WHO ARE WE?

Hannah Brock

Hi! My name is Hannah, and I am a senior at South Kingstown High School. My partner Ella and I are on a mission to find some of the best smoothies in Southern Rhode Island! Like many, we are always looking for fun new places to try and hope to find some more healthier options. We believe we have compiled some of the "must try" smoothie places in South Kingstown and are hoping to shed some light onto who has some of the best smoothies right in our home town!

Ella Zalewsky

Hey! My name is Ella, and I am currently a senior at South Kingstown High School. My partner, Hannah (over to the left) and I decided to focus on delving into the pit of fruity smoothies in Wakefield in order to find the best and brightest for the students of SKHS. I'm a plant-based athlete who totally understands the importance of being well fueled for practices, games, etc and through this website hope to give everyone a few healthier options for a before or after school "snack". So throw the chips aside and swing on over to one of our 5 local smoothie shops! Trust me, you won't regret it ;).

WHY SMOOTHIES?

Most kids our age are coffee-aholics, meaning their solo purpose in life is to down cups upon cups of coffee like a machine. Some may be shaking their heads in disagreement, but the truth can be seen on Wednesday mornings in the hallways of SKHS. Walking through the school during the first few hours of classes can be a fun time to play "how many Dunkin cups can I see from here?"

All jokes aside, it is true that teenagers in our community consume a hefty amount of caffeine throughout the school day. Many replace breakfast or lunch with a large iced caramel latte or something along those lines. While coffee isn't considered the worst beverage for teenagers, research from the medical journal Pediatrics has proven that too much caffeine can result in negative effects such as increased blood pressure, hyperactivity, anxiety, and heart rhythm disorders. Not only this, but caffeine isn't the only thing to worry about when consuming mass amounts of coffee. Depending on how you take your morning beverage, you may be drinking your daily allowance of sugar in a single sitting. By adding syrups, sugar packets, toppings, and other artificial sweeteners, as well as creamers, milk, etc, teenagers are consuming more than enough sugar, calories and fat through a single drink!

But why bring up coffee if this website is specifically designated to introduce students to local smoothie shops? Good question.

To understand the negative effects of drinking so much flipping coffee, students must have more of an interest in fueling their bodies properly. It is understandable that many teenagers don't have the time to wake up and make a full out, nutritious, healthy breakfast. At the same time, if you are willing to spend the money and able to swing by your favorite cafe before school for a coffee, why not try feeding yourself something that can be considered a healthy breakfast instead? The beverages are made within the same amount of time, only a few dollars extra (depending on where you go), and are much better for your body.

Fruits and vegetables have always been considered better for people, yet this knowledge is usually ignored because they are "healthy" and "not enjoyable". Many look at these foods as if they are punishment and cannot be enjoyed, like the sugary and fatty foods consumed daily. But if prepped the right way, fruits and vegetables can be amazingly enjoyable and taste just as good as milkshakes, sugary drinks, or sweet treats. Putting these things into your body is not only good due to the taste, but fruits and vegetables are known to lower blood pressure, reduce heart disease risk, and lower digestive problems. Harvard's Nutrition Source page on their School Of Public Health website states that fruits and vegetables can also help you lose weight through feeling more full, and can make you feel more energetic and happy overall. Some may question the sugar levels of smoothies and juices, and simply put, yes, they do contain sugars. But natural sugars are healthy in comparison to the artifical ones being added to coffee, processed juices, and other beverages. As a matter of fact, natural sugars are beneficial to the body! Not only do smoothies contain sugar, but depending on what you add to them, you get more protein, essential minerals and vitamins, and nutrients.

In feeling amazing, teenagers can have more energy to actually get work done, to want to exercise, be more social, and gain a better understanding about how to take care of their bodies. Even better, if you are an athlete (which many students at SKHS are), drinking your fruits and vegetables can help build muscle and bone strength, provide more energy for games/events and hydrate the body. On the other hand, caffeine in large portions (including that morning coffee!) can actually hurt one's performance. In a guide on nutrition for teen athletes, Kids Health notes that caffeine is a diuretic. That means it causes a person to urinate (pee) more. It's not clear whether this causes dehydration or not, but to be safe, it's wise to stay away from too much caffeine. That's especially true if you'll be exercising in hot weather. Also, caffeine can increase heart rate and blood pressure, leading to anxiety and stress in athletes when under pressure. Smoothies (made with fresh fruit and vegetables) have none of the above negative effects like coffee. So how would YOU want to fuel yourself for the day?

References

“A Guide to Eating for Sports (for Teens) - Nemours KidsHealth.” Edited by Sarah R. Gibson, KidsHealth, The Nemours Foundation, Sept. 2014, kidshealth.org/en/teens/eatnrun.html.

Branum, Amy M et al. “Trends in caffeine intake among U.S. children and adolescents.” Pediatrics vol. 133,3 (2014): 386-93. doi:10.1542/peds.2013-2877

“Vegetables and Fruits.” The Nutrition Source, 22 May 2019, www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/vegetables- and-fruits/.

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