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These days, there’s a potentially maddening amount of conflicting opinions on what constitutes a healthy way to eat. But there’s one thing virtually every diet agrees on: You should eat more greens. For very few calories, and also few carbs if that macro is not your jam, you get a payload of antioxidants and micronutrients from spinach, broccoli and the like.
However, if you struggle to eat enough or simply want to top-up the nutrition you’re already getting from your daily kale salad, it can be tempting to add a scoop of greens powders into your life.
The promises are lofty. Glowing skin, a hardy digestive system, a revved immune system, supercharged sports performance, and never-ending energy. All benefits attributed to a daily greens powder habit. But do these supplements really deliver?
Greens powders have an undeniable appeal, so we sifted through the hype to determine whether they’re worth blitzing into your smoothies.
Greens powders are made by dehydrating various vegetables, fruits and other compounds, then crushing them into a fine powder. They also can be produced by extracting the juice from the whole form of the ingredients, drying it out, and then crushing it into a powder. Sometimes both production methods are used to make the final product.
Don’t be fooled by the name. Many greens powders also contain plenty of non-greens ingredients too. Formulas vary by brand, but here is what you’ll commonly find in a green powder.
Greens: Wheatgrass, kale, oat grass, spirulina, barley grass, broccoli, chlorella
Fruit: Pomegranate, cherry, blueberry, elderberry
Beet powder
Mushrooms: Reishi, cordyceps, turkey tail
Rhizomes: Ginger, turmeric
Seeds: Chia, flax
Priobiotics: LactoSpore (Bacillus coagulans)
Prebiotics: Oligiosaccharides
Spices: Cinnamon, black pepper, cayenne
Sweetener: Stevia, monk fruit extract
Although most of us know that it’s important to eat plenty of vegetables, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that only 1 in 10 Americans gets enough of them on any given day. So a greens powder can be a practically no-effort way to help bridge the gap, especially if traveling somewhere with limited access to fresh produce.
With so many beneficial ingredients (upwards of 30 or more) it’s hard not to consider most greens powders as nutrient-dense, antioxidant-rich products that can help ensure you’re getting all the nutrition you need for good health and to support your training efforts.
Ingredients like broccoli and barley grass will deliver vitamin K for improved heart health, seaweed (such as spirulina) is rich in beta-carotene that may help elevate brain functioning, and powdered fruits such as berries give your diet a shot of immune-boosting vitamin C. An extra dose of antioxidants like polyphenols can help limit oxidative damage in the body which may lower inflammation in the body to reduce the risk for certain diseases like cancer and also improve recovery from hard training. Seeds offer up anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats and if your diet is lacking in fermented foods like yogurt then the inclusion of probiotics might provide benefits to your gut health.
But what these powders are not is a direct substitute for vegetables and fruits, so don’t consider tossing some green powder into your smoothie a reason to leave actual greens off your plate. “If you are having a tough time getting some of these healthful foods into your diet, these powders can help, but they don’t carry the same benefits as whole vegetables and fruits,” says Sharon Palmer, MSFS, RDN, The Plant-Powered Dietitian. “I enjoy adding them to my smoothie as a bonus, but I still try to fit in more servings of green leafy vegetables, seaweed, and herbs throughout the day.”
The processing involved in making powdered fruits and vegetables may diminish their nutrient and antioxidant richness. In their whole form, vegetables give you the satisfaction of chewing, which promotes fullness and improved ratings of satiety that can help put the brakes on overeating. Additionally, greens powders are typically lower in fiber than whole veggies and fruits, though sometimes extra fiber is added. So if you’re doing well and eating at least three servings of whole vegetables daily, keep that up and just use a powder to further up your nutrition game and provide a little green safety net.
With so many ingredients in the mix, there’s always the real possibility that some of them will be supplied in amounts that are too small to have much of an impact. So while a product may contain turmeric, beet or cordyceps mushroom, it’s possible you’ll reap more rewards from these by consuming them on their own. When you eat a cup or two of broccoli or kale, you’ll surely get more micronutrients and antioxidants from this than the powdered versions used in products. Also, when probiotics are added to the mix, there’s no guarantee how viable the beneficial critters still are once they reach your water glass.
There’s also the concern that they can contain harmful contaminants, such as lead and other heavy metals. One lab analysis found contaminants in four of 13 products tested. However, it is not known if the levels of contaminants pose a health risk in the amounts consumed. “You want to make sure you don’t go overboard with using greens powders,” Palmer cautions. “When things are extracted or in powder form, it’s easy to get too much of a particular item, where it’s much harder to do that in whole plant form.”
It’s important to note that to date research on greens powder is very limited. Additionally, product manufacturers typically provide the cash for these studies, which increases the risk of bias. Therefore, it’s best to view any outcomes with a good deal of skepticism.
One four-week study of 10 healthy adults who took in up to two tablespoons of a greens powder daily discovered that this raised their blood antioxidant firepower which, in theory, could offer up more protection from several ailments including heart disease and make it easier to better adapt to the rigors of training. In another 90-day investigation of people with high blood pressure, two tablespoons (10 grams) of greens powder taken daily decreased blood pressure by about 8 percent while the no-greens control group observed no improvement. In a three-month study in 63 healthy women, those taking one tablespoon (10 grams) of greens powder reported significant increased feelings of energy, something that is obviously very subjective. Not available is any research that has provided greens powders to athletes and measured the outcomes concerning performance.
The formulations are often vegan, as well as non-GMO and organic — but check the product label for these details if they are important to you. Because greens powders are categorized as supplements they are not strictly regulated by the FDA, which means that quality control may be questionable. So get your greens powder from a trusted source. “You’ll want to pay attention to any third-party testing certifications, which generally test for purity and potency,” notes Palmer. That way, you know you’re getting what’s listed on the label and nothing else you don’t want, such as high amounts of contaminants.
Also, look for powders with little to no added sugars. Sweetener alternatives like stevia or monk fruit are a safer bet. Taste is another key consideration when choosing a product because one that doesn’t taste good is one you likely won’t use often enough. Luckily, improved flavors mean you won’t be drinking something that tastes like freshly mowed lawn. You may need to play the field to find one that pleases your taste buds the most. You may find some too sweet or too earthy.
The simplest way to add a greens powder to your diet is to mix it with water, plant-based milk or juice. You can also blend a scoop into smoothies or stir into a bowl of yogurt, your favorite nut butter or even hot oatmeal. They can add a dose of nutrition to pureed soups, a skillet of scrambled eggs, dips or a salad dressing.
The Bottom Line: Your top priority should be to consume whole vegetables and fruits, but the various guises of greens powders can help increase the nutritional quality of your diet in a convenient, easy way. Even if their benefits tend to get oversold. Just remember, no amount of broccoli and kale dust will make up for a lousy diet.
(Photo: GettyImages)
Gnarly Performance Greens Blueberry Acai
The nutrition panel reads like a multi-vitamin thanks to the mixture of powdered greens, fruits, functional mushrooms and seeds. Each scoop also supplies a population of gut-friendly probiotics.
Manda Superdrink
This one is a little different in that it contains a vast array of fermented goodies including mulberry leaf, seaweed and the red bayberries you didn’t know you needed in your life. Thumbs up for not being unbearably sweet.
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Live Conscious Beyond Greens
This option is fortified with a range of immune-boosting functional mushrooms including reishi and cordyceps along with prebiotics to help feed your microbiome and antioxidant-rich matcha tea powder.
Bare Performance Nutrition Strong Greens
The expansive list of greens including kale, wheatgrass and spirulina will indeed help keep your health strong. Sweetened with stevia and monk fruit extract.
KOS Show Me the Greens
A subtle apple flavor is a nice break from the typical citrus or berry taste of greens powders. From wheatgrass to broccoli to kale to prebiotics, this one has all the greatest hits.
Amazing Grass Fizzy Green Berry
These effervescent tablets make it easy to take your greens everywhere. Perfect for travel or a quick nutritional boost to your post-workout hydration.
Want to take your muscle-building protein powder to the next level. Try making this greens-infused power powder to upgrade your protein shakes. Also, stir it into oatmeal and a bowl of yogurt.
1 1/2 cups protein powder of choice
1/2 cup greens powder of choice
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/3 cup cacao powder
1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon
Pinch of salt
Published: November 12, 2018
Fresh kale is readily available in grocery stores and farmers' markets, while kale powder is typically sold in resealable pouches or small tubs in health food stores. In this article, we compare the nutritional value of kale powder vs fresh kale. We will also provide information about the possible side effects of eating too much kale, as well as tips on how to store and use kale powder and its fresh counterpart.
Often touted as a superfood, kale is a nutritional heavyweight that is on par with powerhouse foods like moringa and spinach in terms of nutritional value. Whether you go for fresh or frozen kale, you will be providing your body with plenty of folate, vitamin C, vitamin K, beta-carotene, riboflavin, vitamin B6, vitamin E, and a slew of minerals. But how does kale powder fare against fresh kale in terms of nutritional value?
While some nutrition is always lost when green vegetables are turned into superfood powders because of the exposure to air during the drying and grinding processes, kale powder is still an excellent source of nutrients and health-protecting phytochemicals. In fact, weight for weight, kale powder is a better source of many nutrients than fresh kale because removing water during the dehydration process concentrates what's left, essentially jamming more fiber and air-resistant nutrients and phytochemicals into a smaller space.
Indeed, a study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Food Processing and Preservation found that air-dried kale contained a whopping 158 milligrams of carotenoids and 646 milligrams of chlorophyll per 100 grams, while fresh kale contained 28.1 milligrams of carotenoids and 121 milligrams of chlorophyll. And, freeze-dried kale powder was found to contain even more of these health-giving compounds (1).
Like fresh kale, freeze-dried kale powder also contains glucosinolates which can be converted into cancer-fighting isothiocyanates in the presence of an enzyme called myrosinase (2). That said, the glucosinolate content of freeze-dried kale powder can vary greatly depending on the type of kale that was used to make the powder, with black kale (lacinato) generally beating curly kale in this regard (3).
We have all heard the saying, "too much of a good thing can be harmful", and that applies to kale, too. Especially kale powder can be problematic because it is such as concentrated source of all sorts of compounds, so it is very easy to go overboard.
In particular, people who have an increased risk of thyroid problems or have an existing health problem should talk to a qualified health care professional before adding kale powder (or fresh kale) to their diet. That's because Brassica vegetables like kale and cabbage have goitrogenic properties, especially when consumed raw, which means that they may interfere with normal thyroid activity and cause conditions like hypothyroidism.
As kale is supercharged with vitamin K, also people who take blood thinning medications should take extra caution and ask their doctor about how much kale they can safely consume because high doses of vitamin K can block the effects of blood thinners like warfarin.
What's more, kale contains nitrates, though its nitrate content is generally nowhere near as high as that of arugula or spinach. Abundant in many green leafy vegetables, nitrates are controversial compounds that initially earned a bad reputation because they can be converted into nitrites and further into carcinogenic nitrosamines.
However, a meta-analysis published in the journal Nutrients could not find a positive correlation between a high intake of plant-based nitrates and risk of gastric cancer, probably because the health benefits of eating green leafy vegetables outweigh the disadvantages (4, 5).
Nevertheless, experts have been recommending measures to keep the nitrate levels in vegetables in check in order to maximize the health benefits of vegetables. These measures include storing vegetables properly and removing the stem and midrib from certain green leafy vegetables. (6)
We all love homemade kale chips, but that's just one of the many wonderful things you can do with kale. You can use fresh kale, for example, to add nutrients, flavor and texture to stir-fries, risottos, omelettes and pizza toppings. Or, whip up a tasty kale smoothie by puréeing some young kale leaves with your favorite fruits in a high-powered blender.
If you have a masticating juicer designed to handle greens like kale or spinach, you can also try making some nutrient-packed kale juice. While pure kale juice is not particularly tasty, it's wonderful when mixed with sweeter juices such as apple juice.
While fresh kale can add texture to dishes, kale powder is primarily used to add color, flavor and nutrients to dishes. Popular ways to use kale powder include blending it into green smoothies and puréed soups, adding it to sauces, dips and salad dressings, incorporating it into egg-based dishes such as omelettes and scrambled eggs, and sprinkling it on salads.
One of the most important differences between kale powder and fresh kale is that properly stored kale powder has a relatively long shelf life, whereas fresh kale should be eaten within days of being purchased. What's more, kale powder should be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place such as a kitchen cabinet, while fresh kale is best stored in a sealable plastic bag in the crisper drawer of your fridge.
If you think you won't be able to use up all the fresh kale in your fridge before it starts to wilt, you can also freeze it for later use. Before freezing kale, it is best to blanch it first by putting the trimmed and rinsed leaves into boiling water for two minutes and then submerging the blanched leaves in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. Blanching vegetables before freezing helps destroy enzymes and bacteria that cause spoilage.
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