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Beware of “Health-Washed” Smoothies (& What To Have Instead)

health wellness Dec 27, 2022


Welcome to the WHOLISTIC LIVING PODCAST: Episode 32
Aligning Body, Mind, and Soul with Elena Bensonoff


 

 

Hi, I’m Elena Bensonoff. Welcome to the Wholistic Living Podcast. Today we are continuing our Be The Hero Of Your Health series. This series is meant to empower you with information so you can be the hero of your own health and feel your best!

Today we will be talking about the deceptive marketing tactic called “Health-Washing” and we will take a look at smoothies as an example. We will talk about how you can heal from the inside out by ditching sugar and I’ll share my simple 5-step process for making a healthy smoothie at home! I’m so excited to share this information with you. Let’s dive right in!

 

 

So What Is “Health-Washing?”

It’s a marketing technique used to trick consumers into thinking a product is healthier than it actually is with deceptive images and claims. This happens a lot on pre-packaged foods and in ads for restaurants. (1)

You’ll often see very healthy looking people enjoying the item or there are images of fresh whole foods alongside health claims that are carefully worded to trick you into thinking you are making a healthy choice. The reality is often the complete opposite.

Smoothies are a heavily “health-washed” option. Companies take advantage of our assumption that a smoothie is just healthy produce blended up with other healthy ingredients. Many companies, including Jamba Juice, make claims like: “contains 3 servings of vegetables!” to market signature smoothies like “The Go Getter.”

“The Go Getter” is one of their newer smoothies released in 2022. It’s marketed with pictures of fresh, crisp kale, a list of vitamins, and promises of an energy boost. This is by design to appeal to people who are trying to improve their health.

Meanwhile, this smoothie packs 41g of sugar and 175mg of caffeine in a small. This combo is meant to get you hooked and “boost your energy” with addictive substances, but the effects are synthetic and a crash is imminent!

When something is loaded with caffiene and sugar, it’s just a cheap and easy recipe for companies to access the reward centers in your brain. Their aim is to secure you as a customer - they don’t really care about your health!

One of the most important pieces of advice I can give you to avoid being fooled by this marketing is to look at the ingredients list.

If you take The Go Getter as an example an pull up the ingredients, look at the parenthesis after the “frozen vegetable & fruit juice blend” ingredient that goes in that particular smoothie. There’s a laundry list of purees and concentrates!

That is a giveaway that there is a mysterious amount of added sugars and lots of processing that went into that “one” ingredient. Don’t be fooled by the marketing! “Frozen juice blends” are cheap and convenient for mass production and anything but “healthy” for the consumer.

 

 

Have You Ever Tried To Give Up Sugar?

It’s a difficult process for a reason.

  • Sugar is addictive and companies take advantage of that.
  • Sugar could be damaging to your health, causing mystery symptoms, and making you sick in ways you don’t even realize.
  • Research has shown consumption of sugar activates the same reward center of your brain as addictive drugs like cocaine and heroine. Your body seeks that “high.” (2)
  • The “sugar high” quickly fades as insulin is produced to shuttle excess sugar to storage. Blood sugar levels plummet - causing more cravings, and the cycle continues.
  • As sugar intake increases, so does our risk for related health issues. Studies have shown that a diet high in added sugar is linked to (3):
    - Inflammation
    - Liver disease
    - Obesity
    - Insulin resistance
    - Leaky gut syndrome
    - Candida overgrowth and so much more!
  • Reducing sugar intake improves disease risk significantly. One study found that reducing sugar intake improved inflammatory blood markers by almost 30% (4)

  • I also want to mention the addition of caffeine in our smoothie example because it is problematic! Companies add caffeine to their products because it is highly addictive and gives you a synthetic boost of energy. Check out the episode linked in the show notes for more info about the negative effects of caffeine. 
  • Kick your caffeine and sugar addictions to experience natural energy - and natural fatigue. It’s important to listen to your body instead of masking symptoms to get important information from your body like, “I need more rest.”

It takes time to heal the body from the inside out, but the benefits are lifelong!

This information is not just to help guide you to order a smoothie. I want to encourage you to check the ingredients whenever you are ordering out!

 

 

The Solution

Easily avoid added sugars and mystery chemicals by making your own smoothie with fresh fruits and veggies at home!

5 Basic Steps Of Healthy Smoothie Making At Home:

  1. Choose a base like a nut or coconut milk
  2. Choose a fresh fruit or two like raspberries and blueberries
  3. Choose a fresh veggie or two - spinach blends well, avocado adds healthy fats
  4. Add a cup of ice
  5. Add 2 scoops of collagen peptides for a protein boost

5 Benefits To Making Your Smoothies At Home:

  1. Homemade smoothies make it easy to avoid hidden sugars and unhealthy chemicals

  2. You can buy in-season, high-quality, local ingredients to maximize nutrition

  3. Cooking at home allows you to personalize your ingredients to suit your individual needs so you can be sure you’re avoiding ingredients you’re sensitive to and adding things that make you feel amazing

  4. There are fewer temptations to choose unhealthy options at restaurants on the go, so you can channel your will power into other healthy choices

  5. You will avoid using single-use plastic cups and straws which reduces your exposure to toxins and supports the environment

 

 

Test Yourself Now For Food Sensitivities!

I know it’s so frustrating to constantly dodge deceptive marketing. It can be a real struggle to figure out what foods are *really* good for you. That’s why I want to help make it easy for you figure out what foods you can eat to feel your absolute best!

You’re invited to my Free Masterclass where you can learn a simple muscle testing method you can use to test ANY food in your diet to make sure it’s a perfect energetic match for you!

Click the link below to learn more and sign up. In just 60 minutes, you’ll be empowered with three of my most powerful healing techniques that require no equipment.

Take FREE Masterclass


I hope this information will spark the desire to learn more ways to support your body and find wellness in all areas. It’s time to be the hero of your health by awakening your inner healer. I’m here to support you on your journey to body, mind, and soul balance! Thank you so much for listening.

Many Blessings,
Elena

 

References:

1. https://health-desk.org/articles/what-is-health-washing-and-what-does-the-label-real-food-mean-to-consumers

2. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0149763407000589?via%3Dihub

3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5133084

4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21613382/ 

5. https://www.wholistic.com/blog/the-spooky-side-of-coffee-shops

 



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