At the Institute for Integrative Nutrition I was taught that there is no such thing as a good or bad food. My teachers explained that what makes some foods “evil” and others pristine has nothing to do with their individual morality and everything to do with how we use them.
After reading hundreds of books on food and attending dozens of lectures from some of the top minds in health and nutrition, I still hold this belief to be true.
However there are a few messages about food types that seem to be universal, even among differing branches of belief. In this article, I am providing what I believe to be the 5 healthiest foods for human health based on the theory of least resistance—meaning almost everyone who has written a book or considers himself/herself an expert in nutrition has no gripe with these foods:
1) SEA VEGETABLES, or “seaweed”
Quite frankly, sea vegetables are the most misunderstood and under-utilized food in Western culture! There are approximately 90 minerals identified in modern nutrition and ALL of them are represented in seaweed. Sea vegetables are higher in vitamins and minerals than every other food on the planet ounce for ounce; they contain 20-200% more minerals than land-based vegetables. Seaweed holds high levels of Vitamins C, D, K and B and has more Vitamin A than carrots.
Seaweed is also very rich in protein and strengthens the kidneys and nervous system. When eaten consistently, sea vegetables calm hyperactivity, reduce stress and are excellent for the thyroid gland. People complain about the taste and the general rule of thumb with seaweed is this: the worse it tastes for you, the more you need it. Dulse, Kelp and Nori are excellent types.
2) CACAO
Chocolate originates from a bean called “Cacao”, and is one of the most complex food substances on earth. According to Healing with Natural Foods author Paul Pitchford Cacao has over 300 chemically identifiable compounds. Energetics of Food author Eric Gagne claims raw chocolate has 700 naturally occurring chemicals and almost everyone agrees Cacao is one of the highest anti-oxidant foods on the planet (including the New York Times)!
This is beneficial because antioxidants fight “free radical cells” which cause inflammation and disease in our bodies. Cacao also contains 10x more magnesium and chromium than any other food in the world. Magnesium is the most important mineral for our health activating over 350 processes, according to Pitchford. So YES, chocolate is extremely healthy, just make sure to buy raw and organic chocolate from a health food store. An excellent way to integrate this food into your diet is by adding it to health shakes.
3) QUINOA
Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-WA) is an ancient whole grain, and has been consumed by people for more than 8,000 years. Quinoa has the highest nutritional profile of all grains. It contains high levels of dietary fiber and B Vitamins and has all 8 essential amino acids. Whole grains are some of the best sources for nutritional support, providing long-lasting energy (as a result of the body absorbing them slowly unlike simple carbs).
Quinoa is high in zinc, potassium, calcium and Vitamin E and is known to strengthen the kidney and heart!
4) KALE
It is well-known that leafy green vegetables are extremely nutritious and jam-packed with a wide array of vitamins. Energetically speaking, leafy greens contain a high concentration of chlorophyll, the “life-blood” of our planet…and Kale is the king of them! It’s never surprising to see studies on diet and disease that say “vegetables—especially green leafy vegetables—are associated with a lower risk of…” as they have a high concentration of Vitamins A, C and K, folate, potassium, magnesium, iron, lutein and phytochemicals. Phytochemicals are components of fruits or vegetables that may help to prevent disease, and perhaps even help to treat some disorders.
Kale goes a step further and is also an incredible source of calcium, folic acid, vitamin B6, manganese, and potassium. For a green, Kale is unusually high in fiber and in many ways is a true superfood, and certainly one of the most nutritious foods known to man!
5) BERRIES
According to raw food extraordinaire David Wolfe, berries are the most natural food for human consumption and a cleanser for the human body. We spend so much time thinking about what we put in our bodies we forget the importance of what comes out (David Wolfe calls himself the world’s biggest “gastronaut”…I love it)! Furthermore, berries are a wonderful source of Vitamins C, E, calcium and folic acid and are rich in phytochemicals.
Berries are also an excellent source of dietary fiber, which has been linked to lowered cholesterol levels. Some forms have even shown to have anti-cancer properties in laboratory settings The goji berry, the #1 food in Chinese medicine, is one of the highest anti-oxidant foods on the planet and well-worth looking into!
