Ever since Oprah had Dr. Nicholas Perricone on her show talking about superfoods, especially superfoods known for their age defying properties, the popularity of superfoods has soared. Dr. Perricone’s number one superfood – the acai berry has especially been thrust into the spotlight and all over the media. Dr. Perricone has a list of his top ten superfoods that are specifically chosen for slowing the aging process.

Age defying superfoods are also known for their ‘Brain-Beauty connection’, which are rich in either Essential Fatty Acids, antioxidants or fiber. These top ten superfoods were also picked specifically by Dr. Perricone because they help to regulate blood sugar levels which help to prevent a whole range of diseases like diabetes and obesity, on top of slowing down the aging process and promoting overall health. They are:

• Açaí
• The Allium Family
• Barley
• Beans and Lentils
• Buckwheat
• Green Foods
• Hot Peppers
• Nuts and Seeds
• Sprouts
• Yogurt and Kefir

What I really like about this particular list is that it’s relatively easy to integrate these superfoods into your everyday diet. With the exception of Dr. Perricone’s top superfood choice – the exotic acai berry, and his sixth choice – green foods, most of these foods are easy to find and can be found at your local supermarket. Also they can be eaten as standalone foods or used in a variety of ways to replace ingredients inside of, as well as enhance your most common and favorite recipes.

If you are a health conscious person and follow the latest news on what’s good for you, I am sure you have heard something in the news about the now popular acai berry. Like most other people, I was curious too what the acai craze is all about and if the claims that a lot of people and companies have been making about this little berry are true. So as I always do, I did my research and due diligence.

Well it turns out that the acai (pronounced ah-SAH-ee) berry is one the most nutritious and good for you foods on our planet. It is without a doubt a true superfood, if not Thee Superfood. The acai berry is produced by the acai palm, which is native to tropical Central and South America. For the most part though, the acai berry is harvested in the rainforests of Brazil. The acai berry or fruit itself is small, round and blackish purple in appearance. It is about the size of a grape and similar in appearance, but with less pulp.

The acai berry is harvested as food by the Brazilian natives where it grows and is considered by them to be the most valuable plant species due to it’s heavy use in their diet and it’s economic viability. The juice and pulp of the acai fruit are used to make smoothies, ice cream, sodas and other various juice blends. Elsewhere, companies abroad have taken advantage of the popular acai trend to create highly beneficial dietary supplements, as well as tablets, juices, smoothies, drink powders and whole fruit.

What makes this fruit so nutritious and remarkable is it’s super rich content of anti-oxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. The antioxidants are what make the acai berry such a powerful anti-aging superfood. Acai has 10 times more antioxidants than red grapes, which is pretty amazing. Most of this rich phytochemical content is found in the pulp of the fruit.

The acai fruit contains some of the highest contents known of monounsaturated oleic acid. It is an omega-9 fatty acid, and is one the healthier sources of fat in the diet. As a replacement for other saturated fats, it can lower total cholesterol level and raise levels of HDL’s (known as good cholesterol) and lower LDL’s (known as bad cholesterol.

In addition the acai fruit contains rich sources of dietary fiber, amino acids coupled with valuable trace materials that aid the body’s muscle, cardiovascular and digestive systems. It makes sense why native Brazilians have been using this awesome and powerful berry in their diets for centuries now. Not only is it great for you, it tastes great as well. One of the rare foods that tastes great and is great for you.

It goes without saying that adding acai to your diet is a great idea if you haven’t already. It’s not the easiest thing to find though, as most likely your local supermarket will not be carrying it due to it’s exotic nature. But I am sure most health food stores (my local one does) may be carrying it.

You most likely will find it in smoothie or juice form, and not the berry itself. There are many high quality acai berry dietary supplements on the market today as well, just do your research to make sure you buy it from a reputable company that makes quality products.  Click Here for more information on a high quality acai product that I recommend.

So what exactly are superfoods? According to wikipedia, superfood is a term that sometimes  is used to describe food with high phytonutrient and antioxidant content that some may believe confers health benefits as a result. For example, blueberries are often considered a superfood (or superfruit) because they contain significant amounts of antioxidants, anthocyanins, vitamin C, manganese, and dietary fiber. Phytonutrients or phytochemicals are plant derived chemical compounds that are known for their potential health promoting properties.

Phytochemicals have been used as therapeutic drugs for millennia. A popular example of this is salicin, which has pain relieving and anti-inflammatory properties which was originally extracted from the white willow tree and later synthetically produced to create the commonly used over the counter drug aspirin. Superfoods though as a modern term are more specifically found in the form of everyday foods we can eat to enhance our overall health, as opposed to specific herbal applications to help remedy specific body ailments.

An example of a modern superfood which we eat everyday that is also a remedy to a disease are oranges, tangerines and other fruit which are rich in vitamin C, can counteract scurvy which is a disease due to vitamin C deficiency. Garlic also behaves as a food and as a remedy for bacillary dysentery.

That being said, knowing which types of phytochemicals are found in which types of plants is great to know if we are looking to relieve and help heal specific ailments. I will delve into what plants and foods are good to consume to help relieve many of the common symptoms and pains people deal with.

It is interesting to note that there is no legal definition of the term ‘Superfood’. For example dieticians and nutritional scientists for the most part do not use the term superfoods as a common term among their peers. Also many claim that consuming particular foodstuffs do not actually confer an actual health benefit. To me this is actually quite shocking because it obvious to me that some foods will have a completely different impact on the body than others.

I don’t need a nutritionist to tell me this, I can actually feel the difference bodily. Not only that but taking food as medicine has been practiced by ancient cultures for millennia. The Chinese especially come to mind, they even have a specific term called Dietotherapy – which refers to the treatment of disease by taking common foodstuffs.

These foodstuffs in China are sometimes called by the name of medicinal foods. Modern western medicine though does not recognize everyday ‘food’ as medicine, so knowing this you can understand why western nutritionists and scientists frown on the term superfoods.

Simply put, food contains the various nutrients which provide the energy supply for the body’s growth and activities. Nutrients are essential for people during illness to overcome pathogenic factors and repair tissue damage, and to resist and prevent diseases while in good health. All foods have different chemical composition and nutritional values, so it makes sense that some foods will invigorate and heal more so than others.

Superfoods come in all shapes and sizes and there is no definitive ‘superfood list’. This is simply because it is not an official diet and medical term, as stated above. So why is phytonutrient or phytochemical content important to knowing what food are superfoods?

Quite simply as I stated above, phytonutrients or phytochemicals are plant derived chemical compounds that are known for their potential health promoting properties. Some animal derived foods are also known as superfoods.

Here is a good list I have compiled of some of the top superfoods that you can incorporate into your life:

· Barley

· Alfalfa

· Wheat Grasses

· Green Foods

· Apples

· Sprouts

· Spinach Leaf

· Beans & Lentils

· Papaya, Mangos

· Blue Green Algae

· Avocado

· Bee Pollen

· Bananas

· Hot Peppers

· Buckweat

· Broccoli

· Blueberries

· Acai

· Oats

· Oranges, Citrus Fruits

· Pumpkin

· Quinoa

· Raspberries

· Rose Hips

· Seaweed (purple dulse)

· Salmon

· Soy

· Spinach

· Tea (green or black)

· Tomatoes

· Turkey

· Salmon

· Walnuts

· Yogurt and Kefir

· Broccoli

· Kale

· Watercress

· Chlorella

· Garlic

· Flax Seed

· Carrots

· Goji (wolfberry)

· Olive Oil