My smoothie is not healthy?

Eve_Dublin

Every second day, I make a fruit smoothie here at home. They usually contain half a banana, the juice of 2-3 freshly squeezed oranges, an apple and two kiwis mixed together with a good drop or two of soya milk but I´ve just read that it's possibly not good for you (too many calories) and can make you hungrier after. How could this be? Seems like every time I go on a healthy kick with something, I read conficting info somewhere.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

not an expert by any stretch.. but there's a lot of sugar in fruit which wouldn't make you hungry exactly.. but once you crashed from the sugar high you'd crave more sugar/food to get back to "normal" like smokers feel a half hour after a cigarette

calorie wise.. i dont think using freshly squeezed juice is bad at all, the problem comes when you use the stuff in cartons .. they're heavy enough calorie wise iirc but even then calories aren't something to be afraid of. if the x00 calories from your smoothie are what's causing you to go x00 calories over your daily allowance then yeah that's probably something to look at but unless you're on some mad weight loss kick.. i doubt a smoothie every 2 days from the ingredients you listed will do any harm

Eve_Dublin

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar wrote: »

not an expert by any stretch.. but there's a lot of sugar in fruit which wouldn't make you hungry exactly.. but once you crashed from the sugar high you'd crave more sugar/food to get back to "normal" like smokers feel a half hour after a cigarette

calorie wise.. i dont think using freshly squeezed juice is bad at all, the problem comes when you use the stuff in cartons .. they're heavy enough calorie wise iirc but even then calories aren't something to be afraid of. if the x00 calories from your smoothie are what's causing you to go x00 calories over your daily allowance then yeah that's probably something to look at but unless you're on some mad weight loss kick.. i doubt a smoothie every 2 days from the ingredients you listed will do any harm

Right so it´s more the fact that it'll make me crave more sugar? I´m not a massive sugar eater, so that's not a problem. If that wasn't an issue for me (which it's not), is it healthy? I just thought it was a good way to get your fruit in.

doctorwhogirl

Smoothies are good in terms of the vitamins the fruit provides etc... and you are getting some protein in with the soya milk.

Ultimately though the fruit consists of simple carbs, that, As Sir D Chicken said, will give your body a spike of sugar that subsides relatively quickly after drinking the smoothie.

It's not they're not healthy, not homemade ones anyway. It's just for feelings of fullness they're not great.

If you're not feeling mad hungry afterwards then I don't see a problem in them.

You could eat some protein with them to keep you fuller if you wanted either? For example using some low fat greek yoghurt instead of the milk? Or eating a handful of nuts with the smoothie?

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

yeah it's that the sugar will make you crave more sugar, if you can deal with that then it's no hassle.

i also saw someone here mention something about the body not dealing with calories in liquid form as well as calories from solid food... so 500 cals in liquid wouldn't fill you as much as 500 from solid food, even if the ingredients were the same? but if you're just having a tasty fruit smoothie instead of a thick protein packed meal in a glass.. wouldn't be much of an issue for you I guess, if it is actually true


and yeah.. afaik that smoothie doesnt look unhealthy. it's a fair amount of fruit/sugar but.. I don't think that's bad in and of itself.. more for weightloss and sugar cravings.

Mr. CooL ICE

Throw in a little peanut/almond butter and some coconut oil or dessicated coconut to nut it up a notch. Will add a nice flavour and the extra protein and fat may help fill you for longer.

Stench Blossoms

Eat all the fruit instead.

I bet you'll find it difficult.

My way of looking at it is 'If I can't eat all that food then I'm not drinking it'.

Eve_Dublin

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

Eat all the fruit instead.

I bet you'll find it difficult.

My way of looking at it is 'If I can't eat all that food then I'm not drinking it'.

I don´t have much time during the week and work long hours, so it saves me time. Is there a difference having it in Smoothie form?

Merkin

I'm doing Slimming World at the moment and while we're encouraged to eat fruit, juicing is strictly off-limits. When you juice fruits, you are essentially creating a processed food. While the fruit juice may originate from a whole fruit, it is now processed. As a result, the nutrients in the fruit are now released quickly into the body and this includes the sugar. When you juice fruits, it is easier to juice more fruits than what you can actually eat. So in addition to processing the fruits, you are now taking in more fruit by juicing as opposed to eating. So not only does the processing make the sugar content go higher and faster, but now you are essentially consuming more fruits in the juice form.

Redisle

Tbh the Soya milk is probably best avoided too. Lots of potential for endocrine/estrogen related problems. Have a look here, here and here.

April O Neill

Redisle wrote: »

Tbh the Soya milk is probably best avoided too. Lots of potential for endocrine/estrogen related problems. Have a look here, here and here.

Yeah, I avoid soya where possible.

OP, smoothies tend to very acidic too, not great for your teeth, TBH.

Stench Blossoms

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

I don´t have much time during the week and work long hours, so it saves me time. Is there a difference having it in Smoothie form?

I can cook and eat scrambled eggs and bacon in less than 15mins.

The difference in having it in a smoothie form is you are taking in a lot more calories than you would if you just ate the fruit (because you wouldn't be able to eat all that fruit).

April O Neill

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

I can cook and eat scrambled eggs and bacon in less than 15mins.

