The Top 5 Diet Trends of The New Year

It’s a new year, which means people will be making resolutions to do all sorts of things. From spending time with loved ones to exercising more, there are plenty of resolutions for you to make. However, starting a new diet is what’s usually on everyone’s plate. We can be the first to admit that you’re not the only one thinking of how to get healthier this year. Everyone is thinking about what they can do to be their healthiest selves this year. So, keep reading to learn the top five diet trends of the new year.

The Immune-Supporting Diet

The pandemic has gotten many of us thinking about how to keep our immune systems boosted and healthy. Now, more than ever before, we see people taking the initiative with their health. No longer are people simply waiting to get sick, but they’re being proactive in their decision to stay healthy. Look for more foods and beverages fortified with heart-healthy micronutrients, like vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin A, zinc, prebiotics, probiotics, and adaptogens. One food making its way into the limelight is reishi mushrooms. You can now find it in coffee, tea, and powders to put in other dishes.

The Keto Diet

The keto diet has been floating around for the past couple of years, but it’s here to stay in 2022. This high-fat, low-carb diet touts information against much of what the immune-supporting diet suggests. For instance, most fruits and some vegetables are entirely off-limits because they’re high in carbohydrates. While most dietitians will say a healthy amount of carbohydrates for an individual is 200-300 grams/daily, some people on the keto diet eat as few as 20-30 grams/daily. Protein powders marketed towards those on the keto diet are flooding the market. So are a variety of other keto-friendly snacks, meals, and meal replacement bars and beverages. However, just because it’s getting easier to go keto doesn’t mean you have to do it. Most nutritionists will recommend going towards the extreme on either end of the spectrum. While you don’t need to load up on carbohydrates, you also don’t need a ton of dietary fat. Instead, focus on eating each macronutrient group within recommended amounts. That way, you’ll provide your body with the nutrients it needs.

Plant-Forward Eating

Plant-based and plant-forward eating certainly isn’t a new concept, but it will continue to be a massive craze throughout 2022. Many people decide to go plant-based for many different reasons. However, the main reasons usually have to do with moral, ethical, and health reasons. If eaten in its whole form (or as close to its whole form as you can), plant-based food can provide many necessary nutrients and lower your risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer. The World Health Organization has even updated its dietary guidelines to help promote a robust immune system and minimize chronic diseases. They recommend that you nearly double your five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. The new guidelines state you should aim to consume four servings of fruit and five servings of vegetables a day. That’s a total of nine servings!

The MIND Diet

This diet is a combination of the Mediterranean and DASH diets. MIND is an acronym for Mediterranean-DASH intervention for neurodegenerative delay. Those following MIND typically avoid processed foods that contain significant amounts of sodium and stick to a primarily plant-based regimen. The reason for this is that the National Institute of Health reports a link between dietary sodium intake and reduced cognitive function and dementia risk in middle-aged and older adults. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new sodium reduction guidelines for commercially processed, packaged, and prepared foods in response to this research.

Intuitive Eating

Mainstream diet culture tends to be quite restrictive and has a lot of dos and don’ts regarding what you are and aren’t allowed to eat. Intuitive eating eliminates those strict rules. The idea behind intuitive eating is that consistent restriction of certain foods makes us fatter, following the belief that most fad diets fail. Instead of restricting their food choices and calories, people who intuitively eat are told to make peace with their food. It’s important not to label something as “bad” or “good.” Instead, it’s more important to listen to physical cues for hunger and fullness. Now, this doesn’t mean you get to eat whatever you want. It means tapping into your body’s ability to tell you what it needs.