How many servings of vegetables do you typically get in a day? If your answer is “not nearly enough” (or “how much is a serving”… or “do peas and corn count”… or “do French fries and ketchup count”… or “what’s a vegetable”), then consider yourself normal. Around 90% of Americans don’t eat enough vegetables or fruits. 90%! Wow! To break it down, only 12.2% of people meet the recommended fruit intake, and a mere 9.3% meet the minimum daily recommended intake for vegetables. ¹

Of course, those are just averages, but no matter how you break it down, those numbers are alarming.

And when you take a look at the recommended guidelines, they’re not at all outlandish. In other words, the bar is not set very high. The recommended amounts are 2 to 3 cups of vegetables per day and 1 1/2 to 2 cups of fruits per day. It’s typically recommended by nutritionists and dietitians to eat vegetables and/or fruit with each meal, which would make it pretty easy to meet the suggested targets. Yet, on average, Americans eat fruit just once a day and veggies only 1.7 times per day. ¹

That’s despite the fact that most folks are well aware that getting enough vegetables and fruits is an essential component of a healthy diet—and can help reduce the risk of numerous diseases, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and obesity. ¹

Simply put, it’s vital for people to eat more veggies.

Enter green powders, also called super greens, which are commonly advertised—often aggressively—as a way to help ensure people get more of the good stuff that comes from vegetables and fruits. But the question is, are super greens or green powders really healthy? Or are they just hype?

What are Greens Powders?

Depending on the brand, green powders can vary greatly. In general, they are touted as being able to up your intake of vegetables and fruits simply by mixing the powder into water, nut milk, juices, smoothies, or even protein. Some also provide additional superfoods and health-supporting ingredients such as herbs and probiotics.

As you can likely tell by their name, they tend to be green (or green-ish) in color, and when it comes to taste, green powders tend to be fruit-flavored, but if you’ve ever tried them, many resemble something closer to grass clippings. (Again, the flavor can vary drastically by brand.)

Most provide a broad range of ingredients, from leafy greens to seaweeds to other vegetables to grasses to fruits and berries to herbs and spices to pro- and pre-biotics to digestive enzymes to adaptogenic mushrooms and more. Some have a mix of just a few ingredients; others have 25 or so; and still others can provide over 40 veggies, fruits, herbs, spices, and various superfoods.

The ingredients are typically dried and then ground into a fine powder that can mix easily (or not so easily, again depending on the brand) with liquids.

Super Greens: The Importance of Polyphenols?

While you may think the critical components of green powders are the vitamins and minerals, perhaps the most potent part of super greens products are the polyphenols. In fact, polyphenols may be one of the most essential nutrients you’re currently NOT getting enough of from your diet.

Polyphenols are plant-derived compounds that are loaded with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Diets higher in polyphenols may help improve digestion, support weight management, and provide ammunition the body needs to potentially stave off diseases like diabetes and cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases as well as osteoporosis. ² They’re also thought to help the body battle inflammation. ^{3, 4}

You may be more familiar with polyphenols by other names, especially flavonoids, which account for ~60% of polyphenols. Other groups of polyphenols include phenolic acids and polyphenolic amides.

Polyphenols are found in colorful vegetables and fruits, of course, as well as in herbs and spices. Some of the best sources are cloves and other seasonings like star anise, dried peppermint, and turmeric. Dark chocolate—actually the cacao it’s made with—is also rich in polyphenols, as are berries, black currants, cherries, and apples. They can also be found in beans, nuts, teas, and red wine. And quality green powders can be a convenient source.

The health benefits of diets naturally rich in polyphenols are varied and may include:

• Lowered blood sugar ⁵
• Reduced risk of diabetes ⁶
• Lower blood pressure ⁷
• Lower LDL (bad) cholesterol levels and higher HDL (good cholesterol) ⁸
• Heart health support ^{9, 10}
• Lowered risk of blood clots ¹¹
• Digestion support ¹²
• Fighting off harmful bacteria in the gut ¹³
• Promoting brain health, including memory or focus ^{14, 15}
• Reducing obesity ¹⁶

How to Choose a Quality Super Greens Powder: The Checklist

Green powders can vary a lot from brand to brand. Some green drinks are made from just a few of the cheapest fruit and veggie powders, and as such, they lack some of the most critical polyphenols and antioxidants.

Others seriously taste more like grass clippings than anything you would want to consume on a regular basis.

And others are loaded (secretly, of course) with artificial junk and additives that you wouldn’t knowingly choose to consume.

So, when it comes to choosing your super greens or green powder, it pays to be picky.

Look for a super greens powder that doesn’t contain added artificial sweeteners, sugar, fillers or thickeners, artificial colors, or non-organic or GMO ingredients. You are welcome to go out and read labels and use the old trial and error method to find the right super greens powder for you. Or, you may instead want to just take a shortcut and look at MetaboGreens® from BioTRUST.

What Makes MetaboGreens the Best Super Greens Supplement?

I’ll just share exactly what the nutrition experts from BioTRUST shared:

We created MetaboGreens to be the world’s best-tasting, most effective, polyphenol-rich super greens powder available anywhere…and here’s how you know that’s exactly what you’re getting:

1. It’s Optimized for Polyphenols: MetaboGreens super greens formula features an energizing blend of over 40 unique phytonutrient-rich extracts (and over 50 total ingredients), so you can begin experiencing the benefits of polyphenols without having to go to the trouble and expense of finding and preparing dozens of exotic and rare super greens, fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. Just mix one scoop of MetaboGreens super greens formula with water or your favorite beverage, enjoy the refreshing berry flavor, and let the energizing antioxidant polyphenols go to work for you and your body —from the inside out!
2. It Features Ingredients Backed by Real-World Research: MetaboGreens contains Spectra™, the first scientifically-validated polyphenol-rich blend of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and other super greens shown to inhibit free radical production, optimize cellular metabolic activity, and increase nitric oxide levels.† While there’s a lot of hype out there about potential (usually reported as ORAC) when it comes to super greens supplements, Spectra™ delivers measurable antioxidant action. Simply put, Spectra™ is the new standard in antioxidant health, and it represents the latest evolution in the fight against potentially-damaging free radicals.
3. It Tastes GREAT: We can’t emphasize enough how much we insisted MetaboGreens be absolutely delicious. It was a must for us. With its sweet, energizing berry flavor, we’re confident MetaboGreens is the world’s best-tasting super greens supplement, and we think you’ll agree.
4. It Mixes GREAT: When it comes to mixability, other super greens supplements are extremely gritty and anything but pleasant to swallow. MetaboGreens, on the other hand, mixes smoothly and evenly with water, tea, juice, or any other beverage you choose—leaving you feeling hydrated, energized, and refreshed without the gritty texture or a giant clump of grass clippings at the bottom of your glass.

You can find all of that in a very convenient, easy to use, and perhaps most importantly, delicious berry-flavored super greens that you’ll enjoy using daily. And it takes just 30 seconds to mix and enjoy.

Super Greens Powder: A Recap

It’s clear that the vast majority of us aren’t getting the nutrition our bodies are craving because we’re simply not eating enough vegetables and fruits. Fortunately, a quality super greens product can help us more conveniently ensure we do get more of the vital nutrients found in these foods.

However, regardless if you are taking advantage of the countless benefits quality green powders can offer, eating your veggies and fruits is still a vital part of a healthy diet. Remember that supplements are just that—supplements to a healthy diet.

So, don’t just skip that green salad or serving of veggies for dinner. In addition to vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols, vegetables and fruits taste delicious, increase the amount of fiber you consume, and provide water.