Therapeutic Smoothie (Gut and Skin Healing)

Photo credit: Jose Soriano

This is an intervention I use often with my clients to help nourish their bodies. This recipe is basic. Depending on what’s happening with YOU, it may need to be customized. There is no one size fits all approach. Also, remember that children are different from adults and should not take adult doses of supplements.

Add ingredients and blend well (blender, Vitamix, NutriBullet, etc.)

1. Protein powder (Pure Paleo is very high quality and is hydrolyzed [beef] so it’s easily absorbable [even with gut problems] and because it’s an animal protein it contains all essential and conditionally essential amino acids, which is super important for overall health, and healing)- 1 scoop for adults; 1/4 - 1/2 scoop for children 2 years and up

2. MegaMucosa – 1 scoop for adults, and children 2 years and up OR MegaIGG2000 - 4 capsules for adults, and children 2 years and up

   • These products can be purchased through Microbiome Labs

3. Collagen Peptides (should contain types I and III) – 1 scoop for adults; 1/4 - 1/2 scoop for children 2 years and up

4. Glycine powder - 3000mg for adults; 750mg for children 2 years and up

5. Acacia fiber, flaxseeds, or chia seeds - 1 Tbsp for adults; 1/4 - 1/2 Tbsp for children 2 years and up

6. Fruit (berries are best and low sugar) - ¼ - ½ cup

7. Vegetables (kale and spinach, beets, carrots, dandelion greens) - add liberally

8. FAT → choose one of the following: 1 tbsp coconut oil, 1 tbsp ghee, ¼ cup raw nuts, ¼ avocado, 1 tbsp avocado oil or olive oil, 1 tbsp coconut cream

9. Ice if desired

10. Chilled water or non dairy milk (coconut, rice, hemp, almond, etc.)

11. My personal customizations

    1. Cacao powder 1 tsp

    2. Cinnamon 1 tsp

    3. Turmeric powder 1 tsp

About the ingredients

• Protein - We don't have stores in our body to draw from like we do fats and carbs, so we need to eat it daily, and a smoothie is a great way to get in more. We don't always get enough quality protein. Our body builds everything from proteins, down to the cellular level. Protein with each meal (along with fat) helps to balance blood sugar levels. With chronic conditions and when on a healing journey we need more protein (70-120 grams/day for adults) because the body needs it to build and repair (heal) tissues.

• MegaMucosa/MegaIGG2000 - Nutrients for gut healing and immune system support, and neutralizes toxins.

• Glycine (an amino acid) - An amino acid that is essential for muscle, cognitive and metabolic function, and for detoxification. It aids in energy production, and supports your immune, digestive and nervous system. 

• Collagen Peptides - Helps with gut healing and is great for hair, skin, nails and joints.

• Acacia fiber, flaxseeds, or chia seeds - Regulates digestion, feeds healthy gut bacteria (prebiotic), and is good for detoxification.

• Fat - Adding a fat source helps balance blood sugar (along with protein), and fat is needed for your body to digest and absorb important fat-soluble nutrients like vitamins A, D, E and K, and many others including phytonutrients (stuff from plants) like carotenoids (powerful antioxidant nutrient). 

• Turmeric powder, cinnamon, cacao powder - Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant

Get the supplements

Click the button below to “place an order” in Fullscript. You’ll be prompted to create a free account. Then search in the catalog under the “my favorites” tab and you’ll see a category called “Therapeutic Smoothie” which is where you’ll find the supplements you’ll need for your gut and skin healing smoothie!

NOTE: Children should not take adult doses of supplements, and some supplements are not appropriate for children, contact me if you have questions.

Reference, and additional recipes:

• 7 Eczema Soothing Smoothies (via Jennifer Fugo, MS, CNS, Clinical Nutritionist, Skinterrupt.com)

Looking for high calorie smoothie recipes? Here are some options (via Smoothie Gains):

• High Calorie Paelo Shake Recipe

• Tropical Strength Smoothie Recipe

• Walnut Muscle Smoothie Recipe

• 1000-Calorie Green Smoothie Recipe - sub almond or coconut milk for regular milk (dairy is inflammatory and can be a trigger for a variety of symptoms and health problems)

• Mega-Calorie Shake for Huge Gains - sub almond or coconut milk for regular milk (dairy is inflammatory and can be a trigger for a variety of symptoms and health problems).  

You can play with the recipes, and mix and match ingredients.

If you have questions or need guidance, book your introductory consultation!

Protein: What You Need to Know!

