We sure like to put the word “super” in front of anything in this industry. Superfoods, SuperFruits, SuperSize …whoops – that one is for the fast food industry! Around this time of year you hear a lot of talk about what will be the top SuperFood of 2010. Of course, that question would be easier to answer if we could all agree on a definition for superfoods.

What is a SuperFood Anyway?

Here is how Wikipedia defines a SuperFood -

Superfood is a term sometimes used to describe food with high phytonutrient content that may confer health benefits as a result.

That clears it all up, right? No, such a broad definition of SuperFood would make almost any fruit, by definition a SuperFood. When every fruit can fall into a definition, that definition loses any significance. If every fruit is a superfood or superfruit, what makes one fruit more super than the next???

How Does the FDA Define SuperFoods and SuperFruits

They don’t! It is important to understand that there is no legal definition of SuperFoods or SuperFruits. There is no science to apply to a food and determine if it is a super food. As far as the FDA is concerned, all this talk about Superfoods is just marketing.

What About Acai, Muscadines, Resveratrol, Noni, etc. – I thought they were SuperFoods?

We do believe that Muscadine Grapes, Acai Berries and Resveratrol all have super nutritional profiles and some impressive health benefits. So, it seems fair to call these elite fruits SuperFoods – and almost everyone does. However, if you twist our arm and ask us what scientific formula we use to determine if a food makes it to SuperFood status – we have a one word answer – Oprah!

Oprah Gets to Decide What is A SuperFood???

Yes – but don’t worry she has help. People like Barbara Walters, anyone from 60 Minutes, The Today Show, any doctor with a book to sell, a staff writer at People Magazine and the list goes on. Yes, in the end it is really mainstream media that ends up (often very unintentionally) pushing a food or fruit to Super Food status.

Acai was a popular fruit until Dr. Perricone went on Oprah and declared it the top superfood. Resveratrol was an interesting component of grapes until Dr. Oz started talking about it on Oprah and 60 Minutes did a piece – now it is a SuperFood. I wish I could tell you that foods became superfoods based on exhaustive clinical studies and research – but the fact is a lot more people watch Oprah than read things like the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology.

Rhodiola Rosea – Proof That SuperFood Determination is Not Based Solely on Science

Rhodiola Rosea is an adatogen herb that has truly incredible health properties (click here to read our whole special report on Rhodiola Rosea). Once you read the 40 years of research on Rhodiola, it clearly has high nutrient content and strong health benefits. However, Rhodiola has not been a feature in the mainstream media – so it is generally not called a SuperFood. Note to Oprah if you are reading – do a story on Rhodiola! It really should be a SuperFood!

The Last Person Who You Should Trust When it Comes to SuperFood Status

Here is an industry secret – ask an ingredient supplier what is the top superfood and he will tell you the ingredient he has the most of in stock!

Take with a large grain of salt any superfood predictions made by an ingredient supplier. Ask someone who sells Maqui what the top superfood of 2010 will be and guess what? They will say Maqui! It is almost like asking the CEO of a pencil company which is better pens or pencils. Is it really news when she declares pencils?

We only bring this up because it seems that many of the media stories on SuperFoods tend to quote predictions from the companies that make the foods that want to be SuperFoods. When reading a news story, just be aware of the source.

SuperFoods, like beauty, are In The Eye of the Beholder

I may like Muscadine grapes, you like Acai – it really doesn’t matter. Trying to come up with exactly what makes something a better or more super superfood than the next one, really is pointless. So, while we don’t love the lose definition of SuperFoods, we do like the concept.

It is great if we all start thinking more about what we put into our bodies. Food should have nutrition and provide some health benefits. Let’s take baby steps first. To start, maybe we should worry less about getting one or two superfoods each day and try to make everything we eat at least “GoodFood”. A day filled with “GoodFood” is much better than eating 3 SuperSized Big Mac Meals and then trying to balance that out with the latest SuperFood of the day.

In our article, “Rhodiola Rosea, The Best Energy Supplement You Have Never Heard Of” we began examining the fascinating health benefits of Rhodiola Rosea. In this article we want to give a summary of some of the more impressive health benefits of Rhodiola and its history in the Soviet Union.

The Russian-Afghan War and Rhodiola

In 1980 Russia was involved in a brutal war in Afghanistan. Zakir Ramazanov, fresh off completing a double major in biochemistry and plant physiology in 1978 at a Russian University, was stationed in Afghanistan. Ramazanov wanted to go to graduate school and get his PhD, but first he had to serve his commitment in the Soviet Army.

