Brain Healthy Breakfast Smoothies
Here is quick, delicious, nutritious brain-healthy breakfast.
Benefits
- Stable energy: you get all macronutrients in a glass which will provide stable energy and balance your blood sugar
- Sharper focus: focus determines how efficiently you process information. By taking sugar and refined foods out of breakfast, you help reduce inflammation that contributes to brain fog
- Better memory: when your brain is inflamed, it can affect your ability to form short-term memories and also connect to long-term member.
- Better mood: Inflammation and fat dysregulation resulting from poor food choices tap into flight-fight and anxiety-driven centers of your brain. By providing your brain instead with stable and efficient source of energy from high-nutrient foods, it becomes easier to reduce anxiety and depression. Your neurotransmitters will be stable rather than firing in an chaotic, anxiety-producing pattern = promoting feelings of happiness and sense of peace
- Reduce risk of cognitive decline: medical studies indicate nutrient deficiency (vitamins C,E, B12, B 6 and beta-carotene is linked to cognitive impairment. These breakfast smoothies pack in brain essential vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and healthy fats.
- Stronger immune system:
- Fast food: Fresh is best. You can store in a mason jar with a lid – or another airtight container – for 24 – 72 hours. This minimizes oxidation which breaks down nutrients and changes the color. Shake well before drinking
Basic formula
- Liquid: Nut milks, oat milk, grass-fed whole dairy milk, kefir, coconut water, filtered water
- Leafy greens: spinach, baby kale, mix of greens
- Nature’s fats: seeds (chia, flaxseed, hemp seed, sesame, pumpkin, sunflower and/or nuts (almond, cashews, pecans, walnuts, nut butters)
- Fruits: use organic if it’s on the Dirty Dozen list, go seasonal to increase the diversity of micronutrients, use shredded veggies (carrots, beets, zucchini) or pureed (beet pumpkin, sweet potato, butternut squash). Red/purple fruits are especially rich in brain-boosting phytochemicals
- Spices: allspice, cocoa, cinnamon, ginger, tumeric (with a pinch of black pepper)
- Sweeteners: Add bananas or dates. use nature’s sweeteners: honey, maple syrup, molasses or stevia
Starting combinations
Berry Almond Joy
- 1 cup frozen berries for the fruit
- 2 tablespoons coconut
- 2 tablespoons almond butter
Chocolate Strawberry
- 1 cup strawberries for the fruit
- Add 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa to the spices
Ginger Spice
- 1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and grated
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- Pinch of black pepper (to activate tumeric)
Mango Lassi
- 1 cup mango for the fruit
- kefir for the liquid