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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
Articles like this only further confuse people who already don’t get enough healthy food in their diets. Green smoothies have had a healing and positive impact on my health but we are not created from molds. We must discover and live our own truths…
Articles like these are written by people who have a superiority complex. They see things like the raw vegan diet or drinking green smoothies a fad and with little to no research, they write something that state an exaggerated view on the worst case scenario and add in some of their own ‘facts’ to sweeten the pot. I really hope people aren’t ignorant enough to believe any of this hoohaw
Totally agree Kim.
This is an interesting piece purely as it provided a bold counter balance to a particular fad that probably isn’t helping anyone’s health all that much, That said, this artlcle has really gone quite bit too far the other way. Like everything else, the odd green smoothie is probably very good for most people. Demonising oxalates as being “devastating” (what a stong word!) to the health is frankly totally OTT! Oxalates in moderation tend to be bound out by calcium in the diet and once one is adequately hydrated, the chances of kidney stones are slight. Few foods in nature provide only benefits when taken in quantity and there’s often a trade-off to consider. (Quick example: there’s hardly a food or drink that’s good for the body that isn’t harmful to the teeth..)
The fact is that many of these green foods are incredbily healthful in a whole host of other ways providing a range of nutrients, B Vits, magnesium etc. that are very frequently lacking in the typical Western diet. On balance, the oxalate risk is scarcely a factor for anybody of normal health. Personally I’d rather live to be 100 and take a tiny risk of having to get ultra sound blasting of a kidney stone at about 90, than die at 70 due to nutrient deficiencies with a fine set of kidneys getting buried with me …
Hi Sarah! Thanks for this article! As someone who occasionally enjoys a green smoothie, and as someone who’s mother had the first kidney stones of her life (while drinking green smoothies), I’m very interested in the effects that the green smoothie movement has had on folks. From the responses here, it would seem that the results are mixed. I’m wondering if you would be willing to cite some sources (medical journals, studies, etc.) for further reading. Again, thank you for bringing this up!
Wow, I have learned so much in the last few days delving into this topic. There is much to learn. Some helpful sites:
The VP (Vulvar Pain) Foundation, http://www.thevpfoundation.org/
Low Oxalate Info, http://www.lowoxalate.info
Trying Low Oxalates Yahoo group, health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Trying_Low_Oxalates/
And Patty’s blog combining GAPS and low oxalate info:
Hey Sarah,
What do you think of steaming spinach in butter and then eating the whole thing. Thats how my family grew up eating spinach and we all loved it. Thanks
That approach will have no effect on the oxalate content of the spinach and you are likely to consume quite a lot since it shrinks so much when cooked.
pretty much all foods has its pros and cons, such as grains with its phytates. if one were to avoid any type of food that has problems, you might as well starve to death. i don’t think green smoothies are all that bad considering its a great way to increase veggie intake. my family enjoys drinking them as an supplement to their diet. besides the info that is presented isn’t new; one can find that out when researching green smoothies.
Good points, Tanya. Interesting about the need for calcium to balance the oxalates. Reminds me of how calcium must be balanced with phosphorous, and magnesium. And how if you don’t have vitamins D and K in sufficient amounts, your body may deposit the calcium in soft tissue instead of the bones. And if you don’t have enough Vitamin A to balance the D, toxicity is possible (and vice-versa). Anytime we get our chemical and nutrient balance out of whack, especially for long periods, we are at risk of ill health. And as you point out, if we can’t digest our food and assimilate the nutrients, we can’t keep our gut flora healthy, and vice-versa. Just like muscles come in pair of opposing muscles to make multi-directional movement possible (biceps and triceps, etc), nutrients need to be in balance with each other.
Interesting article, and interesting reactions. Some people seem to have read this is more black-and-white than I did. Excess consumption of oxalates MIGHT be a problem for those with the symptoms listed and who drink lots of green smoothies, but I don’t think the point was that no one should ever eat a green, leafy vegetable at all. Common sense, people.
What’s a nutrion advisor? And what does the Bible have to do with it?
Wow, this could explain a lot of mysteries for me! I don’t eat most vegetables raw, but we have been relying on leafy green salad mixes a lot. Lately I’ve been having a big salad for lunch every day. I don’t have broccoli, kale, chard, etc, raw, but those are our favorite vegetables and we eat them steamed or sautéed regularly. Wow, this is a lot to digest. Thanks for provoking my thoughts and the discussion… over 600 comments and counting!