In recent years, more of us have shifted into a health-minded space and are leaning away from indulgence. In response, the food industry has evolved by coming up with various alternatives from dairy-free to plant-based products.
While adding all these so-called healthy foods to your diet may seem like a no-brainer, not all ingredients are created equal. Below is a curated list of some healthy food trends that you’d want to add to your repertoire.
The rise of the sweet potato
While sweet potatoes may have been around for a while, the spotlight has only been shone on them recently. Highly nutritious, sweet potatoes are a great source of fiber, and also have plenty of vitamins and minerals. Other great benefits of sweet potatoes include helping to promote gut health, and supporting healthy vision.
If you’re not a fan of eating sweet potato on its own, there are some alternatives to incorporating it into your diet. Maria and Ricardo for one, have come up with tortillas that are grain-free and utilizes sweet potatoes for a ½ serving of vegetables in every tortilla. Instead of snacking on regular potato chips, you can also grab some delicious and crunchy sweet potato chips from Spudsy. They’ve even got a range of delicious flavors from cheesy cheddar to barbecue.
Plant-based dairy
There are now plenty of dairy alternatives in the market from oat milk to coconut milk, rice milk, and even flax and hemp milk. Why have these plant-based dairy alternatives grown in popularity? Either than the fact that they’re lactose-free, most of these alternatives are also rich in vitamins and minerals, don’t contain cholesterol, and are low in fat.
While you can drink these dairy alternatives straight up, they’re also being made into ice creams. Some of the more popular plant-based brands out there include Van Leeuwen and Halo Top. If you’re not keen on venturing out to buy these ice cream brands however, you can also make some plant-based ice cream at home – it’s easy, and only requires a few ingredients.
The power of fruit powders
While we all know that fruits are good for us as they’re an excellent source of essential vitamins and minerals, not all of us remember to incorporate fruit into our diet. That’s where fruit powders have come in. More and more companies have come up with various products that make it easy to add fruits in our diet. From apple flour to banana flour, the options are endless.
Another great fruit power that’s recently emerged in the market is pomegranate powder. Pomegranates on their own are rich in antioxidant polyphenols and have anti-inflammatory effects. Carrington Farms has recently come up with this pomegranate powder that you can sprinkle into your smoothies, salad dressing, and juices to reap the same benefits.
Plant-based eating
Plant-based diets are only going to continue to grow in popularity, and many elite athletes have even adopted a plant-based diet. While this trend has grown popular because of personal health benefits, it’s also because of planet sustainability. To start eating plant-based, you don’t have to be vegetarian or vegan right away. Instead, start by making small changes such as incorporating a few plant-based meals a week or doing meatless Mondays.
You’ll also want to have some ingredients on hand that’ll make it easy for you to whip up some plant-based meals. Too much work? If you’re lazy to cook, you can consider booking a private chef to your home by using Gathar. You’ll even have the flexibility of creating your own menu while their chefs will have healthy and nutritious plant-based meals prepared for you in no time.
Final remarks
With healthy eating expected to continue to be on the rise, there’s plenty of food trends that are expected to take the health world by storm. The above are just a few of the health trends identified, but there are also many more that are predicted to be on the rise.