What’s New in Nutrition? 5 Health Food Trends to Watch in 2019
While a balanced diet, taking exercise AND getting enough sleep form the basic recipe of good health, healthy living lovers across the globe push their commitment to nutrition to the next level. March is World Nutrition Month, and Raw Elements is diving into 5 of the top nutrition trends currently taking health-aimed lifestyles by storm!
- A Fresh Canadian Food Guide
Canada’s federal government Food Guide got a nutritional overhaul early this year with the release of the 2019 Food Guide. Gone are the four food groups introduced in the 1977 Canada’s Food Guide; the updated guide now emphasizes a well-rounded food overview, including sections detailing the importance of home-cooking, meal planning, and enjoying food with family and friends as essential components to healthy food consumption. Some helpful resources offered in Canada’s new Food Guide include details about:
- Using food labels, nutrition facts tables, ingredient lists and food allergen labelling;
- Creating a healthy eating environment;
- The influences food marketing can have on healthy choices.
- Keto Dominating the Diet Front
Low-carb diets aren’t new, but the keto diet has exploded across nutrition news, creating advocates on both sides of the diet debate. Essentially a ketogenic diet encourages minimizing carb and starchy veg intake and focusing on protein and healthy fats, prompting your body into nutritional ketosis (using fat as a primary fuel source).
- Keto diets will generally rule out eating foods like: bread, pasta, cereals, fruits (and some veggies), sugars.
- Foods on the “keto-allowed” list may include: high-fat meat, fish and poultry, eggs, green/leafy and above-ground vegetables, heavy cream and high fat cheese, sugar-free sweeteners (like monk fruit).
Although keto diets boast the possibility of rewarding health benefits like weight loss, blood sugar control and improved hypertension, many people have difficulty properly establishing and maintaining a keto diet. Before jumping on the keto bandwagon, you may want to consider getting guidance from your nutritionist, personal trainer or doctor to help avoid common keto mistakes.
The keto diet’s rise in popularity could mean even more keto-friendly products are developed for keto dieters! Pure Wraps – pictured above – are one of the many keto-friendly products you will find in our shop.
- Celery Juice for Skin Benefits and Beyond
Could celery be the key to treating skin conditions like acne, psoriasis and eczema? With one million Canadians diagnosed with psoriasis alone, it’s maybe no surprise that celery has become the latest vegetable to find its way into juicers to test the trend. Celery juice routines are winning over a number of celebrity followers, likely in large part due to claims from “medical medium” and author Anthony William praising celery juice’s apparent regenerating properties. Some of the reported health benefits of celery juice include:
- Relieving digestive disorders;
- Reducing blood sugar levels and blood pressure;
- Aiding asthma and bronchitis.
Not convinced celery juice is the best for your skin? Learn about Lavido natural skincare products here.
- Faux Meat is On the Menu
Vegan health food enthusiasts have been celebrating health and eco benefit claims of plant-based diets for years now – but meatless recently went even more mainstream with the introduction of Beyond Meat burgers to A&W Canada menus. With the fast-food franchise running out of burgers shortly after their launch, it’s no surprise that the meatless partnership has beefed up (pun intended!), to also include a Beyond Meat breakfast sandwich on nation-wide menus.
While “faux meat” products aren’t new, a major fast-food brand embracing plant-based dieters is a great statement that vegan and vegetarian regimes are not only trendy, but here to stay.
- Health Meets High-Tech
Food, basic? Not a chance! Nutrition has advanced leaps and bounds over the years and the next wave of food’s digital future is coming from genetic testing. Helping you eat tailored to your DNA, companies like Nutrigenomix and DNAFit offer insights to help you personalize your diet and even meal plans based on your genetic guide. Not yet universally accepted, “DNA diets” are still young, but for now the benefits suggested by these DNA-led nutrition blueprint providers include being able to optimize your health to:
- Achieve weight goals;
- Decrease your risk of developing chronic diseases;
- Maximize sports performance;
- Aid fertility.
2 Food Trends Still Going Strong…and Showing No Signs of Stopping:
Mushroom Elixirs: Loaded with antioxidants thought to boost immunity, chaga mushrooms and their potential health benefits are believed to originate from Siberia and parts of Asia. Learn more about chaga and other mushroom mixes from Four Sigmatic.
Sugar-Free Diets: Beating candida overgrowth, calming digestive problems and curbing carb consumption are just a few of the reasons living sugar-free continues to strut its stuff. Thinking about getting into a naturally sweet lifestyle? Read our Top 10 Questions about Quitting Sugar.
What do YOU think will be the next big health food trend? Did we miss your new favourite nutrition news story in this list? Comment below or join the conversation and tell us on Instagram or Facebook!
