally, lactating mothers have consumed fenugreek seeds to stimulate milk production, while others have consumed them to improve digestion, kidney function, and skin disorders like eczema.
