Know some facts about your favourite fruit smoothies

During these arduous times we all are attracted towards healthy foods and products.One such from the list is the fruit smoothies which are much liked by the people and is instagrammable too! Thus, people often choose to have it as their breakfast or sometimes even lunch to aid weight loss. So here we are to clear out some of your doubts regarding your favourite smoothies.

What is a smoothie?

A smoothie is a blended beverage with a thick shake like consistency, which is mashed or pureed into a blender containing the desired fruits or vegetables as well as an added liquid which might be fruit juice, vegetable juice, milk or even yoghurt.

Know the ingredients that go into a smoothie

A smoothie basically contains the following:

• The desired fruit or vegetable or both.

• Ice - The ice can usually be eliminated if the fruits or vegetables used are frozen.

• The base – Dairy source like Yoghurt /milk/ ice cream or liquids like vegetable/fruit juice.

• Added sugar

To make a smoothie more appealing one may garnish it with mint leaves. Partially chopped or even slice or wedges of lemon can be added to make it overall more aesthetically appealing.

Do smoothies have different types?

Yes, they do. There are different types of smoothies and roughly they can be categorized into

i. Fruit smoothie:

It is made from the fruits of one’s choice for a sweet and fruity experience. This is the most common and most liked one. Fruits like berries, mango, bananas, pineapple, orange, kiwi etc. have received more attention for being added into smoothies.

ii. Green smoothie or vegetable smoothie:

It has added vegetables typically spinach and other greens like kale for giving it a characteristic green color. Apart from it, banana, mango, berries etc. can be added to make it more delicious.

iii. Dessert smoothie:

It has a lot of sugar added into it with dairy base being an ice cream. It mimics a dessert shake that one would prefer having to satisfy their sweet tooth. Ingredients like cocoa powder, peanut butter, banana etc. are the most common ones that are incorporated.

What do we get from smoothies?

There are many benefits of smoothies. If we exclude the extra added sugar from it, then it can be a great option to incorporate in our diet. Let us see what all nutrients we get from a glass of smoothie.

▪ Fruits and Vegetables –

Colorful fruits gives us antioxidants which have many health benefits. It naturally contains sugar so you can avoid adding extra. Fruits are also a particularly good source of soluble fibers which helps in digestion and is known to reduce blood cholesterol and blood sugar. We also get many vitamins and minerals (depending on the fruit) needed for our bodily functions.

▪ Dairy source –

Milk or Yoghurt is a good source of complete protein. It gives calcium and many other vitamins, minerals needed by our body. Adding yoghurt has an extra benefit of having probiotics in it which are friendly bacteria and helps our gut to remain healthy.

▪ Adding ingredients like dry fruits, chia seeds, flax seeds etc. is going to add to the nutritional value of the smoothie. They will contribute extra protein and good fats to the smoothie.

Are smoothies good for weight loss?

For those who wish to lose weight, avoid having smoothie and eat the fruit or vegetable of your choice as a whole because that is going to help you and is a lot more beneficial than having the smoothie.

Reasons for the above are:

Your smoothie has added sugars.

One big problem with having smoothies which most of us ignore while buying or making it is the amount of sugar added to it. Some smoothies in the market may claim it to be low in added sugars but has other alternatives of sugar like corn syrup or honey which is going to provide the same calories. Similarly, while making it at home, we add sugar in it to make it more palatable.

Provides less satiety.

Satiety is the feeling of fullness and suppression of hunger after eating a food. Research states that liquid foods produce less satiety than solid foods and its satiety level is low to none. So, having a smoothie may not keep you full for a long period of time.

Having smoothie does not mean you had a balanced meal

One should realize that smoothie does not contain all the necessary macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients. Thus, it cannot be replaced as a meal. However, it can be made more nourishing and enriching by adding yoghurt/curd and some nutritious seeds as well.

Make your favourite smoothie a healthy one

So, here is how you can make your smoothie more nutritious and have it without any guilt:

● DO NOT add extra sugar as your fruit is already going to have sugars naturally present in it. Blending also releases the sugars that are packed in fruit.

● DO NOT sieve your smoothie even if you wish to. Have it as such with the goodness of fibers.

● You may want to add some yoghurt and make the smoothie more nutritious and appetizing.

● Add some seeds like chia seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds or hemp seeds or some nuts like almond or walnuts as you may like.