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I’m a person too.
I know that, subconsciously, I didn’t seem like a person at the time. I was a spandex-clad obstacle in your way on a two-lane ribbon of undulating asphalt. I was a disruption in the speed and direction of your three-ton missile of masculinity. I was, paradoxically, another in a series of threats in an environment that is increasingly perceived as dangerous.
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For my daughter’s first birthday party a few years ago, I went all out and made an entire multi-dish lunch and cake from scratch. It was super stressful and just not necessary. For her next two parties, I decided we would just get pizzas delivered and I would focus my attention on the cake instead, which was much more manageable and fun.
When ordering the pizzas for the parties, I asked the restaurant to do one extra thing for me, and it’s something that I highly recommend all parents do!
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In the health community, the green smoothie has become the poster child for healthy eating. If you are a green smoothie fan, your typical recipe probably looks something like this:
This green smoothie is full of veggies—spinach, kale, and broccoli—so it must be healthy, right? Well, not necessarily. While cruciferous vegetables and leafy greens certainly have health benefits, consuming large amounts of them in green smoothies may not be healthy in the long run, for several significant reasons.
As you can see, it may be time to reconsider whether regularly drinking green smoothies is a wise choice for our health.
Cruciferous veggies and leafy greens undoubtedly have many health benefits, but consuming large amounts of them in green smoothies may not be healthy in the long run
The soil in which vegetables grow has a significant impact on their micronutrient content. However, just as beneficial minerals are transferred from soil into plants, so too are toxic metals. Unfortunately, research shows that the toxic heavy metal thallium, which occurs in soil as a byproduct of smelting and coal-burning, preferentially accumulates in cruciferous vegetables such as kale, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, and bok choy. (1) This means that people who eat a lot of cruciferous vegetables, as green smoothie aficionados are wont to do, may be exposing themselves to high levels of thallium. In fact, an astute molecular biologist and alternative health practitioner named Ernie Hubbard found this to be just the case among his health-conscious clients, who were experiencing many bizarre symptoms that did not fit any standard disease pattern. After much investigation, he was eventually able to trace their symptoms back to thallium toxicity resulting from their cruciferous vegetable-heavy green smoothie habits. (2)
Unfortunately, when it comes to thallium, even low-level exposures can cause symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, stomach pain, hair loss, and peripheral neuropathy. (3) While some medical authorities have argued that toxic metals are present throughout our environment and that we shouldn’t worry about trace levels in otherwise-healthy vegetables, the problem remains that heavy metal exposures are additive and synergistic. Many heavy metals have similar adverse effects on the body, so continuous consumption of thallium in vegetables, plus daily exposure to other heavy metal sources, exponentially increases the body’s toxic burden. Based on this evidence, if you are regularly drinking green smoothies and experiencing any unusual health problems, it may be time to investigate your thallium level and reconsider your green smoothie habit.
If you aren’t ready to get rid of your green smoothie just yet, at least consider using only organic cruciferous vegetables in your drink. Soils that are rich in carbon-based matter, such as soil on organic farms, have been found to impede the transfer of thallium into plants; this effect is less likely to occur in the carbon-depleted soils used on conventional farms. This means that organic produce may contain lower levels of heavy metals, such as thallium, compared to conventionally raised produce, potentially resulting in a healthier green smoothie. (4, 5, 6)
Concerningly, green smoothies may also have adverse effects on the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland requires the mineral iodine to produce thyroid hormones. Cruciferous vegetables—common ingredients in green smoothies—contain compounds called glucosinolates, which inhibit iodine uptake by the thyroid. This may result in a reduced ability of the thyroid gland to produce hormones, leading to reduced thyroid function. (7) Furthermore, the risk of high cruciferous vegetable intake impairing thyroid function is greater in people with iodine deficiency. Iodine deficiency is not uncommon in folks on a Paleo or otherwise “healthy” diet, since the main dietary sources of iodine available are sea vegetables, iodized salt, dairy, and fortified foods, which are often excluded on a Paleo or unprocessed diet.
While large quantities of raw cruciferous vegetables pose a problem to the thyroid gland, cooked cruciferous vegetables appear to be much safer. Cooking cruciferous vegetables stimulates the production of an enzyme called myrosinase that helps to deactivate goitrogenic glucosinolates. (8)
Opting to eat cruciferous vegetables in their whole-food form is another way to reap the health benefits of these vegetables without getting a heavy hit of goitrogens; it is much harder to overeat vegetables when they are in their whole form versus juiced or blended in a green smoothie.
Another significant problem with green smoothies is that they are often high in oxalate, a type of naturally occurring plant compound that promotes kidney stone formation and inflammation in certain people when eaten in excess. (9) Oxalate occurs in high amounts in spinach, chard, dandelion greens, beets, collard greens, berries, broccoli, cabbage, and carrots. In some people, oxalates accumulate in body tissues and provoke inflammation. In fact, oxalate accumulation has been associated with chronic pain, nephrolithiasis (aka kidney stones), neurological symptoms, vulvar pain, and fibromyalgia pain.
Currently, a high oxalate intake is defined as the consumption of 250 mg oxalate per day. For reference, one cup of raw spinach contains around 656 mg oxalate. (10) As you can see, it would be quite easy to overdo it on oxalates if you are regularly drinking green smoothies, which often contain a cup or more of spinach! Research has confirmed that green juices made using common vegetables contain high levels of soluble oxalates and that the consumption of these drinks may precipitate oxalate kidney stone formation. (11, 12) Some green smoothie proponents advocate “rotating” greens to include low-oxalate options such as mustard greens, watercress, and lettuce; this may help prevent green smoothie-induced oxalate overload.
