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Healthy Home Economist / Archives / Healthy Living / How to Identify a Safe Green Vegetable Powder

How to Identify a Safe Green Vegetable Powder

by Sarah Pope / Affiliate Links ✔

Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
  • Rancidity
  • High in Anti-Nutrients
  • Toxicity
  • Blanched Green Vegetable Powder
child holding green vegetable powder in a glass

Three precautions when choosing green vegetable powders to boost nutrition in the diet plus how to make your own for optimal freshness and safety.

Green vegetable powders are very popular today, with many people adding them to smoothies for a boost of nutrition. Parents with children who won’t eat their vegetables are also using green superfoods as an easy way to get more plants into the diet.

While the theory of green veggie powders seems solid at first glance, closer inspection of how they are processed reveals that these convenience foods should be used with caution.

Should you choose to use them, consider the precautions listed below as a way to ensure safety for your family!

Rancidity

Most people do not realize that processing greens into a powder cause them to go rancid very quickly. This is true for all brands even if organic, packaged in sealed capsules, or refrigerated. (1)

This is perhaps the biggest reason of all to be very careful with commercial powdered greens.

The one exception to this is kelp. This green food from the sea is naturally very salty, which acts as a natural preservative to prevent degradation in powdered form.

High in Anti-Nutrients

Most green powders contain at least some raw vegetables that are very high in antinutrients.

One of these substances is oxalic acid. It is very irritating to the mouth and intestinal tract, blocking iron and calcium absorption. In some people, it contributes to the formation of kidney stones. Examples of vegetables that are high in oxalates are spinach, chard, parsley, chives, purslane, and beet greens.

Other raw vegetables commonly used in powdered superfoods contain thyroid-suppressing substances known as goitrogens. These include arugula, broccoli, kale, collards, bok choy, and brussels sprouts.

That said, some green veggie powders manufacturers take care to ensure their products are low in antinutrients. Examples I’ve vetted include this brand and this brand.

However, note the tendency toward rancidity discussed above is still a potential problem. Freshness is very important so check dates!

Toxicity

Some vegetable powders contain aquatic greens such as blue-green algae, spirulina, or chlorella. When this is the case, purity is very important as contamination can occur.

The peer-reviewed journal Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology published a study that found cytotoxins, substances that are harmful to cells, in every single brand of spirulina tested. (2)

Another study involving dozens of spirulina brands produced similar results. (3)

Other contaminants include the presence of heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic. (4)

Comprehensive purity testing results provided by the manufacturer (such as this brand) are extremely important if you decide to use powdered greens that contain any type of algae.

Blanched Green Vegetable Powder

If you have a garden or a good local source for green vegetables, making homemade greens powder low in oxalates is the best solution to rancid commercial brands. The linked recipe details the easy steps and ideal vegetable selection.

Add small amounts to potatoes, scrambled eggs, and smoothies as desired.

green superfood powder in a mug with straw


References

(1) Green Foods
(2) Toxin content and cytotoxicity of algal dietary supplements
(3) Is Spirulina Safe?
(4) Heavy metal analysis in commercial Spirulina products for human consumption

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Category: Healthy Living
Sarah Pope

Sarah Pope MGA has been a Health and Nutrition Educator since 2002. She is a summa cum laude graduate in Economics from Furman University and holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

She is the author of three books: Amazon #1 bestseller Get Your Fats Straight, Traditional Remedies for Modern Families, and Living Green in an Artificial World.

Her four eBooks Good Diet…Bad Diet, Real Food Fermentation, Ketonomics, and Ancestrally Inspired Dairy-Free Recipes are available for complimentary download via Healthy Home Plus.

Her mission is dedicated to helping families effectively incorporate the principles of ancestral diets within the modern household. She is a sought after lecturer around the world for conferences, summits, and podcasts.

Sarah was awarded Activist of the Year in 2010 at the International Wise Traditions Conference, subsequently serving on the Board of Directors of the nutrition nonprofit the Weston A. Price Foundation for seven years.

Her work has been covered by numerous independent and major media including USA Today, ABC, and NBC among many others.

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Reader Interactions

Comments (9)

  1. Linda

    Sep 8, 2024 at 9:59 pm

    Hi Sarah,

    Is there any other brands of chlorella that you can recommend? Perfect supplements brand is out-of-stock.

    Reply
  2. suzanne

    Sep 1, 2021 at 2:26 pm

    Sarah, what do you think of Mercola’s fermented greens powder?

    Reply
    • Sarah Pope MGA

      Sep 1, 2021 at 6:12 pm

      I personally would not use it.

  3. Robin Woods

    Mar 27, 2021 at 9:30 pm

    Could you freeze the powder to extend the life?

    Reply
  4. Deb

    Mar 10, 2021 at 1:15 pm

    Sarah,
    Is there any scientific evidence or studies showing that green powders turn rancid?
    I’m not inclined to believe a Doctor without factual published scientific evidence.

    Reply
  5. MJ

    Mar 10, 2021 at 11:36 am

    Rather than blanching, I have been subjecting kale and beet greens to a 3-minute steaming (per whfoods.com) to reduce antinutrients. Should this work as well as blanching in a big pot of water? I think the theory here is that it protects the nutrients while reducing the bad guys.

    Reply
    • Sarah Pope MGA

      Mar 10, 2021 at 5:12 pm

      Blanching is better because you toss the water with the antinutrients in it. This is also the method Dr. Tom Cowan does in the production of his low oxalate greens powder (see label of product). https://amzn.to/3t8DF5j

  6. Jenefer Hinson

    Mar 10, 2021 at 1:58 am

    Sarah, what are your thoughts on Juice Plus?

    Reply
    • Sarah Pope MGA

      Mar 10, 2021 at 9:12 am

      Not a fan. Very highly processed …. not much benefit other than placebo effect for some.

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