8 Anti-Inflammatory Ingredients That Will Add Major Protein to Your Next Smoothie
9/25/2022 6:37:23 PM
Well and Good published this article:
While protein deficiency is rare, making sure you’re getting enough is (very) important—and no, not just for bodybuilders.
“Protein is necessary for muscle growth and repair,” says Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN, nutrition expert and author of Smoothies & Juices: Prevention Healing Kitchen. "It’s also vital for oxygenating the body and making enzymes that digest our food.”
But the benefits don’t have to stop there. Protein can be supercharged with anti-inflammatory antioxidants.
“We interact with inflammation-causing free radicals every day from our lifestyles, the environment, and our everyday activities,” says Largeman-Roth. “Even things that are good for us, like exercise, create free radicals. To combat inflammation and the effects of aging, we need to eat foods daily that are high in antioxidants.”
If that sounds complex, know that it’s not. There are *so many* great protein-rich, anti-inflammatory ingredients that are not only accessible, but versatile, affordable, and easy to throw into a smoothie. No protein powder needed.
Here are eight protein-rich smoothie ingredients that will bring major anti-inflammatory benefits to your next smoothie.
8 protein-rich smoothie ingredients that fight inflammation
1. Chia seeds
2. Walnuts
3. Oat milk
4. Cacao nibs
5. Almond butter
6. Spirulina
7. Hemp seeds
8. Flax seeds
But how much protein do we actually need? Should we be loading all these ingredients at once?
To get your daily protein needs, Largeman-Roth recommends taking your weight in pounds and dividing by 2.2 to get kilograms. So, a person who weighs 150 pounds needs about 68 to 70 grams of protein per day. “This may be higher if you are extremely active or if you're elderly, since older people don’t process protein as efficiently,” she says.
While protein deficiency is rare, making sure you’re getting enough is (very) important—and no, not just for bodybuilders.
“Protein is necessary for muscle growth and repair,” says Frances Largeman-Roth, RDN, nutrition expert and author of Smoothies & Juices: Prevention Healing Kitchen. "It’s also vital for oxygenating the body and making enzymes that digest our food.”
But the benefits don’t have to stop there. Protein can be supercharged with anti-inflammatory antioxidants.
“We interact with inflammation-causing free radicals every day from our lifestyles, the environment, and our everyday activities,” says Largeman-Roth. “Even things that are good for us, like exercise, create free radicals. To combat inflammation and the effects of aging, we need to eat foods daily that are high in antioxidants.”
If that sounds complex, know that it’s not. There are *so many* great protein-rich, anti-inflammatory ingredients that are not only accessible, but versatile, affordable, and easy to throw into a smoothie. No protein powder needed.
Here are eight protein-rich smoothie ingredients that will bring major anti-inflammatory benefits to your next smoothie.
8 protein-rich smoothie ingredients that fight inflammation
1. Chia seeds
2. Walnuts
3. Oat milk
4. Cacao nibs
5. Almond butter
6. Spirulina
7. Hemp seeds
8. Flax seeds
But how much protein do we actually need? Should we be loading all these ingredients at once?
To get your daily protein needs, Largeman-Roth recommends taking your weight in pounds and dividing by 2.2 to get kilograms. So, a person who weighs 150 pounds needs about 68 to 70 grams of protein per day. “This may be higher if you are extremely active or if you're elderly, since older people don’t process protein as efficiently,” she says.