In conclusion, I am aware that the foods described in this article are not considered “main course” items in our society. However, learning more about these foods and integrating them into your diet can do absolute wonders for your health. Try them out, as they really are some of the most nutritious foods on the planet…
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I eat berries every morning. Great article.
Nice one… I’m going to head to the health food store for some raw and organic chocolate
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Another great benefit of the seaweed family is the iodine content. You wouldn’t know it, but Americans don’t get nearly enough iodine. Our country’s solution to the iodine problem was to add it to salt since we don’t eat anything iodine rich. The problem is that iodized salt really only provides enough iodine for minimal health. We use iodine for creation and regulation of thyroid hormones T3 and T4, among other things.
Great post! I agree with all your food choices.
Very interesting… I’m going to have to start looking into adding a couple of these into my diet, but I have one problem with couple of them. My bitter taste buds are super-sensitive, so anything that has bitter in it makes me gag.
I’ll have to put them in something else that has strong flavor, so I don’t taste them
Chocalate and berries for desert anyone? Nice article Todd.
I’ve been drinking Goji Juice (made from Goji Berries in China) for over a year, and I must say it works.
You say that the Goji juice works. May I ask what it did?
I have been adding Wakami to soups and stews for years… it is quite delicious and adds a great deal of flavor.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful list of healthy foods. I always believe that it doesn’t matter how expensive or exotic a food is; it should be healthy to eat.
Blueberries are king of the berries,while pomegranate, in juice form-is the king in liquid form.I have no problem with the others,except for perhaps the exclusion of wild salmon!
What also happened to whey protein? The cabbage family feel neglected,as does oatmeal,and legumes.
Thank you for all the wonderful comments…PAUL, if the list was “10 Greatest Foods…” than the cabbage family would have made it….but only had room for five in this one!
I have to confess, I have never tried Quinoa and I cannot really explain why. I guess it is just not something you find everyday on the supermarket shelf.
I love seaweed but I feel other people still think you’re a bit strange (or Japanese) if you eat it.
I adore berries and most fruits. I love snacking on fruit or nuts rather than cookies.
Kale is great, I’ve tried it several times but, sadly, it is not seen as often as it should be in the shops.
Thanks for the great article. I agree with another commenter that oats should be in the list somewhere.
A really useful list. Some of the foods you included are not so popular but this gives me new ideas how to make my menu richer by including them in it.
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We grow & eat our own berries – organic, of course! Eating them raw is the proper thing to do & we do store them in our freezer for winter use.
Kale: so easy to grow! We prefer it raw – after a few frosts it only gets sweeter. A crunchy salad & sandwich ingredient!
Watch out: don’t consume any food, however wholesome, for months on end. Our genes didn’t evolve in a supermarket, so our bodies can’t cope with long term overdoses of whatever good or bad nutrition. Give your immune system a break!
For example:I’ve been using Indian ginseng for 5 years now: three weeks on, one week off; sometimes I take a short dandelion cure, or I have plenty of nettles, but only in spring – that’s one of the many proper ways to use the healthiest foods.
Thanks for the useful comment Lieven, and yes, using these foods properly is a HUGE part to great nutrition!
Loved your list. The book you mention, Energetics of Food is actually authored by Steve Gagne. Great book!
All 5 of these great foods can be eaten RAW. The seaweed blends into Energy Soup giving the salty taste we enjoy. Or you can use the Nori sheets to make raw sushi (preferably without the sea creatures!) Sprout the quinoa for a day and it is ready, the chocolate cacao nibs or powder blended with coconut oil & aguave nectar makes a wonderful chocolate sauce for on top of those fresh berries. Kale can be marinated with extra virgin olive oil, pressed garlic,thin onion rings, grated carrot, slivered red bell pepper & nama shoyu (an unpasturized soy sauce). Just toss the greens & veggies with the oil/sauce mix, it will break down as if it has been steamed. Yum!
