8 Amazing Superfoods

Here’s a great excuse to gorge on your mixed berry pie, chia seed pudding, spirulina shake, and turmeric ginger tea! Well, kind of. Yep, they're all certified superfoods.

And here are some of the most amazing photos to make you reach for that second serving of your favorite superfood for a healthier and fitter you.

1. Chia.  Ch-ch-ch-chia! Yep, this little seed is the same as those adorable little ceramic animal planters of the 90s! But don’t worry, the nutritious part is not the clay pot. Chia seeds are actually loaded with the most essential fatty acids of any known plant. Plus, one serving of the stuff is loaded with magnesium, iron, calcium, and potassium.
   
2. Baobab. One of the reasons baobab has been dubbed a superfruit is due to its concentration of certain minerals, including iron. This mineral is a key component in hemoglobin, which transports oxygenated blood throughout our body. This can prevent anemia and provide us with a major energy boost, so baobab fruit in any form can be enjoyed for a quick pick me up!

   

   A baobab tree in an Africa. Baobab powder is found in Salve Supplements' Pea-Pow Performance Protein and Salve Verdure.

3. Turmeric.  Turmeric can help prevent prostate cancer, stop the growth of existing prostate cancer and even destroy cancer cells. Multiple researchers have found that the active components in turmeric makes it one of the best protectors against radiation-induced tumors. It also has a preventive effect against tumor cells such as T-cell leukemia, colon carcinomas and breast carcinomas.

   

   Turmeric and Ginger. Found in Salve Supplements' Turmeric Salve Fusion.

4. Acai Berry.  Acai is one of the highest antioxidant fruits in the world, which brings it to a superfood category. Due to great antioxidant content in the acai berries, they have powerful heart healing properties.

   

   Baskets of Acai Berries. Found in Salve Supplements' Acai Amaze.

5. Spirulina.  When you look at the chemical composition of spirulina, it’s no wonder that people who regularly consume it have an abundance of energy. Dr. Oz recommends combining 1 tsp spirulina powder with 12 oz lime juice and freezing the mixture in ice cube trays for a healthy boost.

   

   Spirulina Farm. Found in Salve Supplements' Tania's Tang and Sea Salve Synergy.

6. Beetroot.  Beetroot is a good source of iron and folate (naturally occurring folic acid). It also contains nitrates, betaine, magnesium and other antioxidants (notably betacyanin). More recent health claims suggest beetroot can help lower blood pressure, boost exercise performance and prevent dementia.

   

   Beetroot cut in half. Found in Salve Supplements' Salve Verdure.

7. Acerola Cherry.  The high level of antioxidants found in acerola cherries are not only good for slowing the spread of cancer, but also for generally cleansing the body of dangerous toxins and substances that cause its breakdown. The carotenoids in acerola cherry help to protect your eye health and boost the health of your skin, while bioflavonoids help to boost your cognitive function and prevent the onset of other age-related diseases.

   

   A bowl of Acerola cherries. Found in Salve Supplements' Ultima-C Boost

8. Kombucha Mushroom.  One of kombucha's claims to fame is that it helps to increase immune health.  This is in part due to the enzymes, nutrients and friendly microbes present, but also because it is quite high in various antioxidants which naturally benefit the immune system.

   

   Kombucha Mushroom

5 Proven Health Benefits Of Turmeric And Curcumin

Turmeric may be the most effective nutritional supplement in existence. Many high-quality studies show that it has major benefits for your body and brain.

Turmeric with other exotic spices and herbs

Here are the top 5 evidence-based health benefits of turmeric.

1. Turmeric contains Bioactive Compounds with Powerful Medicinal Properties

Turmeric is the spice that gives curry its yellow color.

It has been used in India for thousands of years as a spice and medicinal herb.

Recently, science has started to back up what the Indians have known for a long time… it really does contain compounds with medicinal properties.

These compounds are called curcuminoids, the most important of which is curcumin.

Curcumin is the main active ingredient in turmeric. It has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant.

However, the curcumin content of turmeric is not that high… it’s around 3%, by weight.

Most of the studies on this herb are using turmeric extracts that contain mostly curcumin itself, with dosages usually exceeding 1 gram per day. It would be very difficult to reach these levels just using the turmeric spice in your foods.

Therefore, if you want to experience the full effects, then you need to take an extract that contains significant amounts of curcumin.

Unfortunately, curcumin is poorly absorbed into the bloodstream. It helps to consume black pepper with it, which contains piperine… a natural substance that enhances the absorption of curcumin by 2000%.

Curcumin is also fat soluble so it may be a good idea to take it with a fatty meal.

2.  Curcumin is a Natural Anti-Inflammatory Compound

Inflammation is incredibly important.

It helps the body fight foreign invaders and also has a role in repairing damage.

Without inflammation, pathogens like bacteria could easily take over our bodies and kill us.

Although acute (short-term) inflammation is beneficial, it can become a major problem when it is chronic (long-term) and inappropriately deployed against the body’s own tissues.

It is now believed that chronic, low-level inflammation plays a major role in almost every chronic, Western disease. This includes heart disease, cancer, metabolic syndrome, Alzheimer’s and various degenerative conditions.

Therefore, anything that can help fight chronic inflammation is of potential importance in preventing and even treating these diseases.

It turns out that curcumin is strongly anti-inflammatory, it is so powerful that it matches the effectiveness of some anti-inflammatory drugs.

Curcumin actually targets multiple steps in the inflammatory pathway, at the molecular level.

Curcumin blocks NF-kB, a molecule that travels into the nuclei of cells and turns on genes related to inflammation. NF-kB is believed to play a major role in many chronic diseases.

Without getting into the gory details (inflammation is extremely complicated), the key takeaway here is that curcumin is a bioactive substance that fights inflammation at the molecular level.

In several studies, its potency has compared favorably to anti-inflammatory pharmaceutical drugs… except without the side effects.

3.  Turmeric Dramatically Increases The Antioxidant Capacity of the Body

4.  Curcumin Boosts Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Linked to Improved Brain Function and a Lower Risk of Brain Diseases

5.  Turmeric Can Help Prevent (And Perhaps Even TREAT) Cancer.

Salve Supplements' Turmeric Salve Fusion

There are many different forms of cancer, but they do have several commonalities, some of which appear to be affected by curcumin supplementation.

Researchers have been studying curcumin as a beneficial herb in cancer treatment. It can affect cancer growth, development and spread at the molecular level.

Studies have shown that it can reduce angiogenesis (growth of new blood vessels in tumors), metastasis (spread of cancer), as well as contributing to the death of cancerous cells.

Multiple studies have shown that curcumin can reduce the growth of cancerous cells in the laboratory and inhibit the growth of tumors in test animals.

Whether high-dose curcumin (preferably with an absorption enhancer like pepper) can help treat cancer in humans has yet to be tested properly.

However, there is some evidence that it may help prevent cancer from occurring in the first place, especially cancers of the digestive system (like colorectal cancer).

In one study in 44 men with lesions in the colon that sometimes turn cancerous, 4 grams of curcumin per day for 30 days reduced the number of lesions by 40%.

Maybe curcumin will be used along with conventional cancer treatment one day. It’s too early to say for sure, but it looks promising and this is being intensively studied.