The Best Smoothie Ingredients for ADHD

Making an ADHD Smoothie

Oh, those days when your child’s ADHD is at it’s worst. You crave solace and a week-long retreat off to some remote, luxurious location where you are pampered from head to toe. You know that only then can you get your body, mind and soul back on track!

Well, it may not be possible for that to happen while at home. Something as simple as an ADHD smoothie may help to calm your child with ADHD (and you!) down.

Sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?

Top Smoothie Ingredients to Minimize Hyperactive Symptoms

Here are the top three ingredients that help ‘ground’ those who are ‘wild’ or stressed to the max:

1. Spinach
   It’s the high mineral content that is responsible for bringing your ADHD child back down to earth. Spinach is also high in B vitamins, which calm down a frazzled nervous system. How much will you need in your smoothies? A few big handfuls (equal to about a cup of fresh spinach leaves) should do the trick.
2. Coconut
   Saturated fat has had a bad rap for many years, but now the veil has been lifted and nutritionists see this food as the true healthy food it really is. Your cells are stable when you eat saturated fat because their cell walls are stronger. Saturated fat gives structure to them, and in the nervous system, structure translates to mental stability; exactly what you want when there’s an ADHD child in the house.How much coconut do you need in your smoothie? It depends on the form of coconut you are using. If using coconut water, you can easily add up to a cup. If you’re using shredded coconut, strive for ¼ cup. If you’re using coconut cream concentrate (the peanut butter equivalency for coconut), then add 2 tablespoons full. If you’re using coconut oil, use one tablespoon.
3. Avocado
   Avocado provides the unsaturated fats that are needed for the brain to function. The brain is made primarily of fat so the biggest thing you can do wrong with a child who has ADHD is to offer him or her a fat-free diet. How much avocado do you need in smoothies? Start with 1/8^th to 1/4^th of an avocado.

How To’s Of Smoothies

Now here’s how you can add these calming ingredients to different smoothie recipes:

1. Don’t ever make a smoothie with primarily spinach. It’s too rich. A cup of fresh spinach leaves is plenty to add to a fruit-based smoothie or a dairy product-based smoothie. That’s all you need to get the grounding started.
2. Choose your form of coconut and add it to your fruit-based or dairy-based smoothie. Don’t even think twice. It will taste great, especially if you include any additional tropical fruits.
3. Whenever you want a smoothie that needs to be a little creamier, add the avocado to it. The taste of avocado is so mild that it will blend with other fruits and vegetables easily.

Now with this new knowledge, give your next round of smoothies a whirl by adding one or all of these three ingredients to calm your child with ADHD. Let us know your results.