During the winter of 1980 one of Ramazanov’s comrades from Siberia (Sergei) received a care package from home filled with Rhodiola Rosea roots. They would make a tea from the root and everyone who drank it felt stronger, more energetic, less fatigued and more able to deal with the harsh war conditions in Afghanistan.

“Zakir – a large, strong man who had played professional soccer – noticed that the soldiers who drank the tea were better able to hike through deep snow over high mountain passes, carrying full gear, AK-47s, and gas masks. And they did it on 4 hours of sleep a night. So Zakir decided to try Rhodiola rosea for himself. “Once I started drinking the tea, I woke up without the usual soreness in my muscles, and I recovered much faster after each mission,” he recalls.” - Excerpt from the book Rhodiola Revolution, Dr. Brown and Dr. Gerbarg, Rodale Press (pg. 145)

While Ramazanov was impressed with the Rhodiola tea, he had a war to deal with and soon forgot about the interesting Rhodiola tea from his friend Sergei.

Ramazanov Returns But The War Stays With Him

In 1981 Ramazanov earned his PhD in plant physiology and biochemistry from the Soviet Academy of Sciences. He had a job at the Soviet Institute of Energy working on the Mir Space station project. By all accounts Ramazanov was successful, but he found he was depressed and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from his time in the Afghan war.

Ramazanov tried numerous herbs and sedatives, but nothing worked. Luckily, Ramazanov attended a lecture on Rhodiola and he immediately remembered Sergei’s tea. In 1984 he was giving a lecture in Siberia and decided to pick some Rhodiola and bring it home with him.

“After about 2 months, the depression went away completely. By then I no longer was overreacting to things, as the images of war had stopped running through my head. I became tremendously productive in my work, publishing 10 scientific papers in 1 year and receiving many academic honors and research opportunities. In fact, I first came to the United States on an invitation from the National Academy of Sciences.”

Zakir Ramazanov as quoted in Rhodiola Revolution (Rodale Press, pg 146-147)

The Fall of the Soviet Union = Rhodiola Secrets Revealed

Dr Ramazanov was now a man on a mission – to learn everything he could about the Rhodiola Rosea plant. He had come to the US and was doing further research on the Rhodiola Rosea plant and is generally credited for introducing Rhodiola Rosea in the USA.

In 1990, the Soviet Union collapsed and suddenly many classified documents became available to the Western World. Dr. Ramazanov spent years translating the hundreds of Soviet clinical studies that had been done on Rhodiola Rosea. He discovered that Rhodiola was used during the Cold War by Soviet Olympic athletes, the cosmonauts and elite Soviet Military forces.

Dr. Ramazanov was so amazed by Rhodiola that he started a business in NY to import Rhodiola direct from Siberia and make nutritional supplements. As Dr. Ramazanov unearthed more and more Soviet clinical studies, the western world started to do its own research on Rhodiola. In all, more than 180 studies have now been done on Rhodiola since 1960.

Here are just some of the secrets revealed about Rhodiola Rosea…

• Increase energy, endurance and stamina
• Helps reduce stress
• Uplifts moods
• Promotes mental clarity
• Improves sexual performance
• Promotes healthy sleep
• And Much, Much, More…

Learn More about Rhodiola Rosea

In part 3 of this series we will look at how Rhodiola can help the body in so many ways. For now, here are some great resources:

Health Benefits of Rhodiola Rosea

Rhodiola Rosea

Tired? Who isn’t these days? If you are looking for a supplement to pick you up you may have tried caffeine, ginseng, Vitamin B12 or Royal Jelly. All decent supplements, but probably the best energy supplement is one you may have never heard of – Rhodiola Rosea

What in The World is Rhodiola Rosea?

Rhodiola Rosea is a plant that grows in cold, high altitude climates like Siberia. The root of the plant has been used for thousands of years as an energy and mental clarity tonic.

Here is the quick rundown on Rhodiola Rosea:

If Rhodiola Is Such a Great Energy Supplement, How Come I Have Never Heard of It?

Time to let you in on another Supplement Industry Secret…

Supplement companies promote ingredient featured on Oprah rather than in Science Journals.

Some ingredients become media favorites and start to appear on all the mainstream broadcast and publications. It is these ingredients that are the supplement industry makes into products and heavily promotes. Meanwhile, many of the ingredients with the strongest science and published clinical studies do not get the same exposure. But don’t worry, we are exposing all these secrets now…, so I guess it is not a secret anymore.

Where Can I Learn More about Rhodiola Rosea?

Here are some great resources to learn more about Rhodiola Rosea:

The Science Behind Rhodiola Rosea

Read Over 200 Clinical Studies on Rhodiola Rosea

HerbalGram Complete Research Paper on Rhodiola Rosea