Certain genetic variants, such as the SLC26A1 variant, and pre-existing gut issues, such as Crohn’s disease and dysbiosis, may increase an individual’s susceptibility to the harmful effects of dietary oxalates. For these individuals, reducing dietary oxalate intake may significantly relieve symptoms. (13, 14) Replenishing the gut with beneficial bacteria from probiotics and fermented foods may also assist in the degradation of oxalate, since several probiotic species, including Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BI07, and Oxalobacter formigenes, have been found to degrade dietary oxalate. (15, 16, 17)
Unfortunately, green smoothies are not quite as healthy as we have been led to believe, due to their thallium, goitrogen, and oxalate content. Rather than relying on green smoothies as a primary source of vegetables, I recommend eating veggies in their whole-food form and cooking cruciferous vegetables to lower their goitrogen content. If you are not ready to forgo green smoothies entirely, choose organic vegetables, which may be lower in heavy metals; rotate your greens so that you are regularly including low-oxalate options such as mustard greens and watercress; and consider supplementing with oxalate-degrading probiotics such as Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria.
Now I want to hear from you. Are you a fan of green smoothies? Have you noticed any adverse health effects as the result of your green smoothie habit? Let me know in the comments below.
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As you may have read in some previous posts, I spent the last few days at the International Home + Housewares Show in Chicago. It’s a big trade show, during which big and small companies show off their latest and greatest in cookware, small appliances, kitchen gadgets, and all other things in the name of cooking and eating. I saw tons of cool stuff (including the newest KitchenAid stand mixer colors). In fact, some of it was so cool, I just had to tell you about it now. Of course, it will be a while before most of these things come out, but it’s still fun to look!
Keep reading to check out some of the highlights. (Pardon the poor photo quality!)
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We’re serving up an early midweek recipe that will have you thinking spring—or St. Patty’s Day—along with a giveaway you won’t want to miss….
Fresh basil gives this refreshingly tart and tropical smoothie just a hint of herbal flavor. Boosted by Primal Kitchen® Collagen Peptides, this green smoothie offers ingredients that support healthy hair, skin and nails and connective tissue.
Ingredients
Instructions
In a blender, combine Primal Kitchen Collagen Peptides, kefir, spinach, pineapple, basil and ice.
Blend until smooth and frothy.
Enter HERE for a chance to get lucky with a brand-spanking-new Vitamix Blender, plus $200 in Primal Kitchen Collagen Fuel and Primal Kitchen Collagen Peptides. Winners will be announced 3/19!
And regardless of whether or not you take home the grand prize, everyone who enters will receive a code for 20% off our whole line of Collagen Fuel and Collagen Peptides at the conclusion of the giveaway!
Enter today—and while you’re at it scroll down the entry page to check out five other delicious green smoothie ideas to try. Be sure to share your favorite!
The post Enjoy a Collagen Peptides Green Smoothie—And Win a Vitamix! appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.
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When it comes to daydreaming about a future of perfectly organized pantries, you can scroll through Instagram (looking at you, Kristen Bell) or you can walk through a store full of the supplies that can make your dream a reality. One of our go-tos for organizers, separators, and (of course) containers has long been the Container Store.
If you’re also a huge fan of this organizing wonderland, we have some very good news: The Container Store is currently running a 25-percent-off promotion on kitchen products through April 1. Some exclusions apply to certain brands, but, in general, now is the time to stock up.
Not sure where to start? Here are some of our editors’ top picks.
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Sometimes the simplest ingredients, combined in the simplest of ways, have the power to stop time, erase your woes, and transport you to a place of nirvana-like bliss. Such is the power of the margherita pizza. Fresh tomato sauce, chewy mozzarella cheese, a sprinkling of basil on a crispy crust? I wouldn’t be surprised if you started levitating.
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If you met me on the street and got me talking, sooner or later I’d probably bring up risotto. I want to tell everyone I meet not to be afraid of it! There’s so much about risotto that scares people, and I think that’s really because there are too many myths floating around and not enough fact.
So since I probably won’t run into you on the street anytime soon, I am here to set things straight right now. Here’s what you need to know to make awesome risotto.
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If you’re not doing this already, it’s time to add your slow cooker to your weekend meal prep routine. It is nothing short of life-changing when it comes to getting a stress-free dinner on the table.
Each and every week during meal prep I always make a point to make one thing in the slow cooker that I can stash in the freezer for later. It has become the answer to easy lunches and dinner for extra-busy weeks.
Here are my 10 favorite things to prep and freeze for easy meals.
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In my house, we go to the grocery store about once a week. Sometimes we can stretch it to eight or nine days, if we have lots of food in the freezer, but the general routine is to go on Monday so we have a week of healthy foods ready to go. And while it’s tempting to just run out the door to the store, there’s one 10-minute task that should really be done before you go to the grocery store: organizing your fridge and pantry.
Just give the shelves a quick reordering. Take note of what you have and what needs to be replaced. And make sure stuff is where it belongs, clearing out things that have gone bad as you go. There are three main reasons why this is so important.
For now classes are 6pm and 640pm at 2840 Wildwood st in the Boise Cloggers studio.
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