Thanks Deborah, and GREAT points about Raw Food. I should really post an article about the benefits of raw food on WTC, or have someone like you write a guest article
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Amalaki via Zrii drink is highly recommended by the Chopra Center for Wellbeing.
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I grow my own veg and fruit organically,I think i may try growing quinoa to sprout the seeds later.
Loganberries, tayberries and cultivated blackberries are easy to grow and take up little space because they can be grown against a fence, only buy one plant of each because they are easy to propagate just layer the tip into soil and when it produces new roots cut it away from the parent plant. See how on my gardening website under the name Tussiemussie
http://www.growsonyou.com/Tussiemussie
David Wolfe became famous by posing himself as the author of another man’s book. He is extraordinary at posing himself as smeone he is not and taking the credit for someone elses work.
Wonderful article. Here’s my challenge. I’m allergic to all berries. Any suggestions for foods that can be substituted for the berries. Would kiwi work?
Thanks
I AM ALLERGIC TO SHELL FISH (IODINE) I GUESS.
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF I AM ALLERGIC TO SEAWEED OR KELP? I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE SEAWEED AND KELP,
BUT I DONT KNOW IF I AM ALLERGIC TO KELP AND SEAWEED? PLEASE TELL ME HOW CAN I FIND OUT?
THANKS,
OLGA VELEZ
the most nutritiuos beverage here in the Philippines is Tanduay..it is a juice like drink often found in most of the super markets and store throughout the country..it can instantly cure minor pains and diseases such as headaches flu colds stomachaches and many more..only one lap a day is more likely enough..it is highly demanded in the market today..best served when chilled..
[...] ever seen or grown. Kale is very nutritious. Kale is regarded by many experts as one of the most nutritious plants grown. It has over 100% of two major vitamins. It has omega 3’s. It is a good source of fiber, has [...]
Good list, but of coarse everyone has their own personal list. The only problem with berries is the sugar content. Cacao can be a problem if you use sugar to sweeten it, that’s why I never touch it. Fish would be great if there was no mercury in it. I eat dulse, spirulina and use kelp capsules.
nice list.. but if you can add lots of important foods for healthy life, much better.. thanks a lot.. hoping for some more list..
i have a tyroid gland im 32 i want to know how to make the seaweed medicine mine is a hypertyroid
I’m just getting into eating healthy. I am over weight and have gone on a diet of mostly salads and a green drink for breakfast. I am so hungry all day. Is there anything I can eat that will take the hunger away?? I’ve been on this diet for about 6 weeks.
Any suggestions?
Thanks
Gary lot to say here. First off, congrats on deciding to eat healthy!
Second, dont make too many drastic changes all at once…or you are likely to fall backwards to old habits. Healthy eating is habit forming…and you can make new, better habits stick by slowly integrating them into your life and sticking to them!
Third, drink a lot of water…always helps with hunger…and also snack more during the day. Have some nuts and dried fruit in between meals to hold off the hunger! So much more I could say, but would need more info! Good for you though Gary, and keep it up! SOON, you will start feeling more vibrant and alive then you ever thought possible!!
Todd
Todd,
Thanks or your thoughts. I am wondering if my body needs some nutrients it is not getting, and I need to eat some specific food. Maybe that is why I am hungry (I do take some multi vitamins)?? Also are there any foods that make it so you aren’t so hungry. And finally are there any books or information on how to eat healthy etc. (maybe a site on the internet)
Multi
hey Gary….I would DEF check out the book of the school i went to, Integrative Nutrition….it is an amazing book on everything nutrition and theory. You can probably buy at http://www.integrativenutrition.com
And man, there are libraries of books on this topic….hope this helps!
Todd
Thanks Todd, I know there are a lot of books. The trouble is they mostly contradict each other. I will try “integrative nutrition”.
Thanks again,
Gary
Dude, Todd, where in the hell are we supposed to find a raw cacao bean?!?!?!?!?
Hi Steven! DEF go to http://www.rawfood.com and you can get all the food mentioned here, including Cacao beens! Plus, any health food store or whole foods will carry Cacao! Hope this helps!