The difference in having it in a smoothie form is you are taking in a lot more calories than you would if you just ate the fruit (because you wouldn't be able to eat all that fruit).

It's not that much fruit, in fairness.

Stench Blossoms

April O Neill wrote: »

It's not that much fruit, in fairness.

If you can you eat 3 full oranges, half a banana, an apple and a couple of kiwis in one sitting then more power to you.

April O Neill

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

If you can you eat 3 full oranges, half a banana, an apple and a couple of kiwis in one sitting then more power to you.

Er, easily, it's seriously not that much. I don't ever eat that much fruit, but I could, really easily. :)

Stench Blossoms

April O Neill wrote: »

Er, easily, it's seriously not that much. I don't ever eat that much fruit, but I could, really easily. :)

Fair play to you.

April O Neill

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

Fair play to you.

It wasn't a boast, honest!

sherbett32

I'm with SB, I could drink a smoothie in a few seconds, it would take me much longer to eat that fruit. Also you're missing on on the fibre in the fruit.

Are you not hungry an hour later after the smoothie.

Eve_Dublin

Merkin wrote: »

I'm doing Slimming World at the moment and while we're encouraged to eat fruit, juicing is strictly off-limits. When you juice fruits, you are essentially creating a processed food. While the fruit juice may originate from a whole fruit, it is now processed. As a result, the nutrients in the fruit are now released quickly into the body and this includes the sugar. When you juice fruits, it is easier to juice more fruits than what you can actually eat. So in addition to processing the fruits, you are now taking in more fruit by juicing as opposed to eating. So not only does the processing make the sugar content go higher and faster, but now you are essentially consuming more fruits in the juice form.

I didn't read this properly. This is what I was looking for. Maybe I´ll continue with the smoothie (they're so damn delicious!) but cut down on the fruit. Thanks!

Eve_Dublin

sherbett32 wrote: »

I'm with SB, I could drink a smoothie in a few seconds, it would take me much longer to eat that fruit. Also you're missing on on the fibre in the fruit.

Are you not hungry an hour later after the smoothie.

I´m never hungry. It's not a replacement for a meal, it was just for a "healthy" treat. I run and eat well besides.

Call Me Jimmy

Again not an expert but worrying too much about acidity in fruit for your teeth and how healthy or unhealthy the smoothy is is negligible, unless you are a competitive athlete you are way ahead of 90% percent of the population in terms of treats/snacks.

tunguska

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

Every second day, I make a fruit smoothie here at home. They usually contain half a banana, the juice of 2-3 freshly squeezed oranges, an apple and two kiwis mixed together with a good drop or two of soya milk but I´ve just read that it's possibly not good for you (too many calories) and can make you hungrier after. How could this be? Seems like every time I go on a healthy kick with something, I read conficting info somewhere.

The only thing I'd change about your smoothie is I'd add more protein and vegetables to slow balance out the sugar spike. I use hemp protein but you could use whey or casein if you like. Personally I think hemp is the best as its got lots of chlorophyl which alkalises your system. You could add some spinage or kale aswell which again would slow things down due to high fiber content. I'd ditch the soya milk aswell and just use plain old water. Heres the smootie I use:

- Some water
- Scoop of hemp protein
- Tablespoon of moringa olefeira powder
- Cup of blueberries
- 1 Apple(sliced)
- 1 kiwi
- 1 Banana
- 1/2 grapefruit
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- kale/spinach leaves

One more thing, I always drink my smoothies through a straw

JimsAlterEgo

tunguska wrote: »

The only thing I'd change about your smoothie is I'd add more protein and vegetables to slow balance out the sugar spike. I use hemp protein but you could use whey or casein if you like. Personally I think hemp is the best as its got lots of chlorophyl which alkalises your system. You could add some spinage or kale aswell which again would slow things down due to high fiber content. I'd ditch the soya milk aswell and just use plain old water. Heres the smootie I use:

- Some water
- Scoop of hemp protein
- Tablespoon of moringa olefeira powder
- Cup of blueberries
- 1 Apple(sliced)
- 1 kiwi
- 1 Banana
- 1/2 grapefruit
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- kale/spinach leaves

One more thing, I always drink my smoothies through a straw

sorry to bump this but whats benefit of "moringa olefeira powder"

JimsAlterEgo

JimsAlterEgo wrote: »

sorry to bump this but whats benefit of "moringa olefeira powder"

anyone?

tunguska

JimsAlterEgo wrote: »

anyone?

I take it for recovery after training, its high on the ORAC scale(which is a measure of how powerful an antioxidant is). But its got a full range of vitamins & minerals aswell. Check it out:

http://www.moringabenefits.net/

runawaybishop

Eve_Dublin wrote: »

I don´t have much time during the week and work long hours, so it saves me time. Is there a difference having it in Smoothie form?

You lose out on the fibre.

Lux23

I prefer to eat the fruit to be honest.

Sephya

runawaybishop wrote: »

You lose out on the fibre.

not true. the fibre is still there. juicing removes the fibre not smoothies.

runawaybishop

Sephya wrote: »

not true. the fibre is still there. juicing removes the fibre not smoothies.

Right, assuming it is being made in a blender and not juiced. I just assumed it was being juiced.