Smoothies are a quick and easy on-the-go breakfast, and perfect to cool you down this summer! That said, some store-bought smoothies are high-calorie sugar bombs, mostly because they use fruit compotes and added sweeteners like honey, agave or maple syrup. These “liquid” sugars are different from the natural sugars found in whole fruit. Natural sugar is packaged with fiber and other nutrients that help slow digestion and prevent that mid-morning blood sugar crash. Fresh fruit also offers additional vitamins and minerals like vitamin C; something added sugar doesn’t have.
Reducing added sugar in the diet is important because too much sugar can increase your risk for hypertension, inflammation, weight gain, diabetes and fatty liver disease.
To help up your smoothie game, here are five tasty smoothies chock full of nutritious whole foods. Best of all, they’re all under 200 calories and have less than 15 grams of sugar per serving!
Discover hundreds of healthy recipes — from high-protein to low-carb — via “Recipe Discovery” in the MyFitnessPal app.
