Top Five Food Trends Right Now…Meals with Maximum Protein
Protein is great for building muscle and feeling satiated BUT you don’t have to overload EVERY meal with massive amounts! I personally am seeing meals with 40, 60, 80 grams of protein being shown in various dishes on social media. The best approach for the general population: have protein with every meal and spread it throughout the day. Another way to measure it – aim to eat about 1-1.5 grams of protein for every pound of your body weight daily. Your body can only absorb and use a set amount of protein and the rest will be stored as fat! Too much of a good thing is still too much…
Food Education
With an influx of influencers who are all “experts” on nutrition, there is a plethora of information about what we should or should not be consuming. Be sure to take all this information in with a grain of salt (but the influencers will surely tell you to watch your sodium intake!) because while many have good intentions, they don’t have the education or credentials to actually give dietary direction (only a registered dietician can do that). And remember, nutrition is only one aspect of health so create a well-balanced system by focusing on exercise, sleep habits, stress management, and hydration too!
Souring of Artificial Sweeteners
One of the trends I am happy to see taking center stage is the awareness of and attention on artificial sweeteners. These chemicals create everything from more cravings by your body to false signals to your brain and they have been showing up with more frequency in everything from breads and oatmeal to dried fruits and yogurts. They make seemingly healthy foods worse for you, and have been linked to higher risk of stroke, heart disease and an unhealthy gut. And the irony is, they also contribute to poor blood sugar control and weight gain! Steer clear of the artificial sweeteners and opt for monk fruit, stevia, honey or coconut sugar.
Sober-ish Lifestyles
There has been an influx of spirit-free spirits into the marketplace that both celebrities (like Kyle Richards and Jo De La Rosa Gray) and us regular people have embraced! From being sober-curious to flat out sober, these alternative beverages offer fun flavors without the alcohol or sugar hangovers that mocktails and cocktails typically deliver. From cutting it back to cutting it out, the sober lifestyle is picking up its pace!
Embracing Mental Health as a Core Part of Overall Health
It is becoming increasingly more accepted and normalized to make mental health a main focus when working on overall health. Mental health is a critical component of general well-being and impacts physical health just as physical health impacts mental health. Some ways to take care of yourself both mentally and physically are eating a nutrient-dense diet, avoiding alcohol and drugs, exercising regularly, sleeping at least seven hours a night, and developing positive mental practices like meditation, deep breathing. and visualization.
