Many people go for a smoothie at breakfast as a healthy option, but be warned - some shop bought smoothies contain a worrying amount of sugar.
We all know breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but it can be easy to get bored of your regular choice. Whether it's cereals, toast or maybe even porridge, people often choose a smoothie to mix things up or as a way to enjoy their 5-a-day first thing.
Although shop and supermarket bought smoothies can help you achieve your 5-a-day and are often packed with fibre and protein, they can also contain very high levels of sugar.
Paula Norris, a dietician from Australia, found that some smoothies from the popular chain Boost Juice contained the same amount of sugar as multiple 'soft serve' ice creams, like the popular Mr Whippy cone.
By looking at the Boost Juice nutritional information, which is available online, we could confirm that the Brekkie to Go Go smoothie contained 64.4g sugar which is equivalent to 16 teaspoons of sugar!
This equates to three McDonald's soft serve ice cream cones with a flake. And you wouldn't start the day with an ice-cream would you? Let alone three...
The Brekkie to Go Go smoothie contains low fat milk, banana, honey, muesli, energiser booster, vanilla yoghurt and ice. It is recommended as a good source of protein and fibre and contains 612 calories.
The Kinky Kale juice, a mix of kale, mint, ice, and fresh orange and pineapple juice, has 70.2g of sugar. This is the equivalent of seven 18g Cadbury Freddo chocolate bars.
Shocked at the smoothie findings? We were too. But if you absolutely love smoothies, you don't have to ditch them.
Taking to Instagram, Paula gave her advice on how to make sure your smoothies are healthy and not packed with sugar, such a making them at home. Even natural sugars need to be consumed in moderation.
Paula suggests making your smoothies vegetable based with only one piece of fruit. She also said it’s important to use a blender that doesn’t remove the skin of your fruit and veg otherwise you lose all the fibre.
Adding a source of protein like milk or yogurt and some healthy fats will also help bulk out your smoothie without adding tonnes of sugar.
Will you be making the swap?