Is there anything wrong with drinking your meals?

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craigmandu
craigmandu Posts: 976 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm just asking because I find I like to drink my breakfast and snacks instead of eating the oatmeal and fruits.....

Are there any drawbacks to drinking them instead of eating them?

I usually make a shake in the morning of 1/2 cup oats, piece of fruit (de-cored if it is an apple), 2 cups of spinach, and usually 1 scoop of protein powder....that's usually all I have for breakfast (plus my 2 cups of coffee, which I have separately).

My snacks are usually all some kind of shake as well....

I usually have some light lunch, cause I'm not really that hungry by that time, but it isn't usually blended.

Dinner is usually the only meal that has significant "substance" to it. Anyone know if operating like this on an extended basis would cause any issues?

Replies

  • baptiste565
    baptiste565 Posts: 590 Member
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    less calories being used to digest food
  • craigmandu
    craigmandu Posts: 976 Member
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    I hadn't thought of that.

    Thanks!
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    No fiber. You will get your bottom blocked up.
  • droneofvelvet
    droneofvelvet Posts: 290 Member
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    I don't think there is anything wrong with it, especially with the breakfast shake you described which seems balanced.
  • sandi117
    sandi117 Posts: 445 Member
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    Pretty sure there's nothing wrong with that, just be sure to have an adequate fiber intake.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    I find I get really hungry soon after most liquid meal type things like shakes, etc. The only one I've ever found that keeps me feeling almost as full as if I'd actually eaten something is the Optimum Nutrition Whey Isolates protein powder.
  • Querian
    Querian Posts: 419 Member
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    Your breakfast shake is fine and looks like it has plenty of fiber. I often have a green smoothie for breakfast and it works great for me. :smile:
  • Sweets1954
    Sweets1954 Posts: 506 Member
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    I know for me when I drink my meals I feel like I haven't "eaten" anything. It's not so much that I am hungry as I miss the chewing part of eating. It sounds like you are getting the nutrients you need and if you are satisfied I see nothing wrong with it.
  • Shannon_H
    Shannon_H Posts: 35
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    I couldn't do it. If I try to have a protein shake or something for lunch, I'm hungry in an hour! Everyone is different though. It may just all be in my head! :noway:
  • MiloBloom83
    MiloBloom83 Posts: 2,723 Member
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    I had 3 scotches for dinner and i'm feeling no ill effects. I think it's one of Dr. Oz's cleanses.
  • suv_hater
    suv_hater Posts: 374 Member
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    You should drink them slowly and even chew on the liquid. Saliva is the first step of digestion; it starts to break down the food.
  • Code7526
    Code7526 Posts: 52
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    The new diet revolution book by Dr Atkins claims you shouldn't blend vegetables as it concentrates the sugars in the vegetables and that spikes your sugar levels and makes your body produce more insulin which leads to weight gain.

    You should avoid fruit juices, smoothes as well when on a diet. You should eat fresh fruit and vegetables which isn't blended.
  • Candi_land
    Candi_land Posts: 1,311 Member
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    I had 3 scotches for dinner and i'm feeling no ill effects. I think it's one of Dr. Oz's cleanses.

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  • cutiemexiz
    cutiemexiz Posts: 31 Member
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    I think its fine, I would just add a little bit of phylum fiber (i think i spelled it right) which will help you be full also and will allow your body to have the fiber it needs also :) I love smoothies and I try to eat a fruit or other things with fiber outside of my smoothies since I finished my fiber at the moment, but I have a smoothie similar to yours that I drink every morning also :) It may sound strange, but if you want a cold smoothie like what you get if you add ice without feeling like its watered down (if you add too much ice lol), I freeze my spinach and then add it to my smoothies as an easy way to get that frothy feeling to the smoothie :)
  • FearAndTrembling
    FearAndTrembling Posts: 54
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    You should drink them slowly and even chew on the liquid. Saliva is the first step of digestion; it starts to break down the food.

    Chewing is the first step of digestion, and that is now unnecessary with smoothies. Saliva can break down some stuff and even has anti-pathogen properties but it still isn't really a deal breaker here.

    It's like breathing through your nose or mouth. Breathing through your nose is better because the nose humidifies and filters the air, among other things. But if you could somehow create an apparatus that would deliver the air to your mouth that was warmed, cleaned, ,etc. and all the other properties of nose breathing, then nose breathing no longer has all those advantages over mouth breathing.

    Interesting side note, the human digestive system is one of the most poorly designed in the animal kingdom. Humans have been called the "choking primate" because we have a greater susceptibility to choking than other animals. It may have something to do with the same anatomy that allows us language. We also can't breathe while we swallow like many animals can. My can cat lap up water for like 5 minutes straight and not take a breath.
  • bluebear_74
    bluebear_74 Posts: 179
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    I think the argument is that it doesn't make you feel full, and your brain doesn't register that it's food/meal. I.e it's better to eat an orange than drink it because you have to chew it and your brain knows you are eating and to be full.

    If you feel full after drinking it, I don't see the problem. Personally liquid meals don't really make me feel full and I get hungry pretty fast afterwards.

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