The term "superfood" causes a media frenzy whenever a new food is deemed nutritionally superior to other foods. While there is some merit to the foods placed in the superfood category, and there are ways that healing foods differ from superfoods, there is often more hype than truth to this label. Both healing foods and superfoods provide an array of vitamins, minerals and other necessary nutrients, improving health, well-being and vitality.
Different Nutritional Purposes
Both healing foods and superfoods are packed with nutrition, containing many essential vitamins and minerals. The difference between healing foods and superfoods lies in the way that the nutrition is used. Healing foods are eaten for the purpose of regaining health or ridding the body of disease, according to Linda Page in "Linda Page's Healthy Healing." Superfoods are focused more on building up the body from an already healthy state. Although the terms can often be interchanged--sauerkraut, for example, can both help to heal the digestive system and provide probiotics to strengthen the immune system--healing foods are often "prescribed" by health professionals, whereas superfoods are an enhancement.
Traditional Foods vs. Components of Foods
Healing foods tend to be more traditionally consumed foods, while superfoods are more exotic, densely packed foods or components of foods. Foods such as salmon, flax and nuts are considered healing foods for their omega-3 fatty-acid content, along with B vitamins, which improve brain function and heal skin. Superfoods include coconut water, sprouts and chlorophyll, which are all derivatives of their sources and are said to contain the most nutritive parts of those foods.
Sales Pitch
"Superfoods" is, in some ways, simply a marketing tool--a way to highlight certain foods as very nutritious and to make them into popularly sought-after products. For example, the acai berry became very popular a few years ago for its high-density nutrition. However, as Jonny Bowden notes in "The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth," acai is no "magic bullet," as the compounds found in this berry can be derived from other berries, vegetables and green tea. Healing foods, such as broccoli, tend to have less hype.
Cost
Superfoods tend to cost more than simple healing foods, due in part to the media frenzy around them. An 18-ounce bag of dried goji berries can be purchased on the Internet for $19.95 and tends to cost even more in the store. The tomato--a comparable nutritionally dense food, according to Brent Agin in "Superfoods For Dummies"--is far cheaper to buy and easier to find.
References
- "Linda Page's Healthy Healing"; Linda Page; 2004
- "The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth"; Jonny Bowden; 2007
- GojiBerries.us: Authentic Himalayan Goji Berries
- "Superfoods for Dummies"; Brent Agin; 2009
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