If you’re looking to get healthy, then you’re probably wondering what is the better choice: a blender for green smoothies or a juicer. They are both excellent, however they cannot be considered to be interchangeable. If you’re interested in making green smoothies because you want the fiber and the satiation of hunger, then a blender is your go to appliance. The blender can turn kale, pineapple chunks, coconut, banana, and oats into a super tasty smoothie.
On the other hand, if you’re looking to get super high amounts of antioxidants from the juice of plants and fruits, then you need a juicer. Your body cannot process all of the fiber that is in bowls of spinach or kale, even if you blend it up. However, many people want to get the health benefits that come from lots of antioxidants. These vitamins and antioxidants are not found in the fiber, they are in the juice. So, while you might feel like drinking a green smoothie, it’s not going to give you the huge therapeutic amounts of vitamins or nutrients such as lutein and zeaxanthin which are great for preventing eye problems such as Macular Degeneration.
Weight Loss? A Blender
A juicer is not designed for weight loss. That’s because it is not going to fill you up as much as a smoothie will. Think of it this way, a juice is therapeutic. It can help with clear skin, or preventing certain diseases. But it won’t aid you in fat loss. If you need to cut calories, and want to eliminate hunger, then a smoothie is the only option. A juice my quell hunger for a short period of time, but it’s not a meal substitute like a smoothie is.
Disease Prevention
If you’re looking to make wheatgrass juice, it’s a masticating juicer you want. A blender is not going to be able to extract the juice. You’re just going to get a big blender up wheatgrass smoothie, which is not ideal. If you’re looking to prepare wheatgrass, you need to get a special auger juicer that will churn it up and extract the liquid.
People who are looking to treat cancers, and other disease by drinking huge amounts of plant based nutrients (antioxidants and flavaonoids) will need to get a juicer. A blender won’t allow you to get that same huge amount of liquid nutrients because of the fiber. However, the fiber in the fruits and vegetables should not be discounted. Plant fiber is vital for a healthy colon and has been shown to help prevent colon cancer and other aliments such as diverticulitis.
Also, some superfoods such as blueberries and blackberries are not well suited for a juicer. Even the best juicer won’t give you the same benefit when processing berries that a blender will. Too much will be lost. So, the idea scenario would be to have both a blender and a juicer for your leafy greens.
Protein Shakes and Building Muscle: Smoothie
While you can add protein powder to a juice, it’s not ideal. A blender, on the other hand, is perfect for making protein shakes or protein smoothies. You can add protein powder from your favorite brand (ON, Naked Whey, Vega) and you can also add protein to your smoothie in other ways.
How To Pick Out A Blender
You can’t just pick out a regular blender because they won’t be able to process leafy vegetables like kale, or chunky fruit like pineapples. Also stuff like frozen bananas, or frozen fruit may not get blended up enough in some regular blenders. Here’s a quick overview of the best blenders for green smoothies.
Hi Everyone!
Jenny O’Brien here. Nutritionist & personal trainer. Just your average vegetarian and smoothie fanatic!
If you have any questions, or you’d like me to cover a particular topic, drop me a line and let me know!
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