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Why Blend? Top 9 Benefits of Blending Food
Wondering if eating a variety of nutritious tasty meals that are more convenient to prepare, could help you or a loved one? You're in the right place! See how blenders are not only incredibly useful culinary tools to make delectable meals, but so much more.
Want to know if a high-powered blender can help you eat better, and be a part of your health and wellness program? We got that covered. Learn here the Top Benefits of Blending Food and discover how it can help with your nutrition intake, food variety and make it easy with time saving convenience.
Let's get started.
Nutrition Intake
According to the Canada Food Guide, "fruit and vegetables are an important source of vitamins, minerals and fibre". It reports that "A diet rich in fruit and vegetables may reduce the risk of heart disease and some types of cancer. [1]
Unfortunately, the standard American diet is woefully lacking in nutrition and is the leading risk factor for diseases and conditions that lead to premature death. [2]
Diet borne illnesses, such as heart disease, diabetes and obesity, are running rampant. The leading risk factor accounting for the disease burden in Canada is found to be dietary, followed only by tobacco smoking and high body mass index, says research from the University of Washington in Seattle. [3]
Clearly, diet improvements with more whole food consumption is needed, yet a challenge for many.
Check out how blending can help you and your family decrease chances of developing a diet born illness by substantially increasing your daily nutrient intake with the eating of more wholesome food.
1
Easy way to eat more fruits and vegetables! – In 2014, Statistics Canada stated that 60.5% of Canadians aged 12 and older, reported that they consumed fruit and vegetables less than five times per day. These numbers are in stark contrast with the Canada Food Guide's recommendation of 8-10 servings daily of fruits and vegetables for adult males and 7-8 servings for adult females. [4]
How does this help you? Blending is a terrific way to add more produce and other healthful ingredients into your diet. A single large smoothie recipe alone can add 4 to 6 servings of vegetable and fruits to your daily intake. Most people would be hard pressed to eat that in one sitting, but pulverizing the food into a delicious smoothie, makes consumption easy.
2
Easy way to increase the consumption of super nutrition boosters. Nutrition powerhouse ingredients like spirulina, chlorella, maca, cacao, bee pollen, cinnamon, dandelion, acai and goji berries are dense in nutrition and offer an array of additional health supporting qualities.
How does this help you? Some boosters can be bland, or simply a challenge to conveniently consume more often. Blending gives you a platform to easily add super foods into daily tasty blends and mask those with a less than exciting taste.
3
Easy way to add Omega 3 healthy fats –It is reported that the average American diet consumes a ratio range of 10:1 and 25:1 of Omega 6 to Omega 3, while the healthy range is between 4:1 or 1:1. It is important to have intake within the healthy range of ratios because an excess of omega 6 can inhibit the body from being able to reap benefits from Omega 3's. Having an imbalance of Omega 3 to 6 ratio, is found to cause systemic inflammation in the body which can lead to the development of many types of chronic diseases and conditions such as "cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, obesity, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, and depression" The disease biomarkers are impacted positively and negatively based on intake levels and ratios of Omega 3 and Omega 6. [5]
How does this help you? Blending allows you to top up your fatty acid ratio profile intake easily and tastefully. Simply drop in high quality Omega 3 healthy fat sources, such as flax seeds, chia seeds, and walnuts. Some healthy fats may not taste the best on their own (i.e. flaxseed oil) but smoothies and salad dressings are great at masking ingredients with less pleasant tastes.
4
Improved Nutrient Absorption – The body absorbs nutrients from foods through the digestive process, whose purpose is to break down food into smaller particles for digestion. Food that is not broken down effectively, will not only provide less nutrition but may lead to negative consequences such as bacterial overgrowth and leaky gut. According to WHFoods "when food fragments are too big to be properly broken down, incomplete digestion occurs. Not only do nutrients not get extracted from the food but undigested food also becomes fodder for bacteria in the colon; this can lead to bacterial overgrowth, flatulence, and other symptoms of indigestion”. [6]
How does this help you? According to Dr. Susan Richards MD, nutrients from blenderized foods are absorbed and assimilated much more easily, because blended food is already in a liquefied state and partially predigested. The process requires less resources and energy, that can be redirected for other important functions such as repair or revitalization. Additionally, since the foods are already reduced into a liquid form, this means there are no large pieces that may contribute to a bacterial over growth or leaky gut.
5
Blending Keeps Foods Whole – Unlike processed foods, frequently with additives like preservatives, colouring and artificial flavours and stripped of varying amounts of their composition and nutrition, whole foods have everything present and intact. This means you are consuming the food in its full natural state, with all the vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients in their naturally appropriate ratios.
How does this help you? For your body to function correctly, it requires the necessary resources to power all the body's critical processes. From the mitochondria's role in energy production to the Endocrine System role in growth and development. Nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, proteins and many others, are these resources. Consuming nutritious blended recipes comprised of nutrient dense whole foods, helps keep your body healthy.
