Strawberry Geendrink Smoothie
Protein powders are highly processed and often heated to the point that the protein is denatured, making it very hard for the body to recognize and use. Also, since they are not considered "supplements" they are not regulated by the FDA, and some of the cheaper, non organic brands are filled with artificial sweeteners, allergens like whey protein and soy, and preservatives. Consumer reports even tested some a few years back and found heavy metals in them. Yikes
Protein powders are NOT whole foods. A lot of people think protein powders are just regular whole foods dried and ground up into powder form, and it's a lot more complicated than that. To get a high protein count, you have to extract the proteins OUT OF the food, leaving the rest behind.
One popular veggie protein powder is pea protein, made in a lab and it's got a high glutamate concentration so if may affect you the same way MSG does. It's extracted even if it's organic and I found I got headaches if eating more than a small dose a few times a week as both my husband and I are very sensitive to MSG.
In some brands you can find GMO ingredients and Whey Protein Isolate, another high glutamate/extracted ingredient which is non-vegan and is usually not organic (which means it may contain antibiotics and pesticides too)
My favorite alkaline "green" drink go to
Your body processing all of this protein can be hard on the kidneys and you can end up with excess acid and uric acid build up as your body tries to digest and break down those proteins. You want a highly alkaline smoothie, NOT a highly acidic one unless you want to tempt a kidney stone down the road.
SuperGreenFood is a 30 calorie per serving grass green blend, with no sugar fiber and a fruit based antioxidant blend as well as probiodics (for those that can't eat dairy yogurt). It's been improved to be more finely ground, so think sort of clean salad taste in a smooth liquid, NOT glass clippings. They do have some flavored with orange or pineapple which are surprisingly good, but usually I just blend with a cup of fruit for a really refreshing low calorie smoothie This is NOT a protein boost, containing only 2 grams but it is very good for you, and has a soothing alkaline effect on the body.
I was diagnosed with high uric acid levels post menopause, when I had a gout attack. You do NOT want to go there. One day you're fine, then you wake up in the morning and your toe or wrist or other joint is the size of Delaware and the pain is so bad you can't even touch the skin.
That was a week of "get this baby out of me NOW" kind of pain I had not expected. It took the docs a few days to figure it out. I had none of the triggers for gout, - in my late 40's, normal weight, extremely light drinker, female, but the doctor said a highly acid diet of two cheap nutritional drinks a day and a diet high in protein and light in calories while trying to drop five pounds fast, plus menopause likely triggered it. That's a lesson I don't have to learn twice. So I ditched the sugary drug store diet drinks and all of the meat and added one of these green drinks every day, drank lots of water, added a few more calories in the form of alkaline fruits and veggies and I haven't had as much as a flare up since the initial one.
So think about what you are putting in your smoothie - just because it's in the "health food" section of the grocery does NOT mean it's healthy.
Yes, wise words about foods in the healthy foods section. For the longest time I considered gout an old man's disease, didn't really know what it was but thought it affected old men in their feet. Is that odd lol?? I love the texture of smoothies and could easily be an addict.
ReplyDeleteC
Yes, the docs took about 3 days while I was in agony to figure out what was the issue. Crash diet/high protein/menopause was the issue. I LOVE smoothies, but keep them with the healthy supplements, low carb fruits and sparkling water.
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteI used to make all sorts of smoothies in OZ (just with fresh fruits - no need for any adds), but somehow here in UK never got back into it. Must revisit!
Eyes-on... YAM xx
At one point in her life, my mother had serious kidney issues. (They were functioning at 20 and 30% or so). She was very ill and eating was hard. Her specialist told her the last thing to do was to have protein powder. Said it was too hard on the kidneys. My husband is always saying I should put some into my smoothie (which I am drinking as I read this - banana, spinach, kale, zucchini, chia seeds, rice milk, water) but I refuse! I may send him the link to this post so he knows I am not making it up!
ReplyDeleteI read the outcome of a study on protein where rats with kidney disease were fed various protein powders. The kidneys of those given diets which contained hemp protein compared with casein-based diets were less enlarged, had lower fluid content, smaller cyst volumes, less fibrosis, lower chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) levels and normalized serum creatinine level. Kidneys from diseased rats given pea protein compared with casein were more enlarged and had higher fluid content and cyst volumes, despite growing better and having lower serum creatinine and renal chemokine receptor 2 levels, and similar levels of renal fibrosis. So if you're going to eat some protein powder, hemp seems the way to go.
DeleteI read the outcome of a study on protein where rats with kidney disease were fed various protein powders. The kidneys of those given diets which contained hemp protein compared with casein-based diets were less enlarged, had lower fluid content, smaller cyst volumes, less fibrosis, lower chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) levels and normalized serum creatinine level. Kidneys from diseased rats given pea protein compared with casein were more enlarged and had higher fluid content and cyst volumes, despite growing better and having lower serum creatinine and renal chemokine receptor 2 levels, and similar levels of renal fibrosis. So if you're going to eat some protein powder, hemp seems the way to go.
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