It seems that every few months, a new "superfood" is found that will solve all of our health problems. The three most popular cure-alls lately are green tea, pomegranate, and acai berry, but are they really as amazing as they're made out to be or are these "superfoods" just a trendy flavor of the month?
Green tea 
Since it became popular a few years ago, green tea has exploded from being a very simple drink, to being in every food product, including
gum and
beer (actually- Smirnoff flavors now come in Green Tea, Pomegranate, AND Acai!) Green tea has been popular forever in Asian cultures and for tea-lovers, but it's only recently become a phenominom as anything but a cup of tea in the United States. Green tea has EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), a powerful antioxident where green tea derives its healthy power from.
Benefits of green tea: - Inhibits the growth of cancer cells
- Lowers cholesterol
- Prevent infection
- Sooth arthritis
- Rich with antioxidants
- Prevent heart disease
- Helps burn fat
- Anti-aging
- Stops dental decay
- Improves brain function
Pomegranate
Pomegranate was brought full force onto the trendy scene with
POM, a popular brand of pomegranate juice. Since the initial novelty of pomegranate juice was worn off, the company has extended it's brand into POM Coffee and other flavors that have nothing to do with pomegranates.
Benefits of pomegranate:- Protects against cancer (particularly breast and prostate cancers)
- Alzheimer's disease prevention
- Rich with antioxidants
- Strengthens bones
- Protects arteries
- Lowers cholesterol
- Lowers high blood pressure
- Stops dental decay
- Improves brain function
Acai Berry 
Acai is the newest of the trendy foods. This berry was unknown to Western culture until it was found deep in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, where most medicines and health products are found. It's closest relative is the blueberry.
Benefits of acai:- Keeps your heart healthy
- Protein
- Fiber
- Lowers cholesterol
- Anti-aging
- Rich with antioxidants
- Improves digestion
- Strengthens bones
- Improves brain function
Based on the benefits I found, I feel like the three "superfoods" basically do the same things; they all help fight cancer, bone/tooth decay, improve brain function, stop aging, and all boast about their antioxidant levels.
Do you believe the "superfoods" hype? Do you regularly eat/drink green tea, acai, and/or pomegranate?
Comments (24)
I eat and drink stuff with those things sometimes but not regularly. I guess I'm not trendy enough.
bleh, I consumed the first two products waaay before they became popular. Apparently green tea can cause stomach pain for those who aren't used to it... I didn't know until this morning.
I LOVE pomegranates. I'd eat them even if they weren't trendy.
Acai is overrated. I tried it, but I wasn't impressed.
Green tea... well, I like it along with some good Chinese food, but that's about it. It really has too much caffeine for my body, so I don't drink it very often. But I don't mind it.
Since moving to Korea, I've been grabbing the occasional pomegranate at the grocery store. It's a good, time-consuming kind of snack. They're messy, though.
i'm a pomegranate fanatic. i always get excited for the pom season to roll around so i can go buy like 10 of them. And i drink the pomegranate italian soda found at world market.
i heard from one of my bio fanatic friends that the anti-aging effects of antioxidants haven't really been experimentally "proven" yet. and plus i'm certain that we'd have to eat an enormous quantity of these foods in order to experience any of those effects.
I drink tea alot and my favorite is green tea. I also wear at a teahouse so I can have all the green tea I want! Ha! But, green tea really does do good for you. If you add some Jasmine to green tea, you have a very relaxing and soothing drinking.
Yay for being a tea lover! I drink green tea every morning, but I also brew it with a hint of jasmine. And I also remember eating pomegranates when I was little, loveeeee it. And the whole Acai... hmm, usually only when I go out for a drink... kinda' controversial: Jamba Juice.
I don't like green tea and pomegranate and acai is expensive, so no to eating those too.
It's weird seeing green tea all over the place when I've been drinking it for a while now. I'm almost tempted to say ... yeahhh I've been drinking it for a while now and be one of those hip people who did things before it was cool.
....awww crud.
more props to healthy foods I guess. now can the rest of the nation roll into these healthy trends?
I like them all.
idk but pomegranate is the shit!
Been drinking green tea since I was young. :D
One thing to watch out for is how much of these are actually in what you are consuming. You often see the most popular superfoods on a label, but there is hardly any of that food in the product!
So, yes, these can be helpful but it can vary greatly between products.
Green tea helped me go from 138 lbs. to 108 lbs. very quickly. That was a couple of years ago though, and I did start eating well along with the green tea. But, I realized the green tea helped a lot. I drank the raw stuff not the stuff they market with about 20-30g of sugar in it per serving, that stuff is just like juice.
I've eaten pomegranates all my life, whenever my mom bought them. I'm not a big fan of POM (the original) but I do love the teas, I have like 50 of the glass cups they used to come in.
And there's this place on 49th & 9th, here in NYC called Generation. The first time I went there is the first time I ever had acai anything and it's really good. They make smoothies out of it, better than Jamba Juice.
hehe i love all of them!
Er...I never do anything 'cause it's popular.
And I knew about green tea 'fore they raved about it...my Mom drinks alot of it and has since she was young. Also, we used to brew it on woodstoves...which're becoming more popular.
I hate people sometimes. They always have to like the things I grew up liking, years later.
I drink green tea and rooibos tea when I feel I need a detox, as they are great substitutes to my regular tea and coffee intake. Both are high in anti-oxidants and I find it does make a difference.
I do drink pomegranate juice and sometimes it has acai juice in it as well but because I like the taste of it, not necessarily because it is a super food. I have loved green tea since before it became popular. Two of my favorites are Jasmine Green tea and Pomegranate green tea. Mmmmm!
I drink green tea on a daily basis. I'm hoping those fat-burning properties kick in soon... :P
I enjoy pomegranate juice. Haven't tried Acai berry yet. I did hear in the news about the goji berry and that perhaps there isn't as many benefits as initially reported.
love green tea and got acai in my chocolate bars! still looking for ways to eat pomegranate =P
I don't see Green Tea losing its popularity anytime soon. It's great, really - three cups a day can do wonders to body fat. Pomegranates are great, too. Not only are they therapeutic to shell, but it's a great snack to eat with a spoon. I don't drink its juice, though - it doesn't have the same flavor and I've always been doubtful of juices.
I love green tea and pomegranates. When authentic, I guess. Because they're tasty, though. I probably wouldn't eat acai berries themselves, so I probably won't seek products that use it as a marketing ploy. Every food has some kind of benefit.
//__India