Why is the smoothie not addictive ?

Food Addiction

“Food Addiction – a serious problem with a simple solution”

The header of a serious nutrition blog june 2017. I don’t agree and I don’t think there is a simple solution (even I have to admit that my smoothie routine is not that simple to follow.)

But the smoothie due to the hormonal response that the soluble fibers in vegetables cause, inducing and promoting certain gut bacteria to proliferate and produce scfa –

SCFA = short chained fatty acids ( acetate, propionate and buturate).

SCFA  stimulate the L-cells in the mucus membrane /gut wall to produce appetite regulating hormones GLP-1 and PYY )

-will help you tremendously to conquer food addiction.

Remember 800 gr. of fruits and vegetables a day is the recommended daily intake, and where the health benefits from vegetables level out, meaning that more doesn’t do you extra good. It is a vast amount to eat daily !.

The only way I know to reach that level is to blend them and to drink them daily ; eg. at breakfast, kept in the fridge, after a workout, or perhaps brought along to work in a 0,5 l bottle to counteract unplanned snacking in the late afternoon when blood-sugar is low.

One of my friends brings it along his long commutes to work. Another friend – Danish ambassador – in Afghanistan with a large crew of security people,  has his local employed cook blend it up for him daily.

Whatever works!.

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Here is the list of the 17 most addictive foods compiled by University of Michigan using the Yale Food Addiction Scale:

1. Pizza (4.01)
2. Chocolate (3.73)
3. Chips (3.73)
4. Cookies (3.71)
5. Ice cream (3.68)
6. French fries (3.60)
7. Cheeseburgers (3.51)
8. Soda (not diet) (3.29)
9. Cake (3.26)
10. Cheese (3.22)
11. Bacon (3.03)
12. Fried chicken (2.97)
13. Rolls (plain) (2.73)
14. Popcorn (buttered) (2.64)
15. Breakfast cereal (2.59)
16. Gummy candy (2.57)
17. Steak (2.54)
18. Muffins (2.50)

Notice that there are no smoothie ingredients !

And here are the 10 least addictive

1. Cucumbers (1.53)
2. Carrots (1.60)
3. Beans (no sauce) (1.63)
4. Apples (1.66)
5. Brown rice (1.74)
6. Broccoli (1.74)
7. Bananas (1.77)
8. Salmon (1.84)
9. Corn (no butter or salt) (1.87)
10. Strawberries (1.88)

Apart from Salmon and perhaps brown rice they all belong in a smoothie.

The smoothies helps you to get rid of food addiction because

• they contain non addictive ingredients.
• they stimulate the gut bacteria to produce scfa which in turn stimulate the gut cells to produce appetite regulating hormones

So there may be no simple cure to get rid of food addiction but I do find that the smoothie routine after it is well established is slightly addictive and will help.

Here is what you should do; Try my once  weekly shopping list for 2 adults and 2 children (7 and 11years) and see if it makes a difference.

• 10 apples
• 10 oranges
• 2 bags of frozen spinach
• 2 kilos of carrots
• 1 bag of frozen peas
• 1 kilo of beetroots
• 1 pointed cabbage
• 2 bags of frozen strawberries
• fresh ginger
• fresh peppermint
• fresh tumeric

That will get you through your week and hopefully get you addicted.

This shopping support most smoothies in my blog, but by no means limit yourself to these.

Other great ingredients include

• green bananas
• avocados
• sweet potato
• peas
• grapes
• potato starch (is a fantastic ingredient add 30-40 g daily- it is really cheap and consist of 70% resistant starch. It is practically cheating. Remember it has to be potato starch , -not corn starch not potato flour)

I hope your blender will be up to the job, otherwise add one 2200 Watt/3 hp blender to the list !

What else to shop; fruits and dense vegetables.

Its important to experiment to make it taste great. Remember to upload your recipes here.

Here is a seriously tasty recepy developed by my daughter :

• 1 avocado
• 1 green (unripe) banana. When they are green the starch is resistant. When they ripe this is converted into fructose.
• 1 apple
• 1 orange
• 20 g. ginger
• 2-3 g fresh peppermint
• 100 g. strawberries (frozen)
• 2 carrots (150 g)
• 1 small beetroot (maybe 75g)
• 100 g peas (frozen)
• 100 g spinach (frozen)

remember about 500 ml of water.

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What else to shop; fruits and dense vegetables, Basically everything that grow on a plant and is not toxic. For once the advice is go for quantity: