OMG OMG OMG, GUYS.

I CAN’T EVEN WITH THIS RECIPE.

BLUEBERRY. MUFFIN. ENERGY. BALLS… WITH HELLA PREBIOTIC GOODNESS??!! IT TASTES SINFULLY DELISH. BUT IT’S HEALTHY.

Why I’m so obsessed with these magical balls of energy?

This company was founded by a Dietitian!!

There are MANY supplements on the shelves of grocery stores and GNC with health claims written on the bottle. Supplements – which can be made by anyone – aren’t regulated by the FDA. Because supplements aren’t considered drugs, they aren’t put through the same strict safety and effectiveness requirements that drugs are. This doesn’t necessarily mean that supplements are “sketchy”, but I do encourage you to research the product you’re considering using and talk with your Dietitian and doctor to discuss potential risks and supplement-drug interactions. Dietitians are trained to look critically at ingredients and their quantities to determine whether a product is safe for consumption. This supplement has the A-OKAY from the traveling dietitian, & for a good reason…

PREBIOTICS

Your gut’s microbiome has SUCH an important role in health and there is an increasing interest in utilizing dietary approaches to influence the microbiome to improve health, prevent or treat disease – including consuming dietary fiber & prebiotics. Your enzymes can’t digest fiber & prebiotics, so the microbes in your colon ( ie. the “friendly” bacteria ) ferment them into something called “short chain fatty acids.” This review suggests that these SCFAs may reduce the risk of inflammatory diseases, type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease and other conditions.

PROBIOTICS

This supplemental powder has a blend of my little healthy bacteria BFF’s – probiotics! Probiotics are SUCH a hot topic of the science world. This review explains the beneficial properties of probiotics, like:

• Prevention bowel disease
• Improving immune system
• Exhibiting antihypercholesteroliemic and antihypertensive effects
• Reducing travelers diarrhea… i see you, the traveling dietitian 😉
• Improving oral & dermal health
• Performing anti-anxiety and anti-depressive agents

Recipe

• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup unsweetened dried blueberries
• 2/3-1 cup cashew butter – may need to adjust measurement based on nut butter brand
• 1/4 cup Daily Uplifter
• 2 T ground flaxseed meal
• 2 T white chia seeds
• 2 T ChocZero maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl
2. Roll into ~28 balls
3. Store in fridge

Your healthy gut can thank me later 😉

xx hails

*PS – use code “FREESHIPPING” for free shipping on your Uplift Food !!

References:

Ríos-Covián D, Ruas-Madiedo P, Margolles A, Gueimonde M, de los Reyes-Gavilán CG and Salazar N (2016) Intestinal Short Chain Fatty Acids and their Link with Diet and Human Health. Front. Microbiol. 7:185. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.00185

Shi, L. H., Balakrishnan, K., Thiagarajah, K., Mohd Ismail, N. I., & Yin, O. S. (2016). Beneficial Properties of Probiotics. Tropical life sciences research, 27(2), 73–90. doi:10.21315/tlsr2016.27.2.6

Thank you Uplift Food for providing product for this post. As always, all opinions are my own. 

*Adjusted the nut butter amount. It depends what kind of nut butter you use. I HIGHLY recommend using the all natural cashew butter ( with the oil at the top ) because it binds the ingredients better AND is less of an arm workout when mixing the bowl 😉