6
Keeps the Fibre – According to the Canada Food Guide, Canadian women should get at least 25 grams and men 38 grams of fibre per day. Most Canadians are only getting about half that much. [7] Fibre helps to regulate the gastrointestinal tract [8], which is responsible for many important body functions such as nutrient absorption [9], immune response [10],[11], and waste elimination.[12]
Fibre has two main components: Soluble and Insoluble. Soluble fibre may reduce your chance of developing certain diseases by lowering total blood cholesterol levels, reducing blood pressure and inflammation. Studies have shown that soluble fibre may also reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by controlling blood sugar levels. [13]
Insoluble fibre is also referred to as roughage and promotes the movement of material through your digestive system. Insoluble fibre helps with bowel regularity and may help you feel full longer, thereby assisting with appetite and weight management goals. Additionally, a high fibre diet may help prevent colon cancer. [14]
How does this help you? Blending whole foods, keeps all the rich fibre content present, making it easy to reach recommended fibre intake goals. A simple smoothie recipe can help you achieve at least ½ of your intake fibre goals using whole food. Consider for example a smoothie with 1 cup raspberries (8 grams fibre), 2 tablespoon chia seeds (7.4 grams fibre), 1 avocado (13.4 g fibre) plus your choice of 1 cup of leafy greens (ex: collard greens, swiss chard, or baby spinach), sweetened to taste (ex: Stevia Leaf Extract, Honey or Maple Syrup), add liquid to preferred viscosity (ex: 1.5 cup water), and you have more than 30 grams of whole food fibre. (source values from Dieticians Canada).
Also by choosing to select whole food as your source of fibre, you get the food nutrition and their natural fibre benefits without the adverse affects and or risks associated found with some fibre supplements, such as this study noting adverse effects on colorectal adenoma with ispaghula husk fibre here, and risk for intestinal obstruction here, and here is list of possible interactions with psyllium and medication here.
Food Variety
You make the commitment to eat better. A month or two later you're back to your old diet. Boring and tasteless "healthy" foods have made you reconsider, is eating healthy really that important? Indeed, it is. A good blender can create all sorts of wonderful and tasty recipes. Variety is the spice of life for a reason!
7
Plethora of delicious meals (much more than just smoothies!): You can use your blender to create a vast variety of delicious goodness in many forms.
How does this help you? Easily pack in whole food nutrition in a variety of ways. Ensure you're getting the most out of your beloved appliance. Use your blender to help you easily top up your total intake of whole foods in: soups, salad dressings, sauces for your meats and veggies, batters for baked goods, frozen desserts like sorbets and ice creams and yes, a gazillion types of smoothie recipes and so much more.
Whether you are currently eating the Standard American Diet (aka SAD Diet) and looking for ways to simply eat healthier, or are practicing specific diet protocols, like Whole Food 30, Paleo, Primal, SCD Diet, Keto, LCHF, GFCF or other health boosting or healing diet protocol, leveraging your blender can help you enjoy a greater array of compliant whole food healthy recipes. There is a plethora of freely shared vetted recipes online with a variety of diet compliant delectable meals, desserts, snacks and beverages that can fit your health goals and or be easily customized to suit your specific protocol and preferences. Having a commercial grade blender, is a powerful tool that can certainly help you enjoy eating more variety in meals, snacks, desserts and beverages and with the intention to eat well, it helps you to easily pack in more wholesome nutrition too.
Time Saving Convenience
Let's face it. The typical north-American lifestyle is busy! You come home late after a long day at work and who has the energy or time to cook a healthy meal. A pizza is just a phone call away. A high-powered blender can really make a difference on how much time you spend on meal preparation and clean up. If its convenient and not time-consuming, people are more likely to change their eating habits for the better.
8
Faster meal preparation: If time is of the essence, then using a blender to speed up your meal preparation may be right for you!
How does this help you? Blender recipes are very quick and easy to make. Smoothies, dips, dressings, sauces and frozen treats can all be made in a minute or less. Because of the preference to heat soups, those recipes take the longest. Even with that, you can have a piping hot soup in mere minutes.
9
Fast clean up: You slave away in the kitchen for hours cooking a fantastic meal for your family, and they devour it in a flash. Then you are left with a pile of pots and pans that must still be washed.
How does this help you? Blenders, are very fast and easy to clean. Saving you lots of time and effort.
- Blender Jars: Simply add water, a little liquid soap, run the blender on high for 20 seconds. It's even easier if your blender has a preprogrammed clean cycle. Either way, getting your jars sparkling clean and ready for the next blend takes only seconds.
- Bender bases equipped with capacitive touch: Because of their smooth exterior made of sealed and protected touch controls, clean-up is fast and easy since they typically only require a simple damp wiping.
A powerful blender should be a must in every kitchen of those seeking nutrition, variety and time saving convenience.
Ready to take a first step to improving your health and culinary enjoyment? Good4LifeMart has got you covered with additional resource information in our Blenders Buying Guide, or browse in store where you can shop and compare commercial high-powered blender products or contact us to chat with live product experts, via phone,email or chat.
REFERENCES
- ^ Stats Canada - http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/82-625-x/2015001/article/14182-eng.htm
- ^ CBC News- http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/news/diet-tops-disease-risks-for-canadians-1.1301482
- ^ See note 2 above
- ^ See note 1 above
- ^ California State University | Chico -
http://www.csuchico.edu/grassfedbeef/research/documents/sources/Simopoulos%20omega3%20review%202004.pdf (pg. 84) - ^ WHFoods - http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=dailytip&dbid=337
- ^ Health Canada - https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/nutrients/fibre.html
- ^ WebMD - http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/fiber-digestion
- ^ WHfoods - http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=dailytip&dbid=36
- ^ Gastrojournal - http://www.gastrojournal.org/article/S0016-5085(15)00430-8/abstract
- ^ NCBI - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515351/
- ^ WHfoods - http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=faq&dbid=16
- ^ Mayo Clinic - http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/fibre/art-20043983
- ^ Dietiticians of Canada- https://www.dietitians.ca/Your-Health/Nutrition-A-Z/Fibre/Food-Sources-of-Fibre.aspx