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So, you've probably heard of superfoods right? But what actually makes them 'super' — or is it all a myth?
Expert nutritionist and PhD researcher, Richie Kirwan, is back to bust some of the myths surrounding nutrition and healthy eating. In this video, he's serving up the science behind superfoods and whether or not you actually need them in your diet.
Disclaimer: Richie's views on avocados are entirely his own.
Find Richie on Instagram: @be_more_nutrition
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0:00
superfoods with a name like that they've
0:02
got to be super good for you and you
0:04
should definitely be eating more of them
0:06
right
0:06
let's talk about that
0:10
how's it going guys my name is richie
0:11
kirwan and today we're going to talk all
0:12
about one of my least favorite nutrition
0:15
buzzwords
0:16
superfoods
0:17
what are they and do they actually live
0:19
up to the buzz as always i want to point
0:21
out that i'm not telling you what you
0:23
should or shouldn't eat that's entirely
0:25
your choice i do however want to help
0:27
you understand what the science behind
0:29
superfoods is to help you make more
0:31
informed choices let's get started okay
0:34
so the first thing to get really clear
0:35
about superfoods is that there is no set
0:38
definition for what a superfood actually
0:40
is
0:41
in a very general sense it's any food
0:44
that is either high in a particular
0:46
nutrient or nutrients or has some
0:48
apparent health benefit
0:50
that means that as long as you market it
0:52
from the right angle you can call almost
0:54
anything a superfood and nobody can
0:56
really say that you're wrong oh that
0:58
food has a load of fiber and helps you
1:00
poop better it's a superfood
1:02
oh that food has a load of plant-based
1:04
vitamin a and acts as an antioxidant
1:06
it's a superfood and it's also called a
1:08
carrot just remember that any time
1:10
someone refers to anything as a
1:11
superfood because the description is so
1:13
broad there isn't a set list of
1:15
superfoods and if you look up superfoods
1:17
online it all depends on what's trending
1:19
right now in the popularity charts which
1:21
is usually down to whatever people are
1:22
talking about on social media at the
1:24
moment so why i'm going to mention some
1:26
common superfoods here just to explain
1:28
why some people think they're super i'm
1:30
definitely not going to name all of them
1:31
so forgive me if i forget to include
1:33
your favor
1:34
the first group of superfoods i'll
1:36
mention are dark green leafy vegetables
1:39
these are vegetables like kale chard
1:42
spinach cabbage and add a stretch even
1:44
broccoli
1:45
they're incredibly nutrient dense and
1:47
loaded with fiber folic acid calcium
1:49
magnesium iron although they're not as
1:51
bioavailable as the animal-based sources
1:53
meaning they're not absorbed as well on
1:55
top of that many of them have been shown
1:57
in some studies to have
1:59
anti-inflammatory and even anti-cancer
2:01
properties although the evidence for the
2:03
effect in humans still needs a lot more
2:06
research
2:07
that said they have been associated with
2:09
better cardiovascular health lower risk
2:11
of dementia and even type 2 diabetes the
2:14
next group of superfoods i'm going to be
2:16
doing this a lot by the way i think
2:18
worth mentioning are berries blueberries
2:20
raspberries blackberries strawberries
2:23
all have a few common traits they're
2:25
very low in calories compared to other
2:27
fruit and they're very rich in a group
2:29
of phytonutrients called polyphenols
2:32
these are pigments or the colors in
2:34
fruit and they have powerful
2:35
anti-inflammatory properties and
2:37
stimulate our bodies to increase the
2:39
level of our own antioxidant enzymes
2:42
this means they're very good for brain
2:44
and cardiovascular health and it's not
2:46
just plants that can be considered
2:47
superfoods
2:49
salmon for example is often called a
2:50
superfood because of its high levels of
2:53
long-chain omega-3 fatty acids
2:54
especially epa and dha people who have a
2:58
higher intake of oily fish like salmon
2:59
are known to have a lower risk of heart
3:01
disease and better brain health as they
3:03
get older
3:04
epa is especially important for heart
3:06
health due to its anti-inflammatory
3:07
properties and dha is really important
3:09
for brain health as it's found in large
3:11
quantities in brain tissue and just in
3:13
case you thought all superfoods were
3:15
completely unprocessed
3:17
dark chocolate also has a pretty good
3:18
health reputation in fact dark chocolate
3:21
the darker the better is loaded with
3:23
polyphenols too and other antioxidants
3:25
an irregular consumption of dark
3:26
chocolate is associated with better
3:28
heart health lower blood pressure and
3:30
even better memory and mood but then
3:32
again who's not going to be happy if
3:33
they're eating chocolate all the time
