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Green smoothies are all the rage these days. Many people are drinking them every day or at least several times a week in an attempt to get healthy and “alkalize” the body.
Whenever I visit the cafe of my local healthfood store, there are usually several people in gym clothes lined up to order a green smoothie to sip after their workout.
Green smoothies are made by blending large amounts of raw leafy green vegetables with fruit to soften and sweeten the taste. Typical vegetables included in green smoothies are cruciferous vegetables like kale, broccoli, collard greens, maca (usually as a supplemental powder) as well as others like spinach, swiss chard, celery, and parsley.
Is the green smoothie fad a truly healthy habit over the long term? Or, could regular consumption of these seemingly healthy drinks contribute to serious health problems over time?
Raw Leafy Greens Contain High Oxalate Levels
Frequent consumption of large quantities of raw, leafy green vegetables blended up as green smoothies can be deceiving at first. This is because green drinks facilitate an initial detoxification process that makes a person feel great. This is especially true when coming off a highly processed, nutrient poor diet.
While very nutritious, the vegetables used in green smoothies are almost without exception high oxalate foods. Over time, a high oxalate diet can contribute to some very serious health problems particularly if you are one of the 20% of people (1 in 5) that have a genetic tendency to produce oxalates or if you suffer from candida or other fungal challenge. In those cases, a high oxalate diet can deal a devastating blow to health.
Oxalate Toxicity Not a New Problem
The effects of oxalate toxicity have plagued humankind since ancient times. For example, scientists discovered an oxalate kidney stone about the size of a golf ball in a 2000 year old mummy from Chile using x-ray analysis.
Build-up of shards of oxalate crystals can occur almost anywhere in the body. Whatever tissue contains them, pain or worse is the result.
75-90% of kidney stones are oxalate related with 10-15% of Americans afflicted at some point during their lives. As the star shaped crystalline stones pass from the kidney, they cause pressure and pain in the bladder and urethra and can actually tear up the walls of the urinary tract.
Oxalate Stones from Excessive Green Smoothies
Oxalate stones can show up in any body tissue including the brain and even the heart.
Crystals comprised of oxalates resemble shards of glass. They can become lodged in the heart causing tiny tears and damage to this vital muscle. With every single contraction, more damage is caused as the heart pumps life giving blood to the rest of the body.
Oxalate crystals which end up in the thyroid can cause thyroid disease by damaging thyroid tissue.
A frequent location for oxalates to end up is skeletal muscle which will cause pain with even normal movement and make exercise nearly impossible. Dr. William Shaw, Director of The Great Plains Laboratory for Health, Nutrition and Metabolism who has studied oxalates extensively, is convinced that oxalate toxicity is a factor in fibromyalgia the pain of which can absolutely devastate a person’s life (1).
Vulvodynia – Painful Sex
Cases of women experiencing painful sex are on the rise with oxalates a possible culprit.
Vulvodynia is a condition causing pain in and around the vagina. It is linked to oxalates deposited in this delicate reproductive tissue. Oxalate crystals are very acidic and they cause irritation, burning, and stinging sensations for affected women. An accompanying feeling of rawness is typically experienced during sexual relations.
Oxalates Are Fungal in Origin
A surprising finding is that oxalates are produced in large amounts by fungus. Large stones have been found in the sinuses and lungs of people suffering from systemic fungal infections such as candida or Aspergillus.
Therefore, anyone who suffers from any sort of candida overgrowth or other fungal challenge like fungus nails or dandruff would be wise to be very concerned about oxalate intake via the diet.
Consumption of green smoothies would not in any way contribute to improvement of health in these situations. The majority of people today suffer from gut imbalance and candida (yeast) issues caused by antibiotic and prescription drug use including the Pill. This renders a high oxalate diet which includes frequent green smoothies an unwise practice for virtually everyone.
Does Cooking Destroy Oxalates?
What about cooking the greens first? Would this reduce the risk of oxalate overload and make consuming greens safer?
Not really, because oxalates are extremely stable. While cooking high oxalate foods and discarding the cooking water does reduce the level of anti-nutrients, it remains quite high.
Green smoothies are usually consumed frequently by those who swear by them. As such, a light steaming of the veggies first would not make a significant difference over the long term if they are consumed regularly. If you consume green smoothies only occasionally, however, a light steaming is a good idea. This practice adds a degree of safety to the process. Other tips for preparing safe smoothies are contained in this linked article.
Healthier Alternatives to Green Smoothies
The best course of action for health, then, is to opt out of the green smoothie diet fad. This is especially important if you have any sort of gut imbalance or candida issues.
