Supplements and Superfoods

The Nutrition supplement industry is one of the fastest growing markets in the world producing around $32 billion in revenue in 2012 as quoted by Forbes and is projected to double to $60 billion in 2021 according to the Nutritional Business Journal. The superfoods market is also a growing industry as we all trend towards the drive to make positive enhancements to our health through what we eat. The pursuit towards maintaining a healthy lifestyle through controlling our intake of unhealthy fats, sugars and salt, births the consumer demand for these particular types of products. These new health enhancement products are merely the innovative diversification of the health and wellbeing industry. The need to promote good health coupled with the vanity of acquiring the aesthetically in physique are all drivers for the growth of these alternative food markets.

Yet do we really have a true grasp of the meaning of a supplement and superfood? Supplements in the world of nutrition are foods that provide nutrients that would otherwise not be consumed in sufficient quantities. They include food nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, amino acids, fiber and protein. Their many functions include boosting overall health and energy, immune support, reducing risk of ill health and age related diseases, support of wound healing, improving athletic performance and mental activity.

How astute are we when recognising the signs of nutrient deficiency, thus prompting us to purchase the necessary supplements, or do you like many take supplements to ensure deficiency doesn’t occur? If this is the case how and when are you aware of possible toxicity from certain supplements? For example how many of us take a fish oil supplement or a multi vitamin even though we may have a healthy diet? Some may not know the implications of taking a fish oil as we are regularly reminded that fish and fish oils serve for us a highly important role in our healthy eating repertoire. 

Many fish oils on the market contain the popular omega 3, 6 and 9 essential fats .Termed essential as the body is unable to make these particular omega fats. 3 and 6 in particular cannot be made by the body, where as omega 9 can be made by the body in small quantities. These fats are found in many food sources such as plants, seeds, nuts and their oils as well as fish. However omega 3 and 6  have different effects within the body; omega 6 has pro inflammatory effects, and omega 3  anti inflammatory effects, but in the correct proportions each work together to benefit and maintain good  health. Problems arise where omega 6 rich polyunsaturated vegetable fats, are used within the production of many if not all processed foods made within the food industry. This naturally leads to the blind over-consumption of this pro inflammatory fat, causing an imbalance between the omega 3 and 6 equilibrium.

The term inflammation is used to describe the physiological stress created within the body by its continual chemical reactions that takes place to sustain living, but also includes the environmental stresses we place on our bodies through our lifestyle habits such as smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise or even excessive exercise. All these factors play a role in increasing the rate of inflammation within the body and its organs, amplifying the risk of cardiovascular diseases and metabolic diseases e.g. obesity. The take home message is that inflammation increases the signs of aging and disease onset.

Excessive intakes of omega 6 have been seen to promote the inflammation process when over-consumed through high intakes of processed food and exacerbated with supplementation. Omega 3 on the other hand with its anti inflammatory capabilities works to reduce inflammation. It has more of a protective effect over the physiological stresses placed on the body thus working to reduce the proliferation of inflammatory diseases. So, whenever purchasing your fish oils you have 2 choices, you can go for omega 3 only, or a product that has a higher proportion of omega 3 to 6.  

The same rings true for certain vitamins and mineral that if consumed on top of a healthy diet can lead to toxicity. Vitamins A, D, E and K are known as fat soluble vitamins, as they are stored in fat and since fat is a substance that we unfortunately can’t shed as quickly as we desire,  this mean that toxicity can develop. Other vitamins on the other hand are what we describe as being water soluble, meaning that if high levels arise they are simply flushed out of the body through our urine. So pay caution to the supplements you choose to consume.

Nutrition supplementation for sport as opposed to health takes on a completely different meaning, as supplementation is based on sporting outcomes and maintaining high energy expenditure for the continuation of rigorous training regimes and competition performance. This would be an article within its own right as the sports nutrition supplementation market is extremely vast and complex.

Superfoods are nutrient rich foods that have large doses of minerals, vitamins, polyphenols, fiber, protein and many other types of antioxidants and nutrients, that have health based benefits. However the word superfood is more a marketing term, as there is no legal definition of a superfood. Processed superfood products that claim to be and packaged as such must be backed up with scientific evidence as this is EU law. However this does not stop food brands conducting and financing their own research to substantiate the health claims marketed on their products. Natural food sources such as fruits, vegetables, herbs, oils, nuts and beans can be labelled as superfoods as they are part of healthy diet, are known to aid to good health, but more importantly may possess higher quantities of specific nutrients.

Some of the most popular processed super foods include spirulina nutrient rich blue green algae that claims to have up to 70% more protein than beef, soybean and chicken and packed with essential fats, vitamins and minerals. Cacao the purest form of chocolate is high in antioxidants and magnesium, hemp derived from the cannabis plant is high protein, fiber and essential and other good fats. Maca also known as Peruvian ginseng is high in vitamins and minerals and boasts its activity in the area of sexual function and wheatgrass which is a living source of chlorophyll (which is present in all green leafy vegetables) contains all minerals and vitamins supposedly known to man. These are but a few of the popular superfoods on the market, all of which have branded the superfood status, yet very little scientific evidence backing up their claimed beneficial health activity. 

This is not to say that there is nothing behind their ability to aid to good health, on the contrary there are many who swear by their positive effects and have done for many years.  The issue is the grandeur of the claims made by the food companies themselves and the superfood books and cook books that follow, as an adjunct to financial company growth. We all know that healthy natural non processed food sources allow us to maintain and sustain good health.  Therefore is there any real need to fill our cupboards up with pills, powders and potions?