Todd
i like the idea of mentioning unusual types of food that others rarely mention, good job
I like to juice Kale before running, it gives me an incredible energy boost. However, I have heard excessive intake of Kale will mess with your thyroid.
Now as bad as the Kale pulp is to eat (I eat it for the fiber), I can somehow manage to get a cup of it down after juicing. However, that’s a treat compared to eating one leaf of the fish jerky of the sea (i.e. Dulse). I guess I really need it, huh?
Hey Rodney, YES, Dulse, Kelp, and all other ‘fish jerky’ are perhaps the biggest missing element in the modern human diet. There are more nutrients in sea vegetables than all food cultivated on land. More minerals than ALL food on the planet. I highly recommend you mixing it in your diet! Let me know how it goes..
WHAT ABOUT SPINACH ????
Todd,
Aside from kelp, I’ve been taking spirulina and chlorella as supplements for year or two now. You didn’t mention those two specifically, so I’m wondering how you think they stack up compared to other sea vegetables.
Also, is spinach a comparable replacement for kale?
Thanks
Craig and Moses, YES, spinach is incredibly healthy in terms of being chock full of nutrients….but be careful and only purchase organic spinach. the leaves are thinner, more frail than Kale…energetically prone to chemical tampering more then other greens.
And moses, I consume both Spirulina dna Chlorella on a regular basis…and my opinion is that Spirulina is another one of those great unsing foods….VERY healthy fr the immune system
Todd
I have a question about seaweed.
After eating a bit of kelp handpicked from the Pacific Ocean (off the coast of Oregon) in June of 2004, and nearly dieing because of it, anytime I eat any kind of seaweed, no matter the amount, it does a horrible number on my stomach and digestion.
My question – is this purely a cause of my near tragic experience with seaweed? Why would commercial seaweed cause such issues? Is it safe considering the toxicity of our oceans?
I’d be curious to hear your feedback on this.
well those are some dang goood recipes there
mmm i like em berries and i like em frozen
hiya!! sup all ya!! i like em sea plants eh?? yummy. i like fresh from the sea and covered in mayo and grape jelly.
mmm.
any thoughts on the nutritional value of brewer’s yeast?
Great list!
But in India we do not find seaweeds in supermarkets and Quinoa easily….are there any other choices to it?
i like the list but being in a third world country Uganda i have never seen any of the above foods where can i access them and how much does each cost?
Don’t forget the much-shunned coffee–shown to have extremely high amounts of anti-oxidents. Even decaf!
very educational
one easy and delicious way to get your healthy foods every day is to make a daily green smoothie. it tastes like melted fruit ice cream. blend frozen chopped kale, frozen berries, seaweed, sweetener and some liquid [like water, almond milk, lemonade, whatever] and mix until thick and creamy. you can’t taste the greens or seaweed if there is enough fruit in there. i usually add bananas, apples, dried dates, whatever i have. i also add ground flax and chia seeds (grind in coffee grinder just before using], spiralina, chlorella and some cinnamon. you could also add your cacao. the purple berries mixed with dark green leaves makes it an awful colour, though. for noobies, i make it with yellow fruits like mango and pineapple and add mint. then it is a beautiful lime green colour. i’ve never known anyone to not like the taste of this smoothie.
Homemade shakes, yea, thats it, get a good blender, add your nutritious foods, blend it up, and right there, you have a nutritious smoothie, but do not drink more than 10 ounce glassfull in the morning, and you’ll save money, because you won’t be using more than your body needs for the day. I know when I overindulged in the smoothie, I found myself slopping on the commode, and thats a drag. Therefore, proper intake for the amount of energy being used for the day is the way.
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any philippine entry here? our foods are also very nutritious and some can even cure diseases!…
iam sick with a cold and allergies what food would help help
Hemp Hearts and dragon fruit!!!!!
Do you have recommended amounts for the ingredients of the basic morning shake?
my grandparent and i always makes berry shakes.
[...] really liked this post on the five greatest foods for your health. I’ll be learning how to do more with these 5 foods too. I love that I can actually eat all [...]