Let’s face it – people nowadays are pretty much obsessed with what they’re eating, or what they’re not eating. It can be exhausting to try to keep up with all the nutrition trends, particularly because they end up being contradictory a lot of the time. Coffee is bad for you, then it’s good for you, full fat, no fat, all protein, must incorporate superfoods… how on earth is a busy girl supposed to keep up with all that, and figure out which nutrition trends might be beneficial for her and worth exploring?

At the end of the day, what you eat really depends on what makes your body feel the best – some people feel better when they don’t eat gluten, some people prefer to eat only plant-based protein as they find meat makes them feel less than ideal, and some swear by the boost that superfoods give them. However, nutrition trends can undeniably be a fun way to explore a few healthy trends that you may not have been aware of, and to introduce some new items into your diet.

So, what’s the new kale? Should you still be eating Paleo? Which foods are the hottest on dinner plates around the world? We take you through 13 of the hottest nutrition trends of 2015.

13 Ancient Grains

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There was a time when the only well-known alternative to pasta or white rice was perhaps brown rice. With those as the only options, it’s no wonder that many people opted to go low carb, or to cut a ton of grain products out of their diet. However, things have definitely changed. The world is looking back to its ancestors for some great new grains to incorporate, including amaranth, quinoa, kamut, spelt and freekeh. Whole, ancient grains are often more flavourful than the plain white alternatives, possessing subtle flavour profiles that can really enhance a dish. And, you can basically substitute them where you’d use things like pasta or rice, meaning it’s easy to make your regular meals more healthy with just a quick swap.

12 Bone Broth

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Individuals opting to follow the Paleolithic diet have known about bone broth for quite some time, but it really became more widespread in 2015. I mean, actress Shailene Woodley has sung the subtle broth’s praises endlessly, as have stars like Gwyneth Paltrow. What’s the big deal? Well, it’s packed full of health benefits that will do everything from improving your appearance to helping your digestive system to strengthening your bones. It’s incredibly affordable and easy to make, and simply starting a meal off with a cup of bone broth is a great way to make your entire meal more healthful.

11 Snacking

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Less and less people are opting to supersize their meals, or go out for gut-busting solo entrees. The trend lately has been towards snacks and nibbles. In the restaurant world, this means that tapas and sharing plates are skyrocketing in popularity, as people want to go out and share a few bites rather than packing two days’ worth of calories into one piling plate of pasta. However, even in their everyday diets, people are starting to stray from the concept of three big meals a day – breakfast, lunch, and dinner – and instead incorporating smaller snacks to make sure that their metabolism is constantly revving. According to the Nielsen Global Survey of snacking, individuals are also slowly beginning to stray from the high-calorie snack options and instead opting for fresh, healthy choices like nuts, fruits and veggies.

10 Cauliflower

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From chips to salads to vibrant green juices, kale has reigned supreme in the world of vegetable trends for quite awhile now. So, who is going to dethrone the leafy green? Apparently, the humble cauliflower. Cauliflower is full of nutrients, but there’s another reason that people are beginning to use the oft forgotten about vegetable more and more – it’s incredibly versatile! From roasted to sautéed cauliflower, low cal cauliflower ‘rice,’ to cauliflower crust pizzas, you can truly do just about anything with the humble vegetable. As far as superfoods go, you really can’t go wrong with cauliflower.

9 Organic, non-GMO, grass fed, pasture raised dairy

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There are a few dairy-related trends that have been spiking in the past few years – for example, everyone’s obsession with thick, creamy Greek yogurt, and the rise of dairy alternatives like almond milk. However, if you’re still a fan of regular old cow’s milk, there’s just one trend you should take note of – and it has to do with where that cow is coming from. Socially conscious diners are increasingly opting for organic, non-GMO, grass fed, pasture-raised dairy. I mean, if you’re going to be sipping milk on a regular basis, why not make sure it’s from healthy, happy cows?

8 Tigernuts

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What are tigernuts, you ask? Well, first of all, despite their name, they aren’t actually nuts – so all those with nut allergies who have been excluded from the club, rejoice! They’re actual a root vegetable, known for their edible tubers. They pack a huge nutritional punch, as they’re full of magnesium, potassium, and fiber. They’re also gluten free, something that grain-sensitive individuals will love. You can enjoy it as a snack, flavoured however you want, in baking, or – what we’re most excited about – as a nut milk, kind of like horchata and similar nut alterna-milks. We predict a lot of tiger nut lattes on the horizon!

