Green smoothies and shakes are an excellent way to add vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients to your diet. Green smoothies can be an amazing boost to your health. Adding in plant powders is a way to increase the phytonutrient power even more.
Plant powders are whole foods that have been dried and pulverized. Since they have no water, the volume of plant material is extremely reduced while retaining the vital nutrients of the plant. In many cases, a teaspoon of plant powder is like an entire serving of that fruit or vegetable before it was dried. The drying process can decrease some nutrient properties, but in most cases much of the nutrients are retained. All it is lacking is the water, which you supply in the smoothie.
“Cancer Fighting and Anti-Inflammatory Smoothie Add-In Blend,” does not change the flavor of most smoothies. I have never noticed a difference in my smoothies and I drink it with this everyday. The ratios are blended to avoid a strong flavor, therefore it can be added to any smoothie for a super nutrition boost.
Made up of super foods, each of the ingredients has been chosen for its ability to reduce inflammation, fend off illness, and contribute to cell regeneration. Cell regeneration is linked with anti-aging.
When I first started drinking green smoothies, I added rose hip powder due to having joint problems. Rose hips are reputed to support joint health. My joint issues have been resolved by a combination of Pain Free Exercises (click here to see article describing my experience), my continuing exercise program, and continued good nutritional support for my joints, including the, “Cancer Fighting and Anti-Inflammatory Smoothie Add-In Blend,” with rose hip powder.
Besides their use for joint support, rose hips are also a recognized anti-inflammatory and have been studied for treating osteoarthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart disease as well as reducing tumors.
Green tea has been studied extensively in a wide range of health problems. It seems to be a magic elixir of health drinks, so I decided to add it straight to my smoothies rather than drinking a watered down tea version. If you do use liquid green tea in your smoothies, I recommend steeping the tea loose and pouring the entire thing into the smoothie. This will change the flavor of your smoothie more than simply adding green tea powder.
According to the abstract for “Green tea and anticancer perspectives: Updates from the last decade,” and “Green Tea May Lower Heart Disease Risk,” green tea has gained attention for its health benefits related to obesity, diabetes, cholesterol lowering, heart disease, stroke, and cancer. PubMed alone has over 5,000 studies cited on green tea.
Turmeric is another super food with amazing properties. It has been determined that curcumin diferuloylmethane is the main bioactive component in turmeric. According to the abstract for, “Curcumin, a component of golden spice: From bedside to bench and back,“
“More than 6000 articles published within the past two decades have discussed the molecular basis for the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, and anticancer activities assigned to this nutraceutical.”
Curcumin, the active component in turmeric, has been studied for treatment of various chronic conditions, including autoimmune, cardiovascular, neurological, and psychological diseases, as well as diabetes, cancer, dyspepsia, ulcerative colitis, heart disease, cancer, bacterial and viral infections, and uveitis (an inflammation of the iris).
Curcumin’s impact on lowering blood glucose levels could lower blood sugar too much when combined with diabetic medications, so it is recommended that diabetics first speak to their doctor about adding curcumin supplements. Although I have seen no warnings for normal use in cooking, it is something to watch carefully when using this blend, if you are diabetic. When in doubt, talk to a trust health professional.
Black pepper super activates the curcumin in the turmeric. Turmeric works without black pepper, but not as well. Adding a bit of black pepper has been shown to increase the effectiveness of the curcumin.
Together these three simple ingredients can add a super food phytonutrient boost to every already nutrient packed smoothie. This is a great way to super charge your diet to maximize the healing, anti-aging, and life giving properties of the foods you eat.
Cancer Fighting and Anti-Inflammatory Smoothie Add-In Blend
1 lb rose hip powder
3 to 3.5 oz. matcha green tea powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup turmeric powder
Pour all ingredients into a large bowl. Stir with a wire whisk until completely combined and all clumps are broken up. Use clean fingers, if necessary, to break up particularly hard clumps and mix them thoroughly into the blend.
Transfer blended powders into a canister with a tight fitting lid. Canister should keep the light out so the contents don’t oxidize. Do not use aluminum, as it can react with the ingredients and break them down.
When adding to your smoothie, use one tablespoon after you pour the liquid into the blender and continue to make the smoothie as usual.
Here is an example of a stainless steel canister that would work well for this purpose.
For a cheaper alternative, check out thrift stores for cute, vintage containers to store your blend.
To purchase these items through iherb.com, click on the links for each: Rose hip powder, green tea, turmeric. If this is your first purchase with iherb.com, you will receive a coupon of $5 off your first order of $5 or more through these links.
Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr., 2013 Sept 20. [Epub ahead of print] Abstract: Green tea and anticancer perspectives: updates from last decade, Butt MS, Ahmad RS, Sultan MT, Nasir Qayyum MM, Naz A., http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24915354
J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 August; 26(4):373S-388S, Abstract: Effects of green tea and EGCG on cardiovascular and metabolic health. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17906191
Harvard Heart Letter, December 2012, Green Tea May Lower Heart Disease Risk, http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Heart_Letter/2012/December/green-tea-may-lower-heart-disease-risk
Prasad S, Gupta SC, Tyagi AK, Aggarwal BB, Abstract: Curcumin, a compound of golden spice: From bedside to bench and back, Source: Turmeric – University of Maryland Medical Center, Medical Reference Guide, Complementary and Alternative Medicine Guide, Herb, Turmeric.
http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/turmeric#ixzz3ClzVcA5V
Copyright: / 123RF Stock Photo