It's becoming trendy to supplement you diet with "greens". Most people are aware that they aren't getting their 5-9 servings of fruits and veggies that the FDA suggests. Over the last several years several companies have begun to make powdered "greens" available, but like anything some are better than others. How can you tell if you're getting a good one?
1.
Read the label. If it has ANY ingredient that you don't understand or can't pronounce, leave it alone. If prepared properly, greens do not require and fillers, binders, or preservatives to extend their shelf life.
2.
Added sugars or flavors. I recently read the label of a company that claimed to have an all natural product, but the first ingredient was "apple flavor powder" and then later it listed "apple powder". No one could answer my question as to what the flavor powder actually was. Read carefully.
3.
Pesticide free. Being pesticide free is expensive to growers, so it becomes a big deal from a marketing perspective. If your greens have no pesticides on them, they will be shouting about it on the label! Remember, the more produce you intake, the more you will be adding pesticides to your diet unless you actively decide to choose something else.
4.
Non-GMO. GMO is short for "genetically modified organism" which means that someone in a lab has messed with the plant. It is not the same thing that originally grew in nature. This is how you can get strawberries the size of your fist in Costco sometimes. The book "Wheat Belly" talks about how the wheat plant has been changed from 9 to 42 chromosomes through this process, and is responsible for a large portion of food allergies being seen now. This genetic modification is not even approved officially for human consumption! Be careful what Franken-fruit you allow into your body.
5.
Raw. To make this claim the manufacturers must be sure that during processing the plant has not been subjected to temperatures that will kill the enzymes or denature nutrients that are naturally occurring. During a freeze-drying process, produce is frozen, processed at temperatures over 100 degrees at least, then subjected to -40 degrees typically as water is removed. This is not gentle on the plant. Freezing water in plants causes damage (just look at any garden after the first frost). To get the benefits of a raw plant the water must be removed at low temperatures and carefully monitored.
6.
Refrigerate after opening. If a product has no preservatives, it's best to keep it in the refrigerator to preserve fragile nutrients. A manufacturer should suggest that on the label if it would be important for their product.
7.
Any FDA claims. It is a rigorous process to get approved to print an FDA claim on a label. If you see any health claims like "may reduce the risk of cancer" on a label, you can be sure that the maker of that product has been through many hoops so as not to be shut down for making false claims.
8.
Is there variety? Ideally the human diet should be diverse. Animals most like us will use 200 and more different types of plants in their diet. The body requires so many different minerals for all its different processes. So instead of getting only the same 5-12 plant sources that most people do week after week, seek to expand the number of different kinds of plants you take in. Your supplement should include several different kinds, some leafy, some non-leafy. Spinach and kale alone do not meet all of your needs.
9.
Do you eat grass? I don't, but I know that many greens companies focus all or in part on grasses or dried grass juices as a basis for their green powders. While there may be value there, I try to step back and use my common sense to decide "would I really eat that?". I can't see myself looking at a meadow and saying "yummy!". I'm naturally more drawn to colorful fruit, or zucchini or cabbage or special shapes and colors from plants that seem to say they are there to be eaten. And if I wouldn't eat it in real life, why would I constantly put it into my body as part of my health regimen? You make the call on this one.
I hope I've given you food for thought here that will cause you to stop and evaluate your choice of greens supplement. If you aren't currently adding greens to your diet, I
highly suggest you do daily. Minerals from plants, particulary calcium, are absorbed differently and very bio-available, as compared to animal sources such as dairy. Keep your bones strong and dense, keep iron, magnesium and all the other precious minerals your body needs easily accessible so when you need it for better aging, more energy and optimal health, you have it.
Here is an example of a clean label, my favorite brand.
