Diet Benefits and Anti-Aging Effects... The 'This Diet' MZ Generation Is Crazy About Nowadays

CJ Hetbahn Konnyak Rice Sales Increase by 20% Monthly
Pulmuone Whole Wheat Tortilla, Richam Protein, and More Popular
Rising Wellness Trends Boost Demand for Blood Sugar Management

Recently, the 'slow aging diet' has become popular on social media platforms like Instagram. The slow aging diet refers to a menu composed of ingredients that help slow down physical aging, mainly consisting of multigrain rice, fresh vegetables, and proteins?foods with a low glycemic index. People in their 20s and 30s, who are highly interested in health and dieting, are opening their wallets for the slow aging diet while avoiding refined grains such as high-fructose corn syrup, simple sugars, wheat flour, and white rice.

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According to the food industry on the 8th, sales of convenience foods or ingredients related to the slow aging diet have been increasing since the beginning of this year.

In particular, the popularity of 'slow aging rice' is soaring. Slow aging rice is rice mixed with chickpeas or konjac rice, which has the advantage of relatively lower carbohydrate intake. According to CJ CheilJedang, the company’s instant rice product 'Hetbahn Konjac Rice' recorded an average monthly sales growth rate (compared to the previous month) of 23.5% from January to May this year.

Reflecting this popularity, CJ CheilJedang diversified its related products by launching 'Chickpea Quinoa Konjac Rice' and 'Lentil Quinoa Konjac Rice' in March this year, which optimally blend konjac with various whole grains.

Additionally, among tortillas introduced by Pulmuone, the 'Whole Wheat Tortilla' product, which reduces refined carbohydrates, also achieved remarkable results. Its sales growth rate in the first quarter of this year (compared to the same period last year) reached 250%, more than double the overall sales growth rate of 110% for all four tortilla types.

New products with enhanced protein content as part of the slow aging diet are also gaining popularity. Dongwon F&B released 'Richam Sunsal Kkoko,' a high-protein chicken breast can with 25% more protein than the chicken ham 'Richam Protein' launched in 2021. The company introduced that consuming one can of this product provides about 70% of the daily protein nutritional standard (55g). Harim also recently launched two types of protein cookies called 'O!neuldanbaek Protein Cookie,' which do not use wheat flour, in line with the health-conscious trend.

There is an interpretation that the slow aging diet is gaining attention as chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes, obesity) among people in their 20s and 30s have surged due to Westernized eating habits. In fact, the slow aging diet is known to be effective in preventing chronic diseases by reducing physical aging and body inflammation through dietary changes, as well as lowering 'blood sugar spikes' (rapid increases in blood sugar levels after meals).

An industry insider said, "The wellness trend has continued to expand since COVID-19," adding, "As more consumers seek healthy meals that do not stimulate blood sugar, the related market is expected to grow even further."