21 Dec 2012 Ask the dietician: Hot food trends for 2013
by Kellie Dye
About 20,000 new foods are introduced into grocery stores every year. I love it when there are new convenient healthy foods to choose from — ready-to-eat sliced apples, individual bags of carrots, bagged salads, ready-to-heat butternut squash, green beans and other easier-to-cook vegetables.
Some frozen and canned foods are finally lower in sodium, and I think this lower sodium trend will fortunately continue. Unfortunately there are less healthy options introduced into grocery stores more than ever. By the appearance of the food packages you could be led to believe a product is healthy when often times it is not. To determine if a food is healthy, you might want to go the extra mile and check the nutrition facts label. Compare products by comparing saturated fat, sodium and calories.
Now that New York will be banning super-sized sweetened drinks, you can expect the beverage companies to respond by formulating more fruit, tea and yogurt based drinks as an option to soft drinks. These drinks will most likely still be high in calories and natural sugars, but few people will pay attention because the drink will “look healthy.”
On the restaurant front, expect to see more “gourmet” tacos, burgers and chicken sandwiches. The buzz word “artisan” will be thrown around more than it already is in regards to food products and restaurant foods. Artisan is supposed to mean that something is handmade by an expert or craftsman. It’s hard to believe, for example, that “artisan” chicken sausages produced in mass quantities are individually handmade.
Expect to see more food trucks and even touch screen kiosks for getting food on the run. The kiosks and vending machines will begin to become more sophisticated and offer a wider variety of foods. I remember when I visited Japan, you could get nearly any food or beverage from a vending machine. You could even buy lobster, toiletries and anything you could imagine from vending machines along the streets. More vending options will begin popping up in the near future.
Americans are snacking more than ever before. The snack food companies and the fast food industry will certainly provide. Watch for mini-burgers, more varieties of snack wraps and much more flavors of chips and crackers.
Gluten-free products and other food allergy sensitive foods will also continue to grow. There will be more wheat-free, soy-free, dairy-free and corn-free products to choose from. Restaurants will also be offering more gluten-free menu items. It is important to note that gluten-free does not equal a healthy diet. Only individuals who have celiac disease or a true gluten intolerance should avoid gluten. Restaurants offering gluten free items should be questioned in regards to the prep area where the gluten-free foods are prepared. To be truly gluten-free, these foods must be prepared in an entirely different room in the kitchen area away from other food prep areas.
It’s fun to spot new products in the grocery stores and restaurants. Just remember that a new product that looks healthy may not always be an ideal choice.
Kellie Dye, a registered and licensed dietitian, is the wellness coordinator at the Conway Regional Health and Fitness Center. Send your diet and nutrition questions to Kellie at [email protected]. Frequently asked and pertinent questions will be addressed in future articles in 501 LIFE.