If you enjoy green leafy vegetables, be smart about it. Don’t overdo like so many in the health community are doing with the best of intentions. Enjoy green drinks in moderation in salads. Or, cook them and carefully drain and discard leafy green cooking water. Never use it in soups and sauces!
Be sure to serve cooked leafy greens with a healthy fats like butter or coconut oil. Avoid margarine or any factory fats synthesized with rancid and/or GMO vegetable oils like Smart Balance. Using natural fats will facilitate maximum absorption of minerals.
Another option is to drink raw cultured vegetable juice or eat raw cultured vegetables. Not only will you get enhanced nutrition from the culturing process which adds enzymes and nutrients, but you will also get a beneficial and therapeutic dose of probiotics to help balance gut function and improve digestion. It also suppresses fungal overgrowth like candida.
Wheatgrass an Excellent Alternative!
Another option is to do shots of fresh, green wheatgrass juice.
Wheatgrass juice is very low in oxalic acid.
Here is a link to my favorite green juice recipe using wheatgrass and ginger. It is safe to drink regularly, daily if you like, instead of green smoothies. It is also an excellent drink for gently detoxing before pregnancy. The ginger assists with morning sickness issues too if you are already pregnant.
What to do if a Green Smoothie Diet Has Already Harmed Your Health
Are you already are suffering from some of the ailments described in this article? Do you suspect a high oxalate diet which includes green smoothies or a daily spinach salad may be the cause? If so, stop this practice immediately and consult with a holistic physician. You will likely need professional assistance to guide you on the road to recovery. Ridding your body of oxalate crystals that are potentially irritating one or more of your body tissues is no simple task! It is not advisable to attempt this protocol on your own.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist, author, Get Your FATS Straight
References and Additional Information
The Role of Oxalates in Autism and Chronic Disorders, William Shaw PhD
Top 4 Cleansing Myths to Watch Out For
I make green smoothies 2-3 times a week for my family, using locally in-season greens, fresh fruit and balanced with added fats such as coconut oil and raw egg yolk.
I’m a WAPF chapter leader, and we also make smoothies with raw milk, homemade kefir, and coconut water bases.
The controversy over oxalates aside, as with most foods, if we eat them as part of a balanced diet, especially following seasonality and sourcing them locally, health is supported, not risked.
I wonder if some people have only read the headline and not the full article? Weird responses (plus how many people dont know this is a weston price blog!!! Raw butter is good people!!). Anyway great article, never liked green smoothies or juicing so right down my alley! We do use kale in season (my friend grows it organically through autumn/winter) & we use it in soups!
I wonder if some people have only read the headline and not the full article? Weird responses (plus how many people dont know this is a weston price blog!!! Raw butter is good people!!). Anyway great article, never liked green smoothies or juicing so right down my alley! We do use kale in season (my friend grows it organically through autumn/winter) & we use it in soups!
How many almonds can you eat each day without being at the same risk?
This blog confuses me. As a natural health care practitioner, I have studied nutrition and have been annoyed by passing fads that prove to be more harmful than helpful. However, EVERY study that deals with nutrition, especially in the US, is that we do not consume enough raw organic produce. More fruits and vegetables will improve anyone’s health in this nutritionally depleted country. So for me to be made aware of this article by patients that are trying to improve their health by beefing up on more produce who are now scared to eat green leafies and other health promoting foods makes me a little upset. Let’s keep a good perspective. Yes, there are fad diets out there, but keep eating the produce because, as a good friend of mine told me, we need to eat more foods made FROM plants and less food made IN plants.
This is a very misleading article. Seems like a hit piece to a health habit more and more people are turning to, including myself. The Boutenko Family and others have eaten greens in smoothies for about 20 years i would say and they are healthy. Rotate your greens to avoid too much of one variety of greens and add other ingredients to make em taste good. i’m going to make myself another green smoothie. It’s good to be green.
I agree with you, but I am not sure I would use Victoria as a role model. I think she has had one too many smoothies! It is not the greens in smoothie that are the issue, it is all the filler crap people put in. Beisdes the fact that blending at high speed breaks down plant cell walls similar (but not as badly) to cooking.
A small amount of fruit is ok,, but all the processed powders, high sugar fruit , etc is doing no good at all. I used to do this and learned the hard way. For the last year and a half I have just stuck to green juice with some carrot or beet juice to flavour it. I do like the quality wheatgrass or alfalfa powders to add as well.
Spell corrector, arg!
