Trying to detox this January? Meet 2021’s new health trends

With January in full swing, we’re surrounded by a feast of different diet plans. It’s safe to say most of us were somewhat indulgent with party food and drinks in December, so it’s understandable why we feel like we might feel a need to make a change to our eating habits. Perhaps we feel like a detox is in order.

Whether it is a short-term detox or a dietary overhaul there are an infinite number of options out there. While some diets target specific health problems others have a more generic focus on weight loss. But, a diet that may work for you may not work for someone else, and the benefits and successes of each diet will vary between different people, which means it can be hard to compare one diet to another. The end result? We’re seeing a more versatile approach to dieting this year.

What diet is best for me?

A quick warning, if you decide to diet cold turkey, there is a risk your body might go into panic mode as it’s not used to this sudden change. In doing so, your brain will start sending you cravings for the food you used to eat, and if you don’t have strong willpower, then there is a high chance you are just going to go back to square one.

If you take a look at the diet plans over the last five years, many of them were centred around eating small portions, taking in a low amount of calories, or substituting food for diet shakes. Now it’s all about filling your plate up with greens, grains, and proteins. Whether it’s to ease health problems or for a new year detox, you’ll find more diverse and sustainable options available. With this in mind, here’s our quick run down on this years’ top trending diets.

The “Dopamine diet’

This diet is great if you find it difficult to commit in the long-term. The Dopamine diet focuses on meals filled with vegetables and high quantities of protein, meaning you don’t have to give up your meat and cheese. High in amino acids, proteins help to trigger dopamine production and stimulate your metabolism. Also, there’s another beneficial side effect: dopamine production is known as the “happy hormone’ so will ease the January blues too!

Plant-based protein

If you feel like you’ll benefit more from eating less meat, you’re right, and many celebrities agree – from Jennifer Lopez to Ellen Degeneres to Stella McCartney. Being vegetarian has never been more accepted, easy, or indeed in vogue. Researchers have suggested that eating more vegetables and less meat, can help you live longer, reduce the risk of heart disease, and lose weight. This diet is based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes, so you can minimise or exclude meat in this diet as your daily protein intake will come from legumes, pulses and meat alternatives such as tofu. It can also be a cheaper option, which is lower in calories, and better for the environment.

Probiotic foodstuffs

“If you heal the gut, you heal the body” – there is lots of focus on the gut this year. Probiotics are our good friends that live in our gut and help us along with digestion. Research has shown that they help our immune system, can aid feelings of depression, and prevent obesity. Foods such as natural yoghurt, apple cider vinegar, sourdough bread and raw (unpasteurised) cheese are a few of the foods we know that contain the beneficial probiotics. If you really want to improve your gut health and follow the tracks of a number of celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Reese Witherspoon, who endorse the benefits of probiotics in foods such as kimchi, kombucha, sauerkraut and miso.

Anti-inflammatory diet

Inflammation is something we usually associate with the skin and injury, but it can also occur internally too! Inflammation in the body causes or contributes to many debilitating, chronic illnesses — including osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, heart disease. If being healthy is your main focus for your lifestyle change, this diet is for you. You need to consume at least 25 grams of fibre every day (from a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and sweet potatoes), eat fish three times a week and reduce all sugar and saturated fats. You can also try adding one teaspoon of turmeric to your food, to really boost anti-inflammatory effects. This will give you the vitamins and minerals it needs as well as essential fatty acids to fight inflammation in the body and gut.

Longevity Food

Wanting to live up to 100 is a goal for some, while for others the goal is simply to live a healthy and comfortable life. To do that, they chose to eat food that can influence how long you live. Again that means eating lots of fruits and vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, fish and eat less red meat, but more white meat. This diet culminates from a group of healthy individuals from all over the world. It’s simple: remove as much processed foods, and those which are high in unhealthy saturated fats.

Whether you want to go on a diet or just change up your eating habits, eating healthy should be one of the top priorities when looking into being healthier. With so much variety of food around us, you are sure to find a diet that will be perfect for your body and lifestyle. In the end, not only will eating better make you feel great, but it will benefit you in the long run.

Looking for an indulgent treat, that won’t backtrack on your healthy eating habits? Why not book in for one of our manicure and pedicure services, to make you feel as good as you look!