Is it possible to get all your vitamins in a smoothie? Being a nutritionist, this is something that I can’t help but ponder. I can’t just make a tasty smoothie and leave things at that – it has to be nutritious too.
In this article, I outline how to get all your vitamins in a smoothie along with an easy and delicious nutrient-packed recipe.
Let’s start with the nutritional requirements… In order for a smoothie to contain all the vitamins, it’ll need to include vitamins A, B (1, 2, 3, pantothenic acid, 6, 7, folic acid, 12), C, D, E, and K. I also like to pack mine with minerals which means calcium, iodine, and iron at a minimum (based on NHS guidelines).
So, what are some practical strategies for packing all of these nutrients into your daily smoothie?
Use a Variety of Colours
The best way to get all of your vitamins in a smoothie is to combine different coloured fruits and vegetables.
Why?
Because the colour of a fruit or veggie’s skin is often an indicator of the types of vitamins and minerals it contains. For example, nutritional research shows that red fruits are often higher in vitamin C while green ones are high in vitamin B2 (aka riboflavin).
So, by using fresh smoothie ingredients in a range of colours, you’ll get the widest variety of vitamins and minerals. It’s one of the reasons why nutritionists like me will often advise people to “eat the rainbow”.
Combining red, green, orange, yellow, and purple fruits and vegetables will give you the most comprehensive vitamin intake. I like to include berries (which tick the red and purple box) and a banana (which ticks the yellow box and gives smoothies a smooth creamy base). I’ll add some spinach for green and maybe an orange or some mango chunks to tick the orange box.
By adding all of these different coloured fruits and vegetables into one smoothie, I get a wide range of vitamins and minerals in one convenient hit.
This approach is also beneficial for the microbiome. This is because you’ve got lots of different ingredients that feed many different types of friendly bacteria in your digestive system.
The downside of this approach is that your smoothie might not look too appetising. Realistically, it’ll probably be brown in colour.
This always seems to be the case if you mix green and purple ingredients so just be prepared for how it will look. This isn’t an aesthetic smoothie that you’ll be proud to post on Instagram. But it will be highly nutritious and take all of your vitamin boxes.
Add Different Food Groups
Another way to get the broadest range of vitamins and minerals into your smoothie is to add different food groups (beyond just fruit and veggies). For example, including oats will add vitamin E and iron. It’ll also make your smoothie thicker and more satisfying.
Adding nut butter (peanut or almond butter) to your smoothie will add more B vitamins to your smoothie. Just be sure to use the healthy kind that’s not ultra-processed and doesn’t contain extra sugar, palm oil, or preservatives.
You can also add protein powder to your smoothie. Many brands of protein powder also contain extra vitamins and minerals so this is a great way to boost your vitamin B12 and iron intake. Free Soul is one of the proteins that springs to mine that’s fortified with extra vitamins and minerals.
Protein powder brands typically add nutrients that vegetarians and vegans are deficient in. Protein shakes alone won’t give you the whole range, but when you mix them with a variety of fruits and veggies, you’ll be getting a broad spectrum of nutrients.
Using fortified plant milk can also help you get more vitamins to your smoothie. Plant-based milks often have vitamins and minerals added to them (to make them equally as nutritious as dairy milk). So, you’ll typically find vitamins D, B2, and B12 along with calcium in many brands of oat, almond, and coconut milk.
Use Vitamin Drops
Another easy way of getting all the vitamins in your smoothie is simply to add multivitamin drops. This isn’t something people usually think of because they focused on healthy fruits and veggies. But vitamin drops are a great ‘insurance policy’ to make sure you’re getting everything you need.
As a nutritionist, I would never advocate solely relying on supplements for your vitamin and mineral needs. It’s always better for the body to get them from natural sources where possible. But supplements are a great smoothie add-in since they can plug any gaps in your vitamin intake.
Vitamin drops are either neutral or fruit-flavoured so you won’t notice the taste when you add them to your smoothie. Because they’re not a powder, they won’t affect the texture so adding drops won’t make it taste gritty or chalky (unlike protein powder which can be hit and miss).
Vitamin-Packed Smoothie Recipe
Here’s a smoothie recipe that you can use to ensure you get a broad range of vitamins…
Ingredients
- Handful of mixed berries
- Banana
- Handful of spinach
- Orange
- Oats (half cup)
- Vanilla protein powder (1 scoop)
- Oat milk (half cup)
- Multi-vitamin drops
Preparation
Peel the banana and orange. Blend all the ingredients together until smooth. Enjoy!
This smoothie recipe includes vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K. Plus it’s packed with dietary fibre and protein too!
So now you know exactly how to get all the vitamins in a smoothie and set yourself up for a nutritious day ahead. Vary your fruits and veggies with seasons to keep your nutrient intake broad and benefit from the best flavours too! If you have questions, feel free to get in touch :)