High Fiber Smoothies: the Ultimate Guide

High fiber smoothies are an easy, convenient, and efficient way to add fiber to your day. In this article I'm sharing why we want fiber, ways to add fiber to smoothies, and a round-up of my favorite high fiber smoothie recipes.

High Fiber Smoothies

So what are high fiber smoothies?

The FDA's Nutrition Labeling and Education ACT (NLEA) specifies that a food or food product can be labeled as "high," "rich in," or "an excellent source of" fiber if it contains at least 20% of the Daily Value of fiber.

This is generally accepted as at least 5 grams of fiber per adult serving.

Why We Want Fiber

Fiber's pretty awesome, and here's why:

Fiber is found in plants - it's an undigestible carbohydrate. Because of its unique properties, fiber has a variety of health benefits it's associated with, like a lower risk of:

• Certain cancers
• Some digestive conditions
• Type 2 diabetes
• Heart disease
• Obesity

Because fiber can help promote satiety and fullness, it can play a role in weight loss and regulation.

Additionally, while there is a lot we don't know about gut health, we know enough to feel confident that fiber is beneficial to our gut bacteria and gut health - which impacts your overall health.

How Much Fiber Do You Need, Anyway?

The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendation is about 14 grams of fiber for every 1000 calories consumed.

Generally, for adult women and men under 50, this is around 25 grams and 38 grams of fiber, respectively. After 50, men and women need 30 and 21 grams of fiber, respectively.

There is currently no upper limit for fiber, but there are some signs and symptoms you may be consuming too much fiber.

Wait, Does Blending Fruit Destroy Fiber?

Blending fruit does not destroy its fiber! You can check out the whole article at Does Blending Destroy Nutrients and Fiber?

But there have been several studies that have shown fiber remains intact during smoothie blending and digesting.

High Fiber Smoothie Ingredients

There are SO many different ingredients you can add to make high fiber smoothies! Check out some high fiber foods to add to a smoothie:

*All nutrition values are sourced from the USDA Dietary Guidelines Food Sources of Dietary Fiber and the USDA FoodData Central.

High Fiber Fruits

• Guava (1 cup, 9.0 grams)
• Raspberries (1, 8.0 grams)
• Blackberries (1 cup, 7.6 grams)
• Asian pear (1 medium, 6.5 grams)
• Wild blueberries (1 cup, 6.2 grams)
• Passionfruit (¼ cup, 6.1 grams)
• Wild blueberries (1 cup, 6.2 grams)
• Persimmon (1 fruit, 6.0 grams)
• Pear (1 medium, 5.5 grams)
• Kiwi (1 cup, 5.4 grams)
• Avocado (½ cup, 5 grams)
• Grapefruit (1 fruit, 5.0 grams)
• Apple, with skin (1 medium, 4.8 grams)
• Starfruit (1 cup, 3.7 grams)
• Orange (1 medium, 3.7 grams)
• Dried figs (¼ cup, 3.7 grams)
• Blueberries (1 cup, 3.6 grams)
• Pomegranate seeds (½ cup, 3.5 grams)
• Mandarin orange (1 cup, 3.5 grams)
• Tangerine (1 cup, 3.5 grams)
• Banana (1 medium, 3.2 grams)
• Apricots (1 cup, 3.1 grams)
• Prunes/ dried plums (¼ cup, 3.1 grams)
• Strawberries (1 cup, 3.0 grams)
• Dates (¼ cup, 3.0 grams)
• Cherries (1 cup, 2.9 grams)
• Mango (1 cup, 2.6 grams)
• Pineapple (1 cup, 2.3 grams)

High Fiber Vegetables

• Green Peas (½ cup, 4.4 grams)
• Pumpkin (½ cup canned puree, 3.5 grams)
• Jicama (½ cup, 2.9 grams)
• Broccoli, cooked (½ cup, 2.6 grams)
• Cauliflower, cooked (½ cup, 2.5 grams)
• Carrots, cooked (½ cup, 2.4 grams)
• Snow peas (½ cup, 2.3 grams)
• Carrots, raw (½ cup, 1.8 grams)
• Red bell pepper, raw (½ cup, 1.6 grams)
• Beets, cooked (½ cup, 1.4 grams)
• Spinach, raw (1 cup, 0.7 grams)

