13 Reasons Why Super Greens Should Make Up Your Daily Habits

In the hustle and bustle of juggling family, career, and everything in between, it's no surprise that squeezing in those crucial servings of vegetables often falls by the wayside. Enter the game-changer: super greens powders. Not just a trend, but a lifestyle shift that's been nurturing health and vitality for decades.

Why consider adding a super greens powder like Lean Greens to your morning ritual? Imagine kick-starting your day in just 30 seconds with a glass of water mixed with the powerhouse of nutrients that Lean Greens offers. It's not just about the convenience; it's about setting the tone for a day filled with sustained energy levels, controlled cravings, and a sense of well-being that lasts.

Gone are the days when super greens were the secret of tree-hugging hippies and strict vegetarians. Today, Lean Greens is making its mark everywhere from health food aisles in Holland and Barrett to your local supermarket and even on Amazon, bringing the gift of health to the busy lives of men and women over 35.

But why should you opt for a greens drink? What benefits can you gain from mixing a greens powder every morning? Are there advantages over simply eating vegetables, or taking a multivitamin tablet?

Before we delve into the benefits, let's first understand what super greens are...

What is a Super Greens Powder?

A super greens powder, (or simply greens powder or greens drink), is composed of dehydrated, freeze-dried raw ingredients. These ingredients typically include:

• Green vegetables
• Grasses
• Algae
• Digestive enzymes
• Metabolic ingredients

These elements, in their powdered form, create a nutrient-dense drink mix, filled with essential vitamins and minerals. Most come in a tub or sachet that you mix with cold water, a smoothie, or juice.

Ingredients in a Super Greens Powder

The most common ingredients in a Super Greens Powder are:

• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Spirulina
• Alfalfa
• Chlorella
• Barley Grass
• Wheat Grass
• Kale
• Apple Fibre
• Carrot

You may also find special ingredients to aid with metabolism and flavour, like Digestive Enzymes, Green Tea Extract, Siberian Ginseng, Fruit Extracts, and Stevia Leaf.

The ingredients are typically categorised into:

Raw Vegetables:

• Spinach
• Broccoli
• Carrot Powder

Greens:

• Wheatgrass
• Barley Grass
• Spirulina
• Chlorella
• Alfalfa

Fruit Extracts:

• Blackcurrant
• Blueberries

Metabolic Ingredients:

• Green Tea Extract
• Siberian Ginseng

Digestive Enzymes:

• Lipase
• Lactase
• Protease
• Amylase
• Bromelain
• Cellulase

Natural Sweetener:

• Stevia Leaf Extract

Why Super Greens Powder Ingredients are Important

The origin of the ingredients matters if you're considering making greens drinks a daily habit. It's beneficial to find a product with as wide a nutrient profile as possible. This implies multiple ingredients and a blend that is palatable.

The biggest challenge with most greens powders, especially those available in the UK, is the TASTE.

No matter how beneficial, if you can't stand the taste, you likely won't consume the product long enough to see any benefits.

For instance, products rich in Spirulina and Alfalfa have a strong taste and smell that some may find off-putting.

Fear not, though! There are great-tasting options available, and we'll share more about these later. But first, let's dive into the key health benefits of super greens.

Health Benefits of Drinking a Super Greens

1. High in Phytonutrients

Let's delve into the first major benefit without getting too lost in the scientific jargon. Phytonutrients, while not essential for keeping you alive like vitamins and minerals, are incredibly beneficial. As WebMD states:

"Phytonutrients aren't essential for keeping you alive, unlike the vitamins and minerals that plant foods contain. But when you eat or drink phytonutrients, they may help prevent disease and keep your body working properly."

Therefore, they are pretty critical. Many ingredients in greens drinks are abundant with phytonutrients. They have anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, antioxidant properties, and are excellent for immune health, protection against free radicals, and tissue regeneration.

2. Are Greens Powders a Good Source of Fibre?

Regrettably, most of us don't get enough fibre in our daily diets, especially with the prevalence of heavily processed foods in modern western diets.

