'Superfood' cons shoppers: Label should be banned because it is 'a marketing ploy to hook consumers into buying expensive products' The label â€˜superfoodsâ€™ should be ditched because it is just a marketing scam to hook gullible consumers into buying expensive products, food experts claimed last night. And many of the exotic berries or juices with the label are no more healthy than common or garden fruit and vegetables that cost a fraction of the price, they added. Many claim to have powerful properties that can cure everything from cancer to impotence. So-called superfoods such as Acai berries are no more healthy than than common or garden fruit and vegetables that cost a fraction of the price, food experts claimed last night But a boring yet balanced diet that contains everyday fruit and veg, meat or fish, grains, eggs and cheese, can also cure a variety of ailments said the study. The word has no official recognition, any product can call itself a superfood and many are hooking consumers with clever marketing and hype, said the British Dietetic Association. With New Year coming up, many Brits could be fooled into trying a diet of acai berries to artichokes in order to lose weight and get healthy, the nutrition experts warned. But they would be better off financially, and certainly no worse off healthwise, if they simply incorporated everyday fruit and veg, meat, fish and grains into their diet, said the BDA. Superfood? A bowl of Quinoa Spokeswoman Sioned Quirke said the new year was â€˜prime timeâ€™ for marketing products with exaggerated health benefits. She admitted some superfoods may have genuine benefits but added: 'The term superfood has no regulatory approval and is not a legally recognised term. It is simply a marketing term that has become trendy over the last few years. Companies and marketing teams will often put whatever they can on a label to hook you into a purchase. Many claims can give us false expectations of the benefits or they arenâ€™t fully substantiated. Research shows more than six in ten (61 per cent) of people had bought a food or drink because it had been labelled as a superfood. Scientists who endorse such foods are often paid to do so, the BDA said, while a person needs to drink 13 servings of goji berry juice to get as many antioxidants as one red apple. Sioned Quirke continued: 'If you tell people often enough that something is a â€˜superfoodâ€™, chances are some will start to believe. No one food provides everything the body needs, therefore, the so called â€˜superfoodsâ€™ are by no means the magic wand companies market them as. We need to dispel the myths. The foods claiming â€˜superfoodâ€™ status may have some health benefits but, thatâ€™s true for the majority of naturally occurring foods. All fruit and vegetables provide vitamins, minerals and fibre, meat and fish provides protein, grains provide energy and daily products give the body calcium. And while it may be true that superfoods work as part of a balanced diet, so too does chocolate and alcohol in moderation, said the BDA. Sioned Quirke added: 'Some â€˜superfoodsâ€™ can be included as part of a healthy, balanced diet but there again, so can things like chocolate and alcohol. A â€˜superfoodâ€™, in isolation, will never be the key to optimum health. Donâ€™t get caught up in the hype, these trendy terms are simply adding to the confusion around what a healthy, balanced diet is. If something seems too good to be true it usually is.