Blueberries, avocados, pomegranates, dark chocolate...what do all these foods have in common? At one time or another, they've been labeled as the latest and greatest "superfood." But what, exactly, is a superfood?

Superfoods are almost always fruits or vegetables, with the exception of chocolate, oatmeal, and tea. And they're also usually the foods with the most research behind them. So what makes them super? Mostly their efforts of their promoters, who tout these foods as possible cure-alls. But really what they're doing is telling us what nutritionists have been lecturing us about for years -- good nutrition equals better health.

Does that mean you shouldn't eat foods that are currently trendy? Absolutely not. "Superfoods" are very nutritious and they definitely should be part of a healthy diet; you just don't want to shun all those poor other foods whose research hasn't yet been funded. Blueberries are a fantastic source of antioxidants, but raspberries and blackberries have their benefits as well. Dark chocolate can promote heart health, but only in small doses. Not only that, combining certain foods may actually give you more bang for your nutritional buck. It's called synergy and it's when the nutrients in one type of whole food boost the nutrients in another.
Eating a wide variety of whole foods year round is the best way to assure yourself you're getting the best nutrition. So go ahead and eat those superfoods, but leave room in your diet for their less popular cousins as well. You never know, next week that celery that's wilting away in your vegetable crisper may be the new hot food and you've spent all this time ignoring it!