For meeting your daily fibre needs, nothing surpasses eating fruits and vegetables in their natural state. The freeze-drying and dehydrating processes used in making greens powder inevitably result in some loss of their fibrous properties.

The amount of fibre retained in the powder is unclear, so be wary of brands claiming high fibre content.

The best strategy is to eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and supplement with a greens powder to meet your nutrient count on days when you can't consume your recommended five-a-day.

3. Provides Digestive Enzymes for Gut Health

Many overlook the significance of gut health in maintaining overall health. However, if your digestive system isn't functioning correctly, you may struggle to absorb the nutrients from the healthy foods you eat.

That's where digestive enzymes come into play. They're vital for breaking down and absorbing the foods you eat.

With an efficient digestion system, not only does your stomach feel good, but your skin condition and energy levels can also improve significantly.

Fortunately, many high-quality super greens contain a variety of digestive enzymes to help your body absorb the other beneficial ingredients in greens.

4. Super Greens Powders for Weight Loss

The eternal promise of all nutritional supplements today seems to be weight loss.

Does it make sense with greens drinks for weight loss? We would consider it a secondary benefit. While greens drinks haven't been proven to aid in weight loss directly, they can be part of a process that helps you shed some pounds.

For instance, some research reported in Scientific American supports the link between gut bacteria and how we store body fat. Additionally, consuming a greens drink can help curb cravings and naturally suppress your appetite.

By providing your body with a wide variety of nutrients from a greens drink, your hypothalamus stops sending you hunger signals. As a result, you experience fewer cravings, lower appetite, consume fewer calories, which ultimately aids in weight loss. Clever, isn't it?

5. Ninja Way to Sneak Vegetable Nutrients into Your Diet

"Are greens drinks good if I don't like vegetables?"

During my tenure as a personal trainer in the bustling EU city of Luxembourg, I often asked my clients for a weekly food diary. Each week, I'd scrutinise the diary to ensure they adhered to our nutritional plan.

My most frequent comment? "Show me the vegetables!"

Entire weeks would pass with no trace of vegetables in the diary. I was well aware of the importance of obtaining nutrients from a colourful assortment of vegetables to help my clients meet their health goals.

However, it wasn't until recent years with Personal Training clients that I discovered the power of Greens drinks, and their incredibly simple way of enhancing your nutrition. I wish I had known about it earlier!

6. Green Powder vs Multivitamins Tablets

Often, people compare super greens to daily multivitamin tablets due to their nutrient-dense properties. However, I argue that they are two ENTIRELY different entities. It's impossible to compare them directly.

Multivitamins are usually synthetically manufactured, rendering the core nutrient significantly different from the original source. Your body may struggle to absorb the maximum amount from a tablet, and most of it is literally flushed down the toilet.

On the other hand, greens powders retain much of the nutrient density since they derive from raw ingredients. Importantly, the nutrients are more 'bioavailable', implying that the source of vitamins can be absorbed by your body more easily.

7. How to Kill Cravings

Your hypothalamus, the brain's part that controls appetite and cravings, is a sensitive beast. If you lack a particular nutrient, it'll trigger hunger signals to placate the hypothalamus. This is especially prevalent if your diet is composed of heavily processed, salty, and sugary foods!

This is why you experience a mid-morning and mid-afternoon slump at work, leading you to eye the office snack machine.

Super greens powder, rich in green vegetables that the body can readily absorb, keeps your hypothalamus content, curbing cravings.

That's why we recommend consuming your greens first thing in the morning to keep your hypothalamus sated all day long.

8. Do Super Greens Give a Natural Energy Boost?

We're all energy addicts!

In today's world of instant fixes, we consume energy drinks, highly caffeinated, and excessively sugary foods and drinks, promising to invigorate us and give us wings.

However, the problem with this high-octane lifestyle is that we CRASH severely once the effect wears off, leaving us desperate for the next fix.

