Smoothies are a quick and easy meal or snack, and can be extremely nutritious when we incorporate healthy additions. When making a smoothie with healthy ingredients, it can become a powerful source of antioxidants, fiber, omega-3s, vitamins, and minerals.
Simple Smoothie Add-Ins to Up Nutrient Value
If you're someone who drinks a smoothie before a workout, then Ribose is for you. Ribose promotes muscle strength and energy production, and reduces recovery time following strenuous exercise. Even though our body produces some Ribose, it’s quickly depleted with exercising. Adding Ribose to our smoothie can amp up our workout routine.
Adding vitamin D to our smoothie can be beneficial for muscle health, immune support, healthy teeth and bones, calcium absorption, and cardiovascular health. Carlson offers vitamin D in convenient liquid drops. A single drop provides the strength of vitamin D listed on the label and can be added directly into a smoothie.
Green and red powders are great additions to smoothies, as they add a concentrated source of nutrients from fruits and vegetables. Green powders are usually derived from vegetables such as nutritious dark, leafy greens, while red powders are usually a concentrated source from fruits, like berries, that are chock-full of antioxidants. And it’s much easier to add a scoop of powder than a handful of spinach. Many powders incorporate more fruits and vegetables than we could ever fit into a single smoothie.
We may not think of adding aloe vera to a smoothie, but it benefits the digestive tract and promotes colon health. Some of us may not like the flavor or texture of aloe vera gel, so adding it to a smoothie is a great option.
We’ve all heard that dark chocolate has health benefits with the darker chocolate being the healthiest. The reason is chocolate comes from the cocoa beans, which are rich in antioxidants and flavanols that promote brain and heart health. Choose cocoa powder that is 100% pure cocoa with no added sugar. You could also shave off a thin slice from a dark chocolate bar or use cocoa nibs.
The beneficial omega-3s EPA and DHA offer many important health benefits, including promoting heart, brain, vision, joint, and immune health. Adding it to a smoothie is easy with Carlson liquid omega-3s in award-winning flavors such as lemon, orange, fruit splash, green apple, mixed berry, or just peachy flavor.
Flaxseed or chia seeds and even spirulina can be great additions to a smoothie. With so many benefits to be gained from quick and easy smoothie additions, incorporating them to our next blend should be a priority.
