By Dr. Joseph Mercola | mercola.com
As 2019 comes to a close, it’s always nice to look back and reflect, before looking ahead at the year to come. In this case, we’re looking at some of the biggest health and wellness trends of the year, from CBD oil to Oak Milk and the Pegan diet.
1. The Vegan Diet
The vegan diet certainly isn’t new, but it had a big year in 2019, thanks in part to the Impossible Burger and the Beyond Burger. Multiple fast food giants picked up the plant-based burgers and other vegan products and added them to their menu, including Burger King, Dunkin Donuts, Red Robin and TGI Fridays. In September, Walt Disney World and Disneyland made waves in the vegan community by announcing that hundreds of plant-based options would soon be available for park-goes. If you take a stroll down the frozen food section in your grocery store, you’ll likely see a lot more vegan options than before.
2. CBD Oil
This mass emergence of CBD products in 2019 came after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration downgraded CBD products from cannabis that contain no more than 0.1% THC from Schedule 1 to Schedule 5 at the end of 2018. CBD is everywhere, in various forms, from gummies to lotion to vape pens. While CBD does offer proven benefits, it’s important to remember that a vast majority of CBD products are marketed illegally, and many don’t contain what they promise. If you’re purchasing CBD, be sure to buy it from a highly reputable source.
3. Oat Milk
Non-dairy milk options like almond milk and coconut milk have been popular for quite some time, but 2019 was all about oak milk. The gluten-free and sugar-free milk alternative popped up in coffee shops and grocery stores around the country this year, and it seems like consumers are on board.
4. The Pegan Diet
What do you get when you cross the vegan diet with the paleo diet? You guessed it: The Pegan diet. Functional medicine doctor Mark Hyman coined the term in 2014, but it didn’t really catch on until this year. The Pegan diet focuses on foods available in the Paleolithic era, such as meat, fish, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. According to Hyman, your plate on a Pegan diet should consist of 75% vegetables and fruits. You can still eat meat, but it should be more of a side dish than a main course.
5. Intermittent Fasting
Dr. Mercola has been talking about intermittent fasting for the better part of a decade, but 2019 saw a spike in popularity as more people hopped board to experience the benefits. From promoting insulin sensitivity and lowering blood pressure to improving immune function, suppressing inflammation and protecting against neurological diseases, the benefits of intermittent fasting are clear. This is certainly one “trend” you’ll want to get behind.
