This is the time of year to enjoy the wonderful benefits of fruit and vegetable juices. Our local farmers markets and supermarkets are full with great seasonal fruit and vegetable choices. Fresh juices are the perfect complement to your already healthy diet. In case you are wondering, drinking juice has the same health benefits as eating whole fruits and vegetables.
Following are a few differences that I have realized when drinking fresh juice versus eating:
Addressing specific health concerns like inflammation – Celery juice is really good for relieving inflammation. It has certain phytochemicals in it that disrupts the body’s immune response, which eases inflammation.[1] The same is true for fresh ginger and fresh turmeric. Certainly you can eat these ingredients but I imagine it would take you all day to eat an entire bunch of celery and the same for the amount of turmeric and ginger that you’d have to eat to realize the benefits. However, if you were to juice the same amount of celery, turmeric and ginger you can drink it all within an hour.
Instant Energy – I find that a good green juice provides the same jumpstart to my days as a cup of coffee. The juice provides good nutrition and gives me that energy boost that I need to get my day going. Not to mention the support it provides to my digestive system.
Easier and faster way to intake the recommended amounts of fruits and veggies – Real talk: Sometimes I just don’t feel like all the chewing. When I’ve had a busy week and my refