Say whaaa? I thought I finally had a healthy and EASY plan for breakfast!
Well there is good news, and there is bad news. A green smoothie, especially one made of green leafy veggies, will be much lower in sugar. But a fruit smoothie can be a really easy way to put your pancreas into overdrive. At the end of the day it’s all about fiber.
Fiber is Your Friend
In many ways, talk of fiber in dietary circles has become a bit of a cliché. We all know about fiber…right? Perhaps not. Fruits and vegetables contain both soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber is just that- it’s “soluble” in water. When combined with water, it becomes a gel-like substance. Insoluble fiber does not absorb or dissolve in water. It passes through our digestive tract in ‘close to’ its original form. The relationship those two substances have with each other is fundamental to how quickly sugar enters our bloodstream. In turn, increased levels of sugar incite the release of insulin, and elevated levels of insulin are directly linked with weight gain.
The Buddy System
Soluble and insoluble fiber need each other in order to slow the release of sugar. Imagine the insoluble fiber like the grate in your sink drain. Because soluble fiber becomes gelatinous once it is mixed with water, it collects in the “grate” structure of the insoluble fiber. This forms a coating in your stomach that prevents the digesting sugar from immediately being delivered to the bloodstream. When both types of fiber are intact, they work together to act as a time release for sugar.
When you eat a piece of fruit, the soluble and insoluble fiber can perform their teamwork effectively. When you blend a piece of fruit, the insoluble fiber has been rendered nearly useless by the chopping of the blades. In a smoothie, soluble fiber has less “structure” holding it together as a coating for your stomach. Ironically, drinking a lot of fruit by means of smoothies is an excellent way to gain weight, not lose it.
So if you must drink a smoothie, a green smoothie is by far better simply because veggies contain less sugar. It might also be a good idea to not over blend your green smoothie, so as to not break the insoluble fiber down too much.
Lathe Poland is one of the creators of the documentary film Carb-Loaded: A Culture Dying To Eat.
Why is this low-carb website named CARB-LOADED?
Because we made a documentary about modern food culture (see it here)!
