acai bowls?

[gayle60]

I am just starting and want to know if acai is allowed? They sell acai bowls with fresh fruit and not sure.

[missmary]

acai is a fruit. All fruit is permitted on the whole30, as long as other off-plan ingredients (sweeteners, oats, etc) are not added. That said, the program recommends following the meal template (protein, fat and vegetables) for meals, and limiting fruit. An acai bowl is very similar to a smoothie, so while it might be technically permitted, it is not something we would encourage.

 

Smoothies: We’d rather you didn’t

This is a very popular question, with a very unpopular answer. Smoothies (generally made using lots of fruit) are technically compliant on your Whole30, but we strongly recommend against it. Food that you drink sends different satiety signals to your brain than food that you chew. So when you drink your meal, your brain isn’t getting the feedback it needs to tell your body that it’s had enough of what it needs. Plus, smoothies are generally really fruit-heavy, and starting your day off with a liquid sugar-bomb sets you up for cravings, hunger, and volatile energy levels throughout the day. In summary, we’d rather you just eat the food, and skip the smoothie.

- See more at: http://whole30.com/2013/06/the-official-can-i-have-guide-to-the-whole30/#sthash.CTejEu96.dpuf

[mantishugo]

Unless you have chewing problems (like tooth ache) you should never prefer juice over the whole fruit.

[gayle60]

Thanks so much for your help!