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Protein

Amino acids are the building blocks for all structures in your body. Cells, organs, tissues, hormones, neurotransmitters, bones, joints, hair, skin, RNA, DNA, your genes. Seriously everything. They also play in important role in liver detoxification.

Amino acids come from protein-rich foods that you eat. Your body breaks proteins down into those amino acids during digestion, and then they get absorbed so that your body can use them.

Nine amino acids are essential which means you need to get them from foods you eat because your body can’t make them.

Your body can make non-essential amino acids from essential ones. But in times of stress (physical, chemical, emotional, any form of stress), some of those non-essentials become conditionally essential, meaning you also need to get them from foods you eat because your body isn’t able to make them under those conditions.

When you are struggling with skin rashes, food allergies and sensitivities, gut problems, and any other health problem, this is a source of chronic stress, and under these conditions, you need to get essential and conditionally essential amino acids from food to support your body so that it can repair AND continue to function optimally.

Protein Sources

Animal foods like chicken, beef, fish, and eggs contain all of the essential and conditionally essential amino acids and therefore are considered complete proteins.

Most plant proteins are not complete because they do not contain the full spectrum of essential and conditionally essential amino acids.

Animal proteins have better digestibility and more protein per weight/quantity compared to plant proteins.

If you eat a completely plant-based diet, you will need more protein than someone who consumes animal foods to get the variety of amino acids you need.

Plant and Animal Protein Sources: How Do They Compare? Fullscript

Not Eating Enough Protein is one of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to heal their skin

Children need more protein than adults per pound of body weight because they are growing and developing, add a healing journey on top of that, they need even more.⁠

Here’s why:

• Protein builds and repairs all structures in your child’s body, including skin.⁠

• It doesn’t get stored in your child’s body like fats and carbs do, so they need to eat it every day to keep tissues from breaking down. A serving with each meal can help ensure enough is getting in.

• Guidelines you see online for how much protein your child should be eating, and often what you hear from your doctor or other conventional practitioner, are for preventing deficiency. They are not for optimal health and certainly not adequate for skin healing.

Child standard published guidelines

• Age 6 months, about 1.12g per kg of body weight each day

• Age 10 years, about .74g per kg body weight each day

What’s needed to support optimal health, growth, development, and healing

• Minimum of 1.5 - 2g per kg of body weight each day

If you're curious, search online for nutrition for wound healing to see what it takes to heal the skin. You'll see that true healing comes from increased intake of a variety of nutrients, starting with protein. And that intake is above the general guidelines.

To find out how much protein your child needs on their healing journey divide their weight in pounds by 2.2. Then multiply that number by 1.5 at a minimum. The number you get is the amount of protein in grams your child should eat daily.

To find out if they are getting enough in their diet from foods they are eating, use a nutrition tracking app like Cronometer. You can set up a free account, enter what they are eating, and it will show you how much they are getting in so you can adjust that as needed.

For adults standard published guidelines are about .8g per kg of body weight each day. To support optimal health and healing you need a minimum of 1.5g per kg of body weight each day.

Serving sizes

A rule of thumb is to eat a serving of complete, quality protein with each meal.

Kids aged 1-3 (3 servings per day)

• 1 ounce of meat, fish, or chicken

• 1/4 cup cooked beans

• 1/2 egg

Kids aged 4-6 (3 servings per day)

• 1 ounce meat, fish, or chicken

• 1/3 cup cooked beans

• 1 egg

• 1 Tbsp nut butter

• 1/2 ounce nuts or seeds

Kids aged 7-10 (3 servings per day)

• 2-3 ounces meat, fish, or chicken

• 1/2 cup cooked beans

• 1 - 2 eggs

• 1-2 Tbsp nut butter

• 1 ounce nuts or seeds

For older kids and adults (3 servings per day)

• The size of your palm for meat, fish, or chicken

• The size of a clenched fist for beans and legumes

• 2 Tbsp for nut butters

• A small palm full of nuts

Final thoughts

Eating a combination of animal and plant proteins can make up a healthy, varied diet.

Choose healthier, more sustainable animal proteins like organic, pasture-raised, grass-fed, and wild-caught.

Resources 

• http://www.buildhealthykids.com/servingsizes.html

• https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Portions-and-Serving-Sizes.aspx

• https://fullscript.com/blog/best-protein-sources?

• https://justalittlebite.com/plant-based-protein-a-guide-from/

• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16902324/

  https://www.chla.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/Nutrition%20for%20pediatric%20wound%20healing.pdf