Smoothies are everywhere and drinking them is a major trend in health. Put veggies and fruit in a blender, zap it, and gulp it down. Intuitively, it seems like this might be a great way to get healthy. You get all the stuff in the fruit or vegetable and you get it conveniently, quickly, and enjoyably. So are smoothies and shakes as healthy as they sound?

Yes and no.

While smoothies may sound like a healthy treat, sometimes they’re anything but.

Smoothies are usually made with healthy ingredients like soy milk, fresh or frozen fruit, skim milk, or yogurt. But some also feature plenty of high-fat and/or high-sugar items like ice cream, peanut butter, sweetened syrups, or chocolate. What you can end up with is a drink that has upwards of 600 calories, enough saturated fat to rival a double cheeseburger, and carbohydrate grams in the triple digits — and that’s just for the small size.

The best way to know whether your shake or smoothie is healthy is to make it yourself. For example, you can blend spinach, kale, flax seed and yogurt to make up a power smoothie, perfect for an on-the-go breakfast. Here are some other options that contain only the healthiest ingredients.

Check out Healthy Shakes & Smoothies

by PrettyTough™ at Foodie.com

Disclosure: Compensation for this post was provided by via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Foodie or Mode Media.