Breast Cancer Healing Blueberry Smoothie

Breast Cancer Healing Blueberry Smoothie

There is a lot to know about how to build a smoothie that fights breast cancer.  There are foods to avoid such as milk, sugar and saturated fats and there are foods to add, such as blueberries for their phenolic compounds, apple juice for its carotenes, and bananas for their oligofructose prebiotic fiber.  This recipe looks simple but it actually provides powerful  support for the healing of breast cancer in a very direct way.

  • 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1 cup unfiltered apple juice
  • 1 peeled frozen banana
  • 1 inch piece of fresh turmeric root

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend thoroughly.

Serves 1

Cherry Ice Smoothie

Cherry Ice Smoothie

  • Cherry Ice Smoothie

Cherries contain melatonin which improves sleep.  You might try this smoothie as a dessert in the evening to see if it helps you drift into deep sleep.  Sweet dreams!

  • 1 cup frozen pitted dark cherries
  • 1 cup ice
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon cherry juice concentrate
  • 1 teaspoon xylitol

Optional
Add sparkling mineral water after it has been blended to add a bubbly kick.
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine all ingredients in blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Serves 2

Strawberry Hemp Shake

Strawberry Hemp Shake Recipe

This smoothie recipe is from my new book Healing Smoothies for Breast Cancer, which is available in Kindle and iTunes formats.

Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a major biologically active component of green tea.  Romanian researchers found that EGCG suppresses the growth, migration and invasion of human breast cancer cells by changing human breast cancer cell gene expression.

This blend has vivid berry color and flavor, is slightly sweet and has just hint of green tea.

  • 1/2 cup blueberry nectar
  • 1/2 cup green tea ice cubes
  • 1/2 cup wild blueberries
  • 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1/4 cup hulled hemp seed

Combine all ingredients in a high-power blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Drink immediately.

Serves 2

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

Calories 147    Fat 6   Carbs 18   Fiber 4   Protein 5

Braicu C, Gherman CD, Irimie A, Berindan-Neagoe I. (2013) Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate (EGCG) inhibits cell proliferation and migratory behavior of triple negative breast cancer cells.  Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology.

Vanilla Lime Cream Smoothie

I created this recipe to include cultured coconut milk, as it’s an excellent source of probiotics, which help boost the immune system in a way that helps prevent and heal breast cancer.  Probiotics are important and we don’t get nearly enough of them.  This is a great recipe for anyone who wants to increase their probiotic intake.

Vanilla Lime Cream Smoothie

Creamy and thick like coconut cream with a layers of vanilla, lime, and banana flavor.

  • 1 frozen banana
  • 1/2 cup cultured coconut milk
  • 2 tablespoons chia seed
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla protein powder
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice

Combine all ingredients in a high power blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Drink immediately.

Serves 1

Culinary Tip – Cultured coconut milk can be thick like yogurt in which case this combination turns out like a rich pudding that pairs well with sliced fruit as a dessert.  To thin this delicious combination into a more drinkable form, just add 1/2 cup water or coconut water and blend.

Nutrition Tip – Probiotics found in cultured coconut milk such as Lactobacilli acidophilus have an immunomodulatory effect against breast cancer.

 

 

Smoothie & Health Info For The B. Smith & ‘Thank You Dan’ Show

I had the pleasure to recently be a guest on the SiriusXM “The B. Smith and ‘Thank You Dan’ Show.” B. and Dan Gasby are a smart husband and wife team who are committed to improving the health and wellness of their listeners.

We spent much of the segment talking about smoothies, and I promised to summarize the discussion and provide some recipes – so here you go!

Smoothies can be customized so you can not only create flavors and textures that you love but you can also add nutrients that you need specifically. Getting our nutrients from whole foods rather then supplements is a good idea because we tend to stick with our food habits longer than we do our supplement regimens.

BENEFITS OF SMOOTHIES

  • Customizable
  • Quick to make
  • You can make them without much planning ahead – keep berries in the freezer.
  • Supplements can be added to them to reduce the number of pills we have to swallow.

POPULAR WITH KIDS

Smoothies are the perfect after school energy drink and they can be made as a meal replacement by adding protein (whey protein powder, Greek yogurt, or cottage cheese). They also provide an educational opportunity with kids. You can teach kids about the health benefits of each ingredient which will give them a nutrition education to use throughout their lives.

WEIGHT LOSS INGREDIENTS

Wild Blueberries

Wild blueberries have higher antioxidant levels than cultivated blueberries. These phytonutrients reverse metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance) and protect against heart disease.

Fighting Oxidative Stress – USDA scientists found that eating Wild Blueberries each day helps prevent oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is what causes cell damage that results in skin wrinkles, damage to our vision.  To get those protective benefits we need to eat antioxidant-rich foods everyday. I’m adding 1 cup of wild blueberries to my daily smoothie to cover my bases.

Strawberries

One of the reasons I consider strawberries to be a weight-loss food is that they contain a soluble fiber called Beta-Glucans which slows the absorption of sugar from the berries which allows your body to burn the sugar rather then storing it away as fat.

Greek Yogurt

(Brands: Fage pronounced Fi-Ya, Oikos, Chobani)

Greek yogurt has less liquid and no added thickeners so it’s twice as high in protein as regular yogurt.

Greek yogurt contains about 15 grams of protein per 6 ounce serving – compare that with a protein bars which generally only have about 10 grams of protein.

Blended Cottage Cheese

1/2 cup of cottage cheese contains about 15 grams of protein. Blending it changes the consistency, it gets creamy and very rich tasting. Perfect base for ‘smoothie shakes’.

Citrus Bioflavanoids

Are nutrients that help strengthen blood vessels so they help reduce the chance of health problems such as a spider veins and bruising and even your risk for stroke.

When adding citrus to your smoothie, cut the colorful outside of the skin off rather then peeling it. Leave the white pithy part of the peel on the fruit and add all of that to your smoothie.

Coconut Water

Coconut water such as Zico brand doesn’t contain any added sugar, is low in calories, rich in electrolytes and is a tasty liquid base for smoothies. Its very high in potassium with 700 mg in one serving (11 ounce) which is more than a banana which has about 400 mg. It’s also low in calories as it contains only 60 calories in 11 ounces vs. whole milk which would add 200 calories to your smoothie.

Green Tea

Green tea contains EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), a polyphenol that helps the production of noradrenaline, which increases fat-burning.

RECIPES

Lemon Coconut Cream

1 cup coconut water
6 oz lemon yogurt – no sugar added variety such as Green Valley or Greek yogurt
1/4 cup ice cubes

Serves 1

Violet Tea Elixir

1 cup brewed, chilled green tea
1/2 cup wild blueberries
2 tablespoons hempseed
4 ice cubes

Serves 1

Hempberry Shake

3/4 cup hemp milk
1/2 cup frozen, organic strawberries
1/4 cup frozen mango chunks
1/4 cup pomegranate juice

Serves 1

Taste of Tropics

1/2 cup watermelon
1/2 cup filtered water
1/4 cup frozen mango
1/4 cup frozen pineapple
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Serves 2

Mango Tea Icy

1 cup brewed, chilled green tea
1/2 cup mango
1/4 cup ice

Serves 1