Green smoothies are hot right now — every health-oriented restaurant and juice bar is offering it, and it’s easy to see why. Smoothies are the easiest (and tastiest) way of giving your body all the nutrition it needs, and green smoothies are all about nutrition.
There’s a lot to say about green smoothies, though. Not everything green is healthy. Although smoothies certainly help you stay nourished and healthy, they’re as good as your diet, so before talking about smoothies, make sure you put together a great meal plan with recipes from a respected source like how-to-boil.com.
What Are Green Smoothies, Anyway?
That’s a great question because the only thing all green smoothies have in common is their verdant color. Green smoothies often feature a wide variety of veggies, from kale and spinach to tastier mint or basil. If it’s green, then it’s on the guest list.
Veggies are not enough to make a smoothie, though — you need some liquid. Although water is a common addition to green smoothies, you can also make them with fruit juices or even creamy coconut or almond milk — that’s what we call nutrition! Here’s what you can expect from a typical green smoothie.
What Do Green Smoothies Add to Your Diet?
Green smoothies often have leafy greens. Authentic superfoods, including Swiss chard, kale, broccoli and spinach. These veggies add astounding amounts of vitamin K to your system, a compound that helps you synthesize proteins and help with blood clotting.
There’s also lots of vitamin C in green smoothies, especially if you add some citrus fruit to the blender. Vitamin C boosts your immune system, but it also acts at many levels in your body.
Green smoothies are packed with dietary and insoluble fiber. The first can help you cleanse your arteries, even reducing cholesterol levels. The latter promotes healthy digestion and keeps your gut bacteria happy.
There are many other vitamins, antioxidants and minerals in green smoothies, but it all depends on what you add to them.
Here’s a warning, though.
Fruit is healthy, yes, but overdoing it not so much. A tall glass of orange juice might add too many calories to your diet (one glass is equivalent to eating 6-8 whole oranges!) —there’s more sugar in orange juice than in a can of Coke!
And although all-natural and beautifully green, sometimes smoothies are not as healthy as they look. Let’s say it out loud; most veggies are not the tastiest thing on the planet, so people add lots of sugar to their smoothies to make them more palatable. Sure, all the veggies’ nutrition is still there, but too much sugar will make you gain weight instead of helping you reach your weight goals.
The Bottom Line
Yes, green smoothies are a great addition to your diet, and everything goes from plant-based milk and veggies to your favorite fruits. Be mindful of the amount of sugar added, though, even as fruit. Green smoothies are as healthy as you want them to be. Then again, they can be just a sugary drink disguised as a healthy smoothie.
How to make the perfect green smoothie? There’s no such a thing — find the perfect recipe for you. Add leafy greens, matcha, citrus fruit, berries and even some nuts. If your drink ends up looking somewhat green, congratulations! You’ve made yourself a green smoothie.
