Ask Doctor Zac: How to drink breakfast smoothies for weight loss

It’s a widely popular breakfast food that’s seen as “healthy” but Dr Zac Turner says it’s the very thing that could be making you gain weight.

Welcome to Ask Doctor Zac, a weekly column from news.com.au.

This week Dr Zac Turner looks at whether drinking smoothies makes you overweight.

QUESTION: Hi Dr Zac, what are your thoughts on the breakfast smoothie? I only ask because I’ve been getting one every morning at a new juice bar on the ground floor of my office. I thought they are supposed to help you feel healthy, more energetic and lose weight, but I am having the opposite effect! I’ve actually gained weight over the past month and I’ve religiously had a large smoothie every morning. What am I doing wrong? – Kate, 26 Homebush, NSW

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Is your breakfast smoothie healthy or not? Picture: Supplied

ANSWER: Hi Kate, I love a great homemade smoothie in the morning. The key word here is homemade. My first piece of advice is stop buying high calorie smoothies and make healthier options yourself.

My second piece of advice is drink your smoothie differently. Nearly every person drinks smoothies the wrong way. Not only am I about to tell you how you should be drinking your smoothie and why it will make a huge difference, I’ll also share my secret recipe for the perfect smoothie that beats anything you will ever buy in the shops. You could say it gets the doctor’s tick of approval!

When you make smoothies yourself, not only do you have control over portions and ingredients, but you’ll save around $8 each day for what I believe should have a junk food label. Juice bars tend to make their smoothies with sweeteners like honey, maple syrup and flavoured yoghurt, or by putting fruit juices with the highest portion of fructose (the fruit version of glucose) to keep you coming back. This leads to your favourite morning snack ending up being loaded with calories.

You’re probably now starting to realise why that large smoothie in the morning is causing you so many problems. Also did you know that eating sugar and especially processed sugars like those added to many of our ‘health’ foods can trigger similar addiction receptors as illicit drugs?

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If a smoothie is laden with sweeteners and high fructose then it’s not a health food.

I bet your energy levels tend to crash around 11am each day? That’s your body dealing with a low after consuming a high number of high GI sugars. Consuming high GI sugars is like pouring diesel into a fire, it burns large and quick but ends even quicker. The trick to making sure you avoid this 11am crash is to include low GI foods into your smoothie as well. Things like seeds and nuts, which will burn at a slower rate throughout the day meaning you stay energised for longer.

Smoothies are the perfect first meal for people who are always running late for work, eat food on the run or simply hate eating breakfast. Most people make the mistake of loading everything possibly ‘healthy’ into their smoothie and gulping it down in five minutes.

This leads to what we call in the biomedical world as, ‘expensive urine’. Whenever we eat, our bodies take out the nutrients they need and discard the rest. Our digestive systems aren’t perfect at extracting all the vitamins and minerals from the foods we consume. This means we pee or poo out the rest, so all those expensive health powders you put into the smoothie often end up as urine.

Did you know that for most of us our gastrointestinal system can only absorb around 8-10 grams of protein per hour? So those protein smoothies advertised as having 40 grams of protein are a waste of money – don’t do it! Consider what your body needs and stick to that.

What’s the solution? You need to start adopting this trick in order to surcharge the effectiveness of your health smoothies. You need to start sipping it over three hours and not gulping it down in five minutes. By giving your body time to digest the smoothie sip by sip, you are maximising your body’s nutrient extraction. Buy yourself a keep cup with a lid and take that into the office with you.

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Dr Zac Turner says you should try making your own smoothies.

And if you really want a failsafe smoothie you can make at home – give this Dr Zac smoothie recipe a go!

DR ZAC’S SMOOTHIE

Handful of Spinach or Kale – Yes, always include green veggies in your smoothie for brain health and vitamin B and other vitamins like A, C, E and K.

Handful of oats – Adds a nice creamy texture, as well is low GI for longer energy. They are a great source of important vitamins, minerals, fibre, and antioxidants and are rich in carbs and fibre, but also higher in protein and fat than most other grains.

One banana – Great source of healthy carbohydrates and potassium for energy boost, maintaining normal blood pressure and heart function, fibres that also help promote cardiovascular health and B vitamins, which play a role in cell metabolism.

One date – Adds natural sweetness, as well is very high GI for an instant hop in your step. They are loaded with fibre, potassium, polyphenols (antioxidant) and nutrients that are not found in refined sugars.

Protein powder of your choice – Easy way to add more protein to your diet for muscle maintenance and growth. Protein has also been shown to help with weight loss, boost your metabolism, reduce your appetite and help you lose body fat without losing muscle and also.

Teaspoon of spirulina – Green powder made from algae that promotes gut-health and loaded with various nutrients and antioxidants that may benefit your body and brain. It may improve your levels of blood lipids, suppress oxidation, reduce blood pressure and lower blood sugar.

Water – No milk! The oats will add the creaminess to the smoothie, and this cuts down on fat.

A homemade smoothie with almonds and bananas is the way to go.

Dr Zac Turner has a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Sydney. He is both a medical practitioner and a co-owner of telehealth service, Concierge Doctors, and is also a qualified and experienced biomedical scientist. | @drzacturner