Superfoods are whole foods rich in nutrients. Many contain naturally occurring health-promoting substances called phytochemicals. Some superfoods, such as blueberries or oatmeal, are also called functional foods, because their health benefits extend beyond basic nutrition; they are thought to help prevent specific diseases.

For this assignment, you will investigate the health claims made for a superfood of your choice and share your research findings in a power point submitted to the instructor. You will also include the following slides:

1) Pick a superfood from the following list, or suggest a different superfood of your choice.

Almonds, apples, apricots, avocado, bananas, beets, beans (legumes), blueberries, broccoli, brown rice, carrots, cauliflower, cherries, cranberries, garlic, flaxseeds, kale, kefir, olive oil, orange, pecan, quinoa pomegranate, salmon, sardine, spinach, strawberries, sweet potato, tea, tomato, tuna, walnuts, yogurt.

2) Develop the material that will be used in your presentation according to the following guidelines.

a. First, consider the following topics and questions: Introduce the food: Give a brief history of its use and tell how and when it acquired its superfood reputation. Why is this food considered so health-promoting? Which compounds, phytochemicals, or micronutrients does it provide, and at what levels? What is the most special nutritional property of this food? Tell about any functional food claims associated with this superfood: Which disease or health condition does it help prevent, and through what mechanism.

b. In gathering your information, use 2 to 4 authoritative secondary sources that cite and discuss research about this food. These sources should be books or articles by credentialed, reputable experts, or the websites of reliable, reputable organizations. Examples would be sites hosted by or associated withWebMD, the Mayo Clinic, the National Institutes of Health, universities, or science or news websites that aggregate or synthesize information from such reputable sources.

c. In addition to referring to and culling information from these secondary sources, use PubMed (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed) to find the abstracts for at least two primary research studies discussed in the secondary sources you are using. You may also access the full research articles from the journal websites in some cases.

d. Construct a PowerPoint slideshow that presents your research on this superfood in an interesting and informative manner. All presentations must include, or be accompanied by, formal references for all your primary and secondary sources. Use American Psychological Association (APA 6.0) format. Please also use a clear and visually appealing font and incorporate graphics as needed. Make sure your slides are readable and clear.