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Strange Foods With Anti-Aging and Health Claims

From , former About.com Guide

Updated May 08, 2009

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Anti-aging foods seem to be showing up everywhere. Any food with some nutritional claims is jumping on the anti aging bandwagon. Find out the real story behind noni juice, goji berries, pomegranates and more. Learn what nutritional benefits they have and whether they are worth paying extra for. I dug around nutritional databases and research articles to help you decide.

1. Turmeric - World's Healthiest Spice

TurmericDigital Vision / Getty Images
Turmeric contains curcumin, a substance under research for multiple health benefits (including cancer prevention/treatment). You can find turmeric in curries and many Asian dishes. Click on the link below to learn how to gain the health benefits of turmeric — a legitimate superfood.

2. Spirulina - Algae for Health

SpirulinaMark Sadowski
Spirulina is a name for supplements created from blue-green algae. Spirulina contains all sorts of vitamins and minerals and makes for a good natural supplement to a healthful diet. Spirulina fans also like to make claims about other health benefits, do they stand up to scrutiny?

3. Noni Juice - Miracle or Scam?

Noni Fruitroadman22
Noni juice has a huge marketing campaign behind it, and in my book, any food that needs marketing is suspect (you don't see many ads for broccoli do you?). Find out if noni juice has any nutritional value and which of the health benefits claimed by the noni juice sellers are true.

4. Goji Berry - Can Goji Berries Live Up to the Hype?

Goji BerrySabine Scheckel / Getty Images
Goji berries seem to be showing up everywhere along with anti-aging and health claims. Any truth here? Well, turns out that goji berries live up to some of the hype and don't live up to the rest. Find out if goji berries are worth working in to your diet.

5. Acai Berry - Superfood or Just Another Berry?

Acai BerryBreno Peck / Getty Images
They kept putting acai berries in my chocolate, and it made me wonder if those berries were doing me any good. I researched acai berries and all the health and anti-aging claims and found out that acai berries have some good and some exaggerated benefits.

6. Pomegranates - Ancient Anti-Aging Secret?

PomegraniteJonathan Kantor Studio / Getty Images
Pomegranates carry an allure of legend and anti-aging properties. Turns out that they are fairly good for you and can make up part of a healthful, balanced diet. Give pomegranates a try and learn about how the nutrients in pomegranates can play a role in health and anti-aging.

7. Mushrooms - Fungus for Health

MushroomsEising / Getty Images
Good old-fashioned mushrooms are a great source of fiber, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. Add mushrooms in to your diet to help round things out, but be careful to avoid mushrooms grown in chemicals or questionable places.

8. Wheatgrass - The Original Superfood

Wheat GrassRyan McVay / Getty Images
Wheatgrass may be the original superfood with a history dating back to the early 1900s. You'll find people who grow their own wheatgrass, add wheatgrass to smoothies or just take daily shots of juiced wheatgrass, but what is the real story behind wheatgrass and health?

9. Bee Pollen - Nature's Vitamin?

Bee PollenGeoStock / Getty Images
Bee pollen fans claim that it contains all the nutrients a person needs. For me, it was really hard to find out what, exactly, bee pollen contains. It looks good as a supplement that covers a variety of vitamins, minerals and more, but bee pollen leaves many unanswered questions about its role in a healthful diet.

10. Seaweed - Nutrition from the Ocean

SeaweedThomas Northcut / Getty Images
Seaweed is an often overlooked food that is common in Japanese and other Asian cuisines. Seaweed contains high amounts of minerals taken from the ocean as well as healthful levels of other vitamins. Learn about the health and nutritional benefits of seaweed and how to work more of it in to your diet.

11. Mangosteen - World's Lamest Superfood

MangosteenTrois Têtes
Now don't get me wrong, I like mangosteens. I think they are stunningly beautiful and have a subtle, delicious flavor. As a superfood, though, they are simply lame: they lack the nutritional punch of more common fruits, such as apples and oranges. If you want to impress someone, however, displaying a mangosteen can really do the trick.
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