High Fiber Grains & Starchy Carbs

• Oats, raw (¼ cup, 4.1 grams)
• Taro root, cooked (½ cup, 3.4 grams)
• Sweet potato, cooked (½ cup, 3.2 grams)
• Winter squash, cooked - like butternut (½ cup, 2.9 grams)
• Yam, cooked (½ cup, 2.7 grams)

High Fiber Legumes

• Navy beans, cooked (½ cup, 9.6 grams)
• Small white beans, cooked (½ cup, 9.3 grams)
• Lentils, cooked (½ cup, 7.8 grams)
• Black beans, cooked (½ cup, 7.5 grams)
• Chickpeas, cooked (½ cup, 6.3 grams)
• Great northern beans, cooked (½ cup, 6.2 grams)
• White beans, cooked (½ cup, 5.7 grams)
• Edamame (½ cup, 4.1 grams)

High Fiber Fats

• Pumpkin seeds (1 oz, 5.2 grams)
• Coconut (1 oz, 4.6 grams)
• Chia seeds (1 tbsp, 4.1 grams)
• Almonds (1 oz, 3.5 grams)
• Sunflower seeds (1 oz, 3.1 grams)
• Hemp hearts, hulled (1 oz, 3.0 grams)
• Pine nuts (1 oz, 3.0 grams)
• Pistachios (1 oz, 2.9 grams)
• Flax seeds (1 tbsp, 2.8 grams)
• Hazelnuts (1 oz, 2.8 grams)
• Pecans (1 oz, 2.7 grams)
• Peanut butter (1 oz, 2.1 grams)
• Walnuts (1 oz, 2.0 grams)

High Fiber Flavorings

• Cocoa powder (1 tbsp, 2.0 grams)
• Cinnamon (1 tsp, 1.4 grams)

High Fiber Cereals

You can also top your smoothies with some high fiber cereals, like:

• General Mills Fiber One (½ cup, 13 grams fiber)
• Kellogg's Bran Buds (⅓ cup, 13 grams fiber)
• All Bran (½ cup, 10 grams fiber)
• Kellogg's Raisin Bran (¾ cup, 8.2 grams fiber)

High Fiber Smoothie Recipes

Some of my favorite smoothie recipes are full of fiber! Try:

• The NTF 5-a-Day Green Smoothie
• Strawberry Banana Blackberry Smoothie
• Banana Peach Smoothie
• Grapefruit Smoothie with Pineapple
• Chocolate Veggie Smoothie
• Orange Strawberry Squash Smoothie

And if you need a little more smoothie inspiration, here are a few more high fiber smoothie recipes for you - all you have to do is blend the following ingredients for a minute each!

Chocolate Pecan Pie Smoothie

• 1 oz pecans
• 1 banana
• ¼ cup dates
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• Liquid of choice

Contains 15.0 grams fiber

Green Goddess Smoothie

• ½ cup avocado
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 medium pear
• ½ cup kiwi
• Liquid of choice

Contains 14.6 grams fiber

Pina Colada Smoothie

• 1 cup pineapple chunks
• 1 ounce coconut (shredded, unsweetened)
• ¼ cup dates
• ½ cup cauliflower
• Milk or liquid of choice

Contains 12.4 grams fiber

High Fiber Smoothie Recipes & Weight Loss

Because weight loss is a huge focus of the health and wellness industry and our society (hello, $72 billion diet industry), inevitably the question of, "will this help me lose weight?" comes up.

So will high fiber smoothie recipes help weight loss?

They may!

First, remember that your weight is not everything. It's not the end all, be all definition of health.

Second, remember that your weight is more of a side effect of your OVERALL food and lifestyle habits. Sure, consistently eating enough fiber can absolutely help promote weight maintenance. And if you like smoothies, that can help!

But one food, even a nutrient dense, high fiber smoothie, won't dictate a silly number on the scale alone!

If you liked this article, you may be interested in a couple other trending nutrition articles, like Ways to Add Protein to Smoothies (without protein powder) and Ways to Add Protein to Salads.

And to stay up to date, including to be the first to hear about my upcoming nutrition course that ensures you NEVER need another diet again (and is backed by science AND you can still eat all your favorite foods!) be sure to sign up for my email list below!

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