3:34
remember though dark chocolate is still
3:36
really high in calories so you don't
3:38
need to eat loads to get the benefits
3:40
now the next food which i personally
3:43
consider to be one of the most overrated
3:46
foods in both the nutrition and culinary
3:48
worlds and i'm probably going to get a
3:50
lot of hate for saying this
3:51
is the avocado yes it's loaded with
3:54
loads of heart-healthy monounsaturated
3:56
fat fiber and minerals like magnesium
3:59
but and maybe it's just me
4:01
i'm just not that into them
4:03
i have never once ordered avocado toast
4:05
and i don't think i ever will no
4:07
judgement if you like it though but yes
4:09
it is a good source of monounsaturated
4:11
fat next up chia seeds now while all
4:14
nuts and seeds have a lot of nutrients
4:16
in common like unsaturated fats that are
4:18
really good for heart health and fiber
4:19
which is good for gut health chia seeds
4:22
seem to be getting a lot of attention at
4:23
the moment that may be because they're
4:25
high in omega-3 fatty acids that aren't
4:28
that easy to find from other foods and
4:30
they have a lot of soluble fiber hence
4:32
why they're often used to make chia seed
4:33
puddings
4:35
the fiber in some nuts and seeds seems
4:36
to be really good at helping to control
4:39
appetite too in terms of super drinks
4:41
green tea seems to lead the pack
4:44
tea in general is actually the main
4:45
source of polyphenols in the uk diet
4:48
and these help to induce antioxidant
4:49
enzyme systems in the body and may help
4:51
to protect against some chronic diseases
4:53
like heart disease diabetes and even
4:55
cancer in particular green tea is high
4:57
in epigallocatechin gallate or egcg
5:00
which in experiments in cells in test
5:02
tubes seems to have a lot of beneficial
5:04
effects but we don't have enough
5:06
evidence from human trials to say that
5:09
for definite
5:10
that's one of the big issues with the
5:12
so-called superfoods
5:14
a lot of the buzz around them comes from
5:16
experiments in animals or in vitro
5:18
experiments where scientists test cells
5:20
growing in a petri dish
5:22
while that kind of research is really
5:23
important it can't tell us if something
5:25
actually has a beneficial effect in
5:27
humans that's why we need to be really
5:29
careful interpreting research not done
5:31
in humans the last of the apparent
5:33
superfoods i'll mention is turmeric it's
5:36
the spice that gives many curries their
5:37
distinctive yellow color it's been used
5:40
as a culinary and medicinal herb for
5:41
thousands of years and it's being seen
5:44
really really frequently in scientific
5:46
trials at the moment to test its
5:47
supposed benefits those benefits seem to
5:50
focus mostly around turmeric's
5:52
anti-inflammatory effects which seems to
5:54
have some particular benefits for pain
5:55
reduction like in joint pain again the
5:57
evidence isn't totally conclusive as to
5:59
how effective turmeric is but it's
6:02
definitely something worth keeping an
6:03
eye on now i know i may have come across
6:05
a little negative talking about all
6:06
these foods but i want to say here that
6:09
all of them can be amazing additions to
6:11
your diet
6:12
it's just not a problem if you don't eat
6:14
them the issue with the term superfoods
6:16
is that it almost gives the impression
6:18
that it's something that you have to eat
6:20
or you can just focus on that food
6:22
without really thinking about the
6:23
overall quality of your diet that helps
6:25
people market a product and jack up the
6:27
price a lot
6:28
don't get me wrong i think promoting
6:30
fruit and vegetables and other nutrient
6:32
dense foods is amazing and actually it's
6:34
something that we definitely should be
6:36
doing more
6:37
just not if it excludes all the other
6:39
amazing fruit and veg that we're used to
6:42
in my opinion most whole foods can
6:44
probably be considered superfoods that's
6:46
because they all have something valuable
6:48
to contribute to the diet because most
6:50
fruits and vegetables and spices are
6:51
absolutely loaded with possibly
6:54
thousands of bioactive chemicals
6:56
these could have many different
6:58
potential benefits on our health and
6:59
that's why eating a varied diet of many
7:02
different plant foods is a good idea
7:04
even common foods have plenty of
7:05
potential benefits to offer like the
7:07
antioxidant lycopene in tomatoes or the
7:09
fiber beta glucan in oats or the protein
7:12
calcium and probiotic bacteria in greek
7:14
yogurt the greater variety of plant
7:17
foods in our diet the better
7:19
don't get hung up just on the ones with
7:22
a good marketing team
7:23
so did this answer your superfood
7:25
questions
7:26
as always if you have any more let me
7:28
know in the comments below and remember
7:29
to like and subscribe to the my protein
7:31
youtube channel for even more great
7:33
evidence-based nutrition information
7:36
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