Superfood: super healthy or super hype?

Some call them superfoods, others power foods. There are those who seek them to improve their health, those who study their concept as a theme to be explore and those who criticize them. There is no consensus on what they are, how much superfoods affect general health or how much we should eat superfood regularly to get more benefit. It seems that no one can agree on the criteria to classify, define or determine if a food is in fact super.

But what exactly is a superfood? Is it correct to talk about superfoods or does it make more sense to define these novel foods as marketing operations? What are the main benefits they bring to the body?

What is a superfood?

In general, there is no shared definition of superfood. The Oxford Dictionary defines a superfood as a nutrient-rich food that is considered particularly beneficial for health and well-being. For Live Science, a superfood is mostly vegetable-based, but also fish and dairy products - designed to be nutritionally rich and therefore good for your health. Its inclusion in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, one of the most popular in the Anglo-Saxon world, confirms its widespread use. According to Harvard Medicine Insitute, a food is promoted to the superfood status when it offers high levels of desirable nutrients, is related to the prevention of a disease, or is thought to offer several simultaneous health benefits beyond its nutritional value.