We all need energy to get through our workday, cope with the kids, or meet our bosses' ever-increasing demands.

This is where a greens powder comes in handy. Like the craving-killing properties mentioned above, greens can also provide a natural energy boost.

The natural slow-release carbohydrates and proteins in many of the greens powder ingredients give you a consistent supply of energy throughout your day, not just a quick energy surge.

9. Reducing Bloating

Earlier, we discussed digestive enzymes, both those naturally found in certain green ingredients and those added to a greens powder supplement.

When your digestive system is compromised, your gut has trouble processing both the good and bad foods you consume.

For individuals with IBS-type symptoms, identifying trigger foods can be a minefield and an ongoing struggle.

Obvious culprits like bread and pasta can trigger an acute onset of severe bloating, often referred to as the "pregnant" look.

However, supplying your tummy with a steady stream of digestive enzymes can better handle these situations, significantly reducing or even completely eliminating bloating episodes.

10. Great for Skin and Hair Health

The simple truth is, the more nutrients your body can absorb from fruits and vegetables, the healthier all tissues in your body will be.

Many of the green ingredients in a greens drink contain chlorophyll, the pigment responsible for their green color.

While no clinical trials support these claims, anecdotal reports suggest that consuming wheatgrass can repair broken skin and help with eczema and dermatitis.

This Livestrong article discusses the potential links between Chlorella and preventing hair loss. Rich in vitamins and minerals, this seaweed is recommended for supplementation to improve hair quality.

11. Better Toilet Habits

This is a topic many people shy away from. However, "cleaner" toilet habits undeniably make us all feel better about our bodies, right?

Once again, the magical chlorophyll found in most common greens juice recipes comes to the rescue.

Chlorophyll is ideal for cleansing the liver. And with a healthier liver and gut, more consistent and healthy stool can be achieved.

12. Natural Source of Protein

Not many people know this, but Spirulina is 'almost' a complete vegetable protein, meaning it contains all but two of the essential amino acids, the building blocks of life and critical components of everyone's diet.

This is great news for our vegetarian friends.

However, be warned. Spirulina has a taste and smell comparable to a moldy, stagnant pond. This is one of the primary reasons greens drinks often have a reputation for tasting like pond water.

Thankfully, more palatable blends are available.

13. Alkalising

Alkalising diets have had a turbulent few years.

While millions of people swear by them, the medical community denies that blood alkalinity can be altered by consuming a more alkaline diet.

Nevertheless, considering that much of our modern diet is highly acidic and highly inflammatory, any foods that can counteract this are beneficial.

Greens powders are typically pH neutral or slightly alkaline and can be easily incorporated into your preferred alkaline diet.

The Elephant In The Room - What About The Taste?

Unfortunately, greens drinks have been notorious for having an 'acquired' taste.

However, the game has changed.

A handful of independent supplement companies have gone rogue, shattering the stereotype by creating greens drinks that are palatable, not just reserved for health fanatics and tree-huggers.

One specific company built its entire Unique Selling Proposition (USP) around the idea of a greens drink designed for taste as well as health.

Lean Greens has been perfecting their greens formula since 2012 and has served tens of thousands of customers who sought the benefits without the unfavourable taste.

To get your first tub of Lean Greens, explore all the buying options here.

Final Thoughts

And there you have it - everything you ever wanted to know about Super Greens.

We hope we've given you a comprehensive insight into what to look for when you're on the hunt for your first greens drink to try, as well as the benefits you're likely to reap from daily consumption.

As always, nothing beats top-notch nutrition habits, with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables forming a large part of your daily diet.

Now, It's Over to You

It's amusing when people ask, "what's wrong with just eating more vegetables?" And it's true; if we all ate more vegetables, there wouldn't really be a need for greens powders.

However, for those seeking a nutritional insurance policy for those days when you can't quite hit your five-a-day target, grabbing a super greens to mix with water is an excellent nutritional upgrade to your already healthy diet.