Thanks for ruining my evening.lol. it seems raw kale, broccoli, and collards are intuitively not something to eat. I felt better hearing that the Chinese dont eat raw veggies. I did make an effort to go raw and my insides didn’t like it and neither did I.. I like my veggies cooked , except I do make a parsley or cilantro pineapple drink, with a LOT of parsley or cilantro. I do drink a lot of lemon peel lemonade which I think is high oxtalate. It seems counter-intuitive that all of these wonderful cancer and disease fighting vegetables, which have been eaten for centuries, can be bad. That said, our bodies have never endured the food and toxins that we can not get away from. It seems this article seems sensatnal, but good to store away in the memory, inches I get pains or kidney stones.
This IS very confusing even for someone who is a huge fan of WAPF and GAPS, but thanks for posting it. I am healing myself while traveling the world ( no easy task doing this in Asia where much less is available…even in Europe MUCH less is available compared to California). You can’t just send for things either as they get stuck in customs, so one must make do with what is available.
Luckily, I can get more organic food here than in Europe, but no one ever lists info about Asian greens that I have found yet. Sigh. Dr. Fuhrman says Kale is the most nutrient dense food, so you are saying this is bad for all? Mute point for me though as there is none here and it is also hard to find in Europe. I did eat some in California recently as I love it cooked and topped with raw organic butter.
There seems to be much on WAPF that is contradictory, so that adds confusion.
Even the GAPS diet is big on some juicing so that adds to the confusion. ( read this last night from an MD into GAPS/).
“Dr. Campbell-McBride recommends beginning with carrot juice as a base, and then adding fruit, as well as therapeutic ingredients, such as various greens; swiss chard, kale, lettuces, spinach, beet and radish tops, bok choy and cabbage, etc.”
I don’t do well mixing fruits and veggies though, so modify things that work best for me. Beets and cabbage seem to really help my upper stomach pain ( I have a mysterious digestive illness that started 2 years ago when I took antibiotics in Spain via my Danish dentist and have been to MD and alternative docs on 3 continents, endless tests etc and nothing has cured the pain/debilitation yet). I’ve gone on and off various juices and protocals trying to fix it, but lately have added these to my mostly organic bone broth/ goat yogurt/ homemade goatmilk kefir and quark/pastured raw eggs/coconut oil, wild chicken, wild salmon diet.
I’ve been helped a lot by Dr. Brasco and Rubin’s “Guts to Glory” program ( they are very inline with WAPF as is GAPS) but he uses parsley in some of his recipes ( like for bone broth etc) and HIGHLY recommends vegetable juices as “essential for healing food”. They say:
“Vegetable juices, especially green juices are potent sources of enzymes, vitamins, and trace minerals. Vegetable juices are easy to assimilate. They supply many of the nutrients that are needed to rebuild health. ”
I’ve actually have felt some INSTANT relief of pain after taking juice lately and it seems to be helping…but it does have organic parsley in it and an organic green used for juicing here in Asia ( supposedly similar to celery which is not available here)…I usually do those with org carrots, beets ( not the tops), plus a bit of quark and flaxseed oil for blood sugar …and have just added cabbage ( and often add a bit of tumeric and ginger).
I would LOVE to know exactly what is and is not healthy as far as juicing. I know people who swear by juicing but this is fairly new to me ( last 6 months).
I juice myself … just always stir some cream or coconut oil into it so it doesn’t spike your blood sugar to the moon and don’t overdo with high oxalate veggies especially if you have gut imbalance!!!! Very simple.
Sarah,
I would love to read a post or see a video on juicing. Maybe a great follow up to this post. Thanks!
I’m surprised to hear that you juice. I’m mean, that’s not a very traditional practice. My great grandmother never juiced. What is the difference between throwing vegetables in a juicer and throwing them in a blender? Aren’t both modern-day inventions? One could say juicing is even a fad. Certainly wheat grass juices shots are considered to be. Wouldn’t it have been better for you to say what you just said in your article? That green smoothies are okay as long as you don’t overdo it and you don’t have a gut imbalance?
I would have been fine if you would have talked about green smoothies in your article the same way you do in your comments. That they are “fine in moderation” and they are okay if “not had every day” and “not in large quantities.” Instead you chose to tell people to skip them entirely. I’m not sure if you mean to, but the way you wrote the article makes it seem like you wouldn’t touch a green smoothie with a ten-foot pole–like they are bad for you even.
Have you ever had a green smoothie?
Now that’s confusing. Dr. Mercola highly recommends raw food diet/juice