Green for Life
by Victoria Boutenko
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Book Reviews of Green for Life
Book Review: Educated Layperson's Rationale for Green Smoothies + Tasty Recipes
Summary: 4 Stars
Although not a nutrition professional, Victoria Boutenko makes an excellent case for adding green smoothies into one's daily diet. Her strongest arguments include comparing the standard American diet and typical raw foodist diet with the natural chimpanzee diet, as well as dozens of testimonials.
There is at least one place, however where she got the facts wrong: On page 95 she says "chlorophyll provides iron to organs." In reality, the cholorophyll molecule contains no iron. While similar to the hemogloban molecule, the chlorophyll molecule has a magnesium atom in place of the iron atom.
That one error in no way negates the entire book. Most people definitely need more greens and fruit in their diet, and green smoothies are an excellent and tasty way to sneak in these good foods and nutrients. I've tried some of Victoria's smoothies in person when I've heard her speak, and they're always delicious. I always feel better when I drink green smoothies. Her book is quite motivating, and I plan to incorporate them into my diet every day.
I encourage people to read the book, get all fired up about green smoothies, make them and drink them every day. :-)
Advice for using the recipes: Making a green smoothie is more of an art than a science. Use them as rough guidelines. I noticed the Boutenko recipes often call for about 3 servings of fruit and 2 of vegetables + 1 cup water, so that's what I put in my green smoothie today: 2 small peaches and a large banana + about 5 leaves of dino kale. I added a few mint leaves for flavor. Be sure to taste your smoothie before serving to make sure it's sweet enough to be palatable. (Especially if you taste bitters easily like I do.) Mine needed a bit more sweetening, so I added a couple dates, being sure to take the pit out first. Dates can be very helpful for sweetening, as can extra ripe fruit.
Book Review: Not a bad start..
Summary: 3 Stars
If you are looking to transition to a more healthy style of eating, this would be a good place to start. It as a very easy read, without a lot of morality or spirituality involved, more plain common sense. The book is roughly 150 pp, however, only the first hundred or so talk about the smoothies and benefits. This is really all the author needs to get the point across. The last 50 pages are testimonials from an impromptu study that the author did near her home in Oregon.
The author states that she did a mountain of research to back up her theory about green smoothies, I would like to see more of her sources quoted. Studies, papers, even quotes from experts. While I am fully on board with most of her theories, trying to get others to go along without scientific proof is a tough sell.
Also, a couple of the testimonials seem a little far-fetched and this small complaint goes along the same vein as above, proof. I have no doubt these people are into the lifestyle, and benefit greatly from the smoothies. However, I really do want to see some medical proof of moles falling off, male pattern baldness starting to come back, and gray hair returning to color. I believe one person even said their cancer was cured.
If you get nothing else from this book, get the recipes. It is a very simple start to getting your daily greens. Don't try to quit your current eating habits cold turkey. Read this book and get the theory. It will give you more to think about when you open the fridge for a snack. Slowly use these smoothies to start a gradual change. Personally, I just use organic 'spring mix' in almost every smoothing I make. This way I get benefits of several different leafy greens everyday.
I have recommended this book to several friends and family as a starting point...give it a shot.
Book Review: Simple and cheap way to make a BIG change in your health
Summary: 5 Stars
Even wild edible plants (weeds) can be used for greens, so it's not just for yuppies. What a great way to get more greens into your diet! I can understand wanting to see more scientific research like another reviewer, but I think the author's theory is strong - based on diet of chimpanzees. Just a few leaves of kale, dandelion, purslane, or spinach for example, some water, and a few fruits like pears and bananas to make it sweet and thick; then blend. Even clean up is easy - just rinse. Then you're on your way to better health. Easy, cheap, and very filling. Hey, I'd rather just live on frappuccinos and subway sandwiches, but I also want to lower my odds of ending up at the hospital. I've been drinking green smoothies for two months now and I am seeing some good changes - better skin, better moods & energy, weight loss, regular BMs, and I didn't catch my husband's severe cold, for a few.
I am convinced Boutenko is on to something big with the idea of green smoothies as a way to sustain some level of raw food intake. Yes, I'm becoming a bit of a groupie. Eating more greens is a diet change anyone can make and it might just give us (speaking as an American) freedom from the debilitating health cycle we seem to be in now: processed food -> degenerative disease -> hospital -> chronic medicine -> worsening health. This book may not have as much scientific data as possible (check out The Live Food Factor by Susan Schenck), and may be heavy on the anecdotes, but it is a very important work.
I did not find it to be an ad for the Vitamix blender. She mentions it on 2 pages near the beginning because this blender lasts much longer and blends more smoothly. I used a regular inexpensive blender for several weeks and it worked just fine. (I ended up getting a Vitamix because I can make more things with it).
Book Review: Great book!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great book and one of a kind! The recipes are very good, although I was disappointed that there were relatively few of them (a few pages). I was able to notice an immediate different in my energy levels upon drinking only 1/2 of the daily quart of green drinks recommended. If you need a lot of energy for staying up late or getting up earlier in the morning, using these drinks is a great strategy. I did notice some indigestion and have read in Mary Enig's 2005 or so book about a coconut oil diet she invented that indigestion is often a consequence of drinking green drinks. She recommends cooking leafy greens for sound scientific reasons and using only 4 oz juice a day from fruit juices once in awhile if one desires, also for sound scientific reasons. She largely refutes the idea that drinking lots of juices is the best way to cleanse the body or get enzymes. Drinking bone broths helps the body cleanse itself as amino acids in these are used by the liver to cleanse. Juices, she says, don't have as many enzymes as people think. Andrew Weil and other doctors recommend sparing use of juices, and mostly or only fruit, these days. However, I think this book is very useful for persons wanting to resist coffee and snacks for awhile, start a diet, build energy levels, slim down; and I think the author is probably right when she writes that modern jaws/teeth don't masticate greens as well as they once did and this is why we don't get as much energy from chewing salad greens as we once did. So possilby the truth about what is best for us is somewhere between Enig's perspective and the perspective in this book, weighted more towards Enig. I'd drink less than a quart of green drink and chew it well before swallowing and stick to largely fruitier drinks most of the time.Book Review: Change is a commin'
Summary: 4 Stars
In the late 195's/Early 1960's my Grandfather started on a journey of enlightenment that included spiritual, emotional and physical well being. As he refined his search for a healthy lifestyle he developed a philosophy about food. "If man made it, don't eat it." and to that end every morning he would have my grandmother prepare for him his "Green Drink." He suffered from Parkinson's Disease which had an impact on his committment to live a healthy lifestyle. His "Green Drink" is exactly what this book is all about. It was validating to see that what my grandfather discovered is being embraced by so many. Up intill about a month ago, I (being my early 40's) never learned my grandfather's prophetic lessons to drink green. I can say that since my wife and I have embarked on this green path, we have seen changes in our overall health, energy and yes fecal color (it goes all goose colored). I am not a doctor, so I'm not qualified to make comments about her claims regarding the acidity of the stomach, and having been a pretty healthy person before, I saw no difference for myself. I don't exactly buy in to her study, but that doesn't matter. I have been able to stablize a healthy lifestyle and eating for the first time in my adult life. Albeit only a month that I've beed doing so, I can tell you that we (wife) are so committed to this lifestyle that we have purchased a $400 Blentech blender (a must for green smoothies). I can only hope that if you do choose to give this adventure a try, that you do not have great or immediate expectations. Give it time. Depending on how healthy you are at the begining, your body will undergo a lot of change as it learns how to deal with the new revitalizing effects of the green smoothie.