Superfoods
A marketing term with no regulatory definition, applied to foods presented as exceptionally rich in nutrients, without that density translating into a proven health effect at the amounts eaten.
The word superfood has no legal or scientific definition. It is a commercial term, which appeared in the 2000s, applied to products as varied as goji berries, spirulina, turmeric, açaí berries and chia seeds.
The argument put forward almost always rests on in vitro measurements: antioxidant capacity in a test tube, or an exceptional content of a given compound. Getting from there to the body is another matter: the compound must still be absorbed, reach its target and be active there at the doses actually eaten.
The amount eaten settles the question in most cases. This is the decisive objection: a spoonful of dried berries or a gram of spice provides negligible amounts compared with the doses used in studies. An everyday food eaten daily in a normal portion counts for more in a nutritional picture than an exotic product taken now and then.
This does not mean these foods are of no interest: many are excellent products. The problem is the slide from « rich in » to « heals », and the price that goes with it. Cabbage, broccoli, lentils or sardines easily compete on nutrient density. Our guide superfoods: what the science really says goes through it case by case.