Eating healthy is an essential part of your well-being. When you investigate food trends, you can not help but gravitate toward the most nutritious alternatives. Healthier diet options are more prevalent in our daily routines and are a top priority for many. They have also been making waves in the food industry. In particular, plant-based foods are gaining popularity for environmental and health-related reasons. Here are some current innovations you can incorporate into your healthy diet.
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TogglePlants With a Purpose
Plant-based foods are gaining significant popularity today as they align with current consumer priorities. With increased attention on health protection, ethically driven eating and environmental stewardship, it is a healthy and responsible new way of eating. When choosing your food, you want to know where it comes from and its effect on the environment. Try new and exciting choices, including smoothies made from dragon and passion fruits, pasta made with peas, vegan cookies and pizza sauce that includes carrot, sweet potatoes and squash to accompany the mighty tomato.
Functional Beverages
Drinks that offer more than a quench of thirst are gaining increasing notoriety. These “functional beverages” offer support to maintain your healthy gut and immune system and help to relieve stress. Although this is not a new category, it is growing in popularity with the increasing interest in nutritional research and the desire to maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle. These beverages are widely available, including prebiotic juice shots for microbiome support and functional sparkling water for energy. These products are an excellent choice to add to your diet to gain additional support from the vitamins and nutrients in your food.
Foods Inspired From Around the Globe
The pandemic slowed travel plans for most, but a monumental focus on international food cultures came in its wake. You may have yet to have the chance to visit India. Still, you can find turmeric in your local grocery store to help you create many traditional dishes that represent the healthy global flavors of that country. For another example, popular television shows from Korea have inspired home-cooked dishes introducing flavors using gochujang. Packaged internationally flavored foods are inspiring and are now readily available. You can purchase items like Caribbean pizza, Thai curry sauce, Greek bbq spice rub or Icelandic chocolate to take your palate anywhere in the world.
Oats as a Dairy Replacement
Vegans, vegetarians and lactose-intolerant consumers are all too familiar with oats as a substitute for dairy products. Today, there is a plethora of oat products that are innovative and exciting. You can choose oat-milk “cheese’, oat-based yogurt and ice cream, and even oat-based creamer for your morning coffee. You can even enjoy a chocolate bar made from oat-based milk. The health benefit of such a versatile product is that oats provide soluble fiber, essential for your body’s health and gut microbiota.
Foods Made With Seeds
Seeds are tiny but pack a punch regarding nutrition. Innovations in seed-based food have many health benefits, particularly for those with nut allergies, while having similar nutritional value. Foods made with sunflower seeds are beneficial for heart health. Seeds are an excellent source of protein, fiber and healthy fat. They make great standalone snacks, but you can find them in products like sprouted seed bars, seed flour crackers, bread, and pumpkin seed treats.
Recycled Foods
With the vast amount of food waste worldwide, it is no surprise that intelligent recycling of leftover ingredients can reduce that amount significantly. Recycled food comes from reclaimed by-products and other components derived from food manufacturers. Practices reducing food waste have gained attention in the food industry due to pandemic-related shortages on store shelves. You can find “upcycled” or recycled food products labeled clearly on their packages in your local grocery store.
These are examples of how the food world is evolving and changing how we understand and consume food products. You can maintain your healthy lifestyle by trying new innovative food ideas to inspire you.