7 Smoothie bowls

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When it comes to smoothies, it can be tough to decide what route you want to take. Toss in some spinach and kale and create a vibrant green smoothie? Make it creamy with some nut milk and greek yogurt? Pack it full of fruit and superfoods like acai? Well, whatever route you decide to go, if you’re looking to stay nutritionally trendy in 2015, just don’t put that smoothie in a glass. Smoothie bowls are all the rage, allowing health conscious individuals to fill a bowl with their cold smoothie of choice, and top them with a ton of texture-filled additions like nuts, seeds, and fruits. We’re saying it now – smoothie bowls are the new yogurt parfaits.

6 Spiralizing

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Okay, let’s be honest for a second – pretty much every girl loves pasta. There’s nothing better than a steaming, creamy bowl of fettucine alfredo every now and then. However, anyone who is looking to eat a bit more healthfully or cut back on their caloric intake knows that pasta can pack quite the calorie punch. So, what’s a girl to do? Well, just swap out those noodles for zoodles! We’re talking about spiralizing, which involves cutting vegetables into thin, ribbon-like strings, so that they resemble pasta. While zucchini is the most popular (and zucchini noodles with a hearty, tomato-based sauce is absolutely to die for), you can also transform sweet potatoes, squash, turnips, and more! The possibilities are endless, and we expect the trend to just keep growing, as zoodles overtake traditional pasta on more and more plates.

5 Full Fat Products

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Once upon a time, nutrition-conscious eaters basically ran as far as possible from fatty products, opting for non fat frozen yogurt rather than creamy ice cream, splashing skim milk in their coffee rather than cream. However, it seems that those days are now a thing of the past. People are opting to toss out those flavourless, low-fat products, and instead opt for smaller portions of the real thing. I mean, French women have been doing it for years, it’s about time the rest of the world followed suit! And, come on – who doesn’t want to jump on the bandwagon for a trend that allows you to eat your favourite treats, albeit in smaller portions?

4 Clean eating vs. cleansing

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A few years ago, cleansing and detoxes were an absolutely massive trend. Celebrities were spotted walking around Hollywood with bottles of juice in their hands and countless juice shops opened and offered multi-day juice detoxes where you were permitted to consume only a few bottles of juice per day to cleanse all those toxins out. However, people have realized that not only is it miserable to limit yourself to a liquid diet for a few days, it also doesn’t really do anything long term. The new trend is clean eating, Basically, consumers are putting away the processed food and artificial flavours and including more whole foods in their diet.

3 Coconut Oil

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Olive oil, grapeseed oil, canola oil, sesame oil… the options when it comes to oils are truly endless. While everyone was obsessed with extra virgin olive oil for awhile, people are opting for something a bit more tropical nowadays – coconut oil! Coconut oil is becoming a massive trend, thanks to the myriad of health benefits it contains – it supposedly promotes heart health, boosts your immune system, and helps boost good cholesterol. While you can’t exactly drizzle it into a homemade vinaigrette (as it solidifies at room temperature), it’s a phenomenal oil to use for cooking. Plus, for many women, it does double duty as a beauty product that they use to moisturize their skin and hair.

2 Hyperlocal

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Who doesn’t love wandering the colorful stands at your local farmers’ market, and exploring all the fresh offerings? While once upon a time people may have bought their products from the grocery store with no worries about where it came from, nowadays consumers want to know where the products they are buying are from and how they’re handled. They’re learning about what it means for a food to be organic, or non-GMO, and it’s something that’s important to them. After all, why buy tomatoes from halfway across the world when you can buy tomatoes grown by a farmer near where you live? There are always going to be some items that might never be in season where you live, but for the most part, people are trying to get products grown nearby whenever possible.

1 Gluten Free

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Okay, we’re not totally sure about this one. Sure, a gluten free diet is an absolute necessity for individuals affected by celiac disease, but it seems that more and more people are deciding to go gluten free because of dietary preference. Some claim to have more energy when they cut out wheat, some just say they feel overall better, and whatever the reason, the increasing numbers of gluten free accommodations on restaurant menus and gluten free products on grocery store shelves indicate that this trend isn’t dying out anytime soon – if anything, it’s picking up steam.

Sources: shape.comprnewswire.comtodaysdietitian.com

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