Smoothies: benefits and harms to the body

In the last five years in our country, a real boom in smoothies. These are bright, tasty and aromatic alcohol-free cocktails made from fresh fruits, vegetables and berries. You can add ice, yogurt, milk, soda to them. These cocktails were chosen by vegans, raw foodists and other fans of a healthy lifestyle, harmony and beauty. The benefits and harms of smoothies for the body are described in detail in this article.

Rules for making smoothies

To prepare a fragrant and bright drink at home for everyone. Of course, in fashionable restaurants of good nutrition, the cocktail will be decorated with slices of citrus fruits, high-quality sweetener and natural seasonings are used for preparation. But all this can be easily repeated in your own kitchen.

1. You will need a powerful blender capable of chopping even hard raw vegetables, such as carrots or raw beets, to a homogeneous mass - popular ingredients that make the smoothie's use indisputable for blood formation. In order not just to achieve grinding, but to grind raw beets to a homogeneous consistency, a device with a power of at least 1300 watts is required.
2. What supplements should i choose? After all, the benefits of smoothies are not only the presence of vitamins and minerals from fresh vegetables, fruits and berries. There are also added amino acid mixtures, skim milk, yogurt. If you want a cold, refreshing cocktail in hot summers, you can add ice cubes from distilled water. Icy mineral water will also enrich the taste of the cocktail not only with air bubbles, but also with a mixture of minerals. If you want to add milk to give the drink a creamy taste, you should opt for a low-fat product. Sometimes even skimmed cottage cheese is added to the smoothie so that the drink has a full spectrum of amino acids and proteins. In this case, the consistency is rather thick.
3. Lumps and pieces are not allowed in smoothies. The essence of making a cocktail is that it can freely pass through a straw. If in the smoothie you feel incomplete pieces of ingredients, then either the blender was not powerful enough or the cooking technology was broken.
4. Fruits, vegetables and berries for the preparation of the drink should be used fresh and thoroughly washed, dried. If at least one ingredient turns out to be stale or even rotten - the taste of the cocktail will be spoiled. In addition, the person who consumed such a drink is at risk of digestive upset.
5. If the goal of a person eating smoothies is to lose weight, green ingredients should be preferred. They most often have negative calorie content and are perfectly combined with each other in taste. These are cucumber, celery, kiwi (of course, peeled), broccoli, green varieties of apples (Granny Smith, Simirenko).

Unlike regular cocktails and juices

Juices are drinks, during the preparation of which only liquid is expressed, and the cake is thrown away. The essence of making smoothies is that the cake cannot be thrown out, as it is a complete ingredient.

Cocktails in the usual sense of the word mean the addition of a particular alcohol. Smoothies can be called a vegan or raw food cocktail, since alcohol is never added to it. From home-made vegetable smoothies, the consumer will fully appreciate the benefit. You can pick ripe fruits yourself and adjust the density of the drink by adding or decreasing the amount of ice, milk, yogurt or cream.

Smoothies are much thicker than juice. Cocktails are different in density, but more often they are closer in consistency to juices. Smoothies in some cases are so thick that resembles a creamy mass. This implies recipes with the addition of liquid cottage cheese, yogurt, cream. However, we must not forget the rule: you can drink a smoothie through a tube, so that even with a relatively high density, it should stretch.

Berry smoothies: cooking rules

The benefits of a smoothie of berries will be maximum if you take into account the simple rules in the cooking process.

1. Seedless berries should be selected. This raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, pulp of watermelon. Cherries and cherries can be used after removing the seeds.
2. Before preparing a drink, you should carefully sort through all the berries, rinse and dry them. If you start grinding wet fruits immediately after washing, the smoothie will turn out to be too watery; even if at first glance the berries look almost dry, they still accumulated a lot of moisture.
3. The strawberry smoothie, whose benefits and tastes are highest, is easiest to cook. Ideal combination with banana, mango, nectarine, watermelon, peach. Strawberry-melon smoothie will give a real pleasure even to the most sophisticated gourmet. Strawberry is rich in beneficial antioxidants and slows down the aging process.
4. As a seasoning for berry smoothies, you can use vanillin, cinnamon, ginger. Fans of sugary drinks can add powdered sugar (regular sugar is also suitable, but it must first be crushed in a blender). Losing weight people are better off using a zero calorie sweetener.

How to cook fruit smoothies?

The use of fruit smoothies is the abundance of vitamins and minerals in the composition. The lack of heat treatment allows you to save all the elements almost intact. It’s much easier for the body to absorb healthy ingredients from raw foods. Unfortunately, in the presence of chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, some raw fruits, even when ground, can provoke an exacerbation. But more about that below.

The benefits of fruit smoothies, based on the composition:

• with the addition of banana - it supports the work of the heart muscle and restores the salt balance in the body due to its high potassium content;
• apple smoothie - an excellent treatment and prevention of iron deficiency anemia, as ripe fruits are rich in ferritin;
• Kiwi in cocktails will help increase immunity, as it contains a lot of ascorbic acid;
• mango increases libido and mood, promoting the release of oxytocin and endorphins;
• the flesh of orange, lemon juice in the smoothie will help fight autumn melancholy and depression, and a high content of vitamin C helps prevent colds;
• smoothie pineapple is the perfect solution for losing weight.

After the culinary man has a hand in making simple one-component cocktails, you can move on to more complex recipes. Multicomponent smoothies surprise with an unusual combination of products and are able to amaze even the most sophisticated gourmet.

The combination of berries, vegetables and fruits is sometimes truly amazing. The use of an apple-celery smoothie is in the negative calorie content of the second. This is a great recipe for losing weight. A celery smoothie and apple pulp saturates and gives an excellent mood, supplying the body with iron, vitamin C, potassium, selenium and iodine.

Vegetable Smoothie

Uninitiated in the intricacies of proper nutrition, people still believe that the benefits of smoothies are the presence of berries and fruits. It's a delusion. For a long time, various ingredients are used for cooking all over the world, excluding only products of animal origin.

The benefits of smoothies for the body are invaluable. And vegetables make this dish a complete meal replacement. It’s not about a light dessert anymore - it’s more like vegan soup puree, cream breakfast, lunch or dinner. Some people once and for all refuse to eat animal products and switch to vegetable cream soups. At the same time, they do not lose anything in terms of well-being and state of health, using additional tabletted amino acids.

Greens are often added to vegetable smoothies - this enriches them with an unusual aroma and taste. It should be noted that all ingredients must be raw. These are carrots, beets, celery, radishes, cucumbers, tomatoes. Some ingredients are simply amazing.

1. The benefits of a nettle smoothie are invaluable for hematopoiesis. Regular intake of such a cocktail is an excellent prevention of thrombosis, varicose veins, inflammatory processes, problems with the cardiovascular system and vein walls.
2. Carrot smoothie is rich in retinol and is ideal for people with diseases of the eyes, skin, liver. It should be noted that raw carrots are a rather strong allergen and may not be suitable for everyone. Carrot smoothie is the perfect aperitif. Stimulates appetite and improves digestion. Cleanses the body from accumulated toxins, toxic compounds, alcohol intoxications and other contaminants.
3. Beetroot smoothie is a magic remedy for blood. Fruits contain a protein that is very similar to a protein in human blood. This explains why beets so quickly help recover in the event of anemia. It's hard to believe, but beets contain hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is responsible for transporting oxygen and carbon dioxide in the human body. Due to the presence of hemoglobin in beets, a beneficial effect is achieved in a short time.
4. Celery smoothie, whose use is obvious for fat burning, is made by pressing raw and maximally fresh vegetable stalks. The highest value of the drink is the ability in a short time to cleanse the body of stagnation, toxic substances, and other poisons. Cleansed kidneys, liver, blood channels. The use of green smoothies is in the negative calorie content of celery. This is a great choice for those who want to lose weight.

Relationship with the presence of chronic diseases of the internal organs

The reader is of the opinion that the use of the above recipes is only beneficial. The harm of smoothies and juices must not be overlooked. For some people, these recipes are literally dangerous.

1. In the presence of gastritis and peptic ulcer, the use of juices, infusions and smoothies from raw berries and fruits can provoke an exacerbation, increased pain and internal bleeding.
2. In the presence of chronic cholecystitis, a hepatologist should be consulted before using the smoothie.
3. The benefits of a smoothie for breakfast are only apparent to fully healthy people. If there are chronic diseases of the peritoneal organs, the intake of fresh fruits on an empty stomach even in powdered form is prohibited.
4. If a person is prone to developing allergies, you should be careful, fresh berries and fruits are often strong allergens.

What time of the day is it best to eat smoothies?

What time of day cocktails made of fruits and vegetables will bring the greatest effect? The benefits and harms of a smoothie for breakfast will vary depending on the individual characteristics of the body. Everything that a person takes on an empty stomach should be coordinated with the attending gastroenterologist (subject to the presence of chronic diseases).

The optimal time for eating smoothies (in order to maximize the benefits) is a snack after breakfast. A portion of vitamins and minerals will strengthen the body before dinner, and carbohydrates will give vitality.

Replacing a smoothie dinner is not a good idea. This is not good, but rather harm. An optimal dinner is a piece of fish or meat or a glass of kefir. Minimum carbohydrates and maximum protein. This principle will help to establish a dream, not to suffer from insomnia (carbohydrates charge with energy) and lose weight.

Possible harm to the body

A completely healthy person has nothing to fear. But in the presence of a peptic ulcer of the digestive system, polyps, erosion, gastritis, pain can intensify. Especially dangerous in the presence of such diagnoses, take smoothies on an empty stomach. Before you start to regularly eat foods made from fresh vegetables and fruits, you should consult with your gastroenterologist.

In the presence of chronic cholecystitis, inflammation of the cells of the gallbladder can intensify when taking a smoothie. You should start taking small portions, avoid citrus fruits and herbs, as well as hot spices as ingredients.

Consequences of replacing regular foods with smoothies and smoothies

What will happen if you completely switch to liquid nutrition? Such a system exists. And there are a lot of liquid eaters (as they call people who eat only smoothies and dishes from grated raw vegetables). They unite in groups and support each other. They say that health is fundamentally changing and even chronic diseases pass. However, not a single miracle cure was ever documented.

In nutrition matters, it is best to avoid radical decisions. Abrupt transition to liquid nutrition can be life-threatening. Inevitability of exhaustion. A blood clot can come off, can’t stand the heart, stones will start to leave the gallstone - doctors will not be able to do without emergency help.

If absolutely necessary, the transition to liquid nutrition should be gradual. The optimal transition period is three to four months. If during this time no health problems appear, you can continue to eat only smoothies. At the same time, a person should be aware that atrophy of intestinal motility, muscle dystrophy, alopecia and skin problems (due to a deficiency of amino acids in the diet) can await him.

Doctors advice: how not to harm yourself

The opinion of doctors about the benefits and dangers of smoothies is ambiguous. Some doctors advocate switching to food with chopped raw vegetables. Others, on the contrary, are categorically against. Opinions agree on one thing: in the presence of chronic diseases of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract, one should be extremely careful with the introduction of smoothies into the diet.

1. Such a change in the diet can contribute to the passage of stones from the gall.
2. Children are strictly forbidden to eat only smoothies, otherwise the development of muscle dystrophy is possible.
3. Smoothies are more useful than juices, as they contain a little more calories, and the stomach perceives them as more complete food.
4. Smoothies cannot replace the intake of vitamin-mineral complexes.
5. In the presence of chronic gastritis and intestinal ulcer, it is strictly forbidden to take an empty stomach smoothie.
6. Smoothies contain a lot of carbohydrates - this should be taken into account by people who are losing weight, since proteins and amino acids are mainly needed for fat burning.