In my family we have always called smoothies – Shake Shakes.
Shake Shake is easier for them to say, and once they said it once, we haven’t gone back. The morning routine is a busy one, and to be honest some days I wouldn’t be able to pull off a balanced breakfast without my go to Shake Shake.
I have learned from my colleagues (Dr. Famous and Dr. Peets Talbot – Functional Medicine Doctors) the importance of a balanced meal, especially for our growing youngsters. When you travel down the cereal aisle, you would think every child in this country must be eating cereal for breakfast based on the fact an entire isle is dedicated to the sugary stuff! Quite honestly, this is a scary thought, as most cereals are full of food dyes, refined sugars, GMO corn / dairy/ wheat / soy and preservatives. Especially when paired with sugar sweetened fruit juice but that is for another blog post. Cereal seems so easy, but so is nut butter or avocado and fruit or eggs. It may take time to create the new habit, but your kid’s teachers will thank you…!
BLOOD SUGAR BALANCE
We love our children (and hopefully ourselves), but we are doing them no favours (or ourselves!) when we start our day with sugar laden cereals. It is understandable that picky eaters can make this difficult, but seeking professional help with a holistic pediatrician or nutritionist can help. Ofcourse it can incredibly hard to break this habit too, especially when hormones become involved, but it is worth it and can assist in breaking the sugar craving cycle. One major reason why cereal does not support brain health or productivity, is that it is full of simple carbohydrates and lacks good fats and protein. What happens here is that the sugars digest and absorb into the blood stream in about 3.2 miliseconds (!), gives us a boost of energy, and then it runs out and we crash. This is exactly where we experience hunger, energy crashes, mood swings and tantrums (kids and adults alike!). Truthfully it becomes hard to blame them for their outbursts when we know it could be supported with nutrition. It becomes even more difficult when the adults are having tantrums too!
The key is protein, fibre and fat! Our bodies, young and old, need a balance and this Shake Shake has been my go to answer when I am running out of the door, or on days the kids just don’t feel like eating eggs (we eat a lot of eggs as we have our own chickens!). I do love rotating eggs with protein rich smoothies.
Here are the ingredients, and feel free to make substitutes based on what you have. For example, sometimes I use cashew butter and sometimes its peanut butter. Walnuts are an incredible brain food and are rich in anti-inflammatory Omega 3’s, too. Sometimes I fluctuate between coconut milk, cashew milk and almond milk. I’m lucky in the fact that my kids still drink it if it is slightly different, I know other kids may be more picky, so try to find the combination they love! You can try adding a handful of spinach or strawberries for adventurous eaters and playing with colours can be fun, too.
Ingredients:
- 2 big table spoons of your favourite Nut Butter – almond, peanut or cashew
- 2 or 3 cups of a Nut Milk – cashew, almond or coconut, depends how many kids you are feeding
- 2 or 3 Frozen Bananas – if they aren’t frozen, perhaps add a few ice cubes to chill the shake shake
- Water – If I don’t have a lot of milk or want to make a larger volume I just add some water
- 2 scoops (a serving size) of Vegan / Plant-based Vanilla Protein Powder – Total Vegan is voted best by the kids! (The other ones I have tried seem to be too ‘earthy’ for their liking)
- Probiotic Powder – Springboard by Orthomelecular is the brand I use from our Kiddie Corner supplements at Ocean Rock Wellness (28$ or 24$ for members)
- Chia Seeds – start with a pinch and work up to a tbsp.
- Ground Flax Seeds – just like above, or better yet I have a chia/flax blend so I add them at once
- One tablespoon of MCT Oil (a medium chained triglyceride derived from coconut oil = BRAIN FOOD!)
Cheers to your first Shake Shake!
Beth Hollis
Physiotherapist and Co-founder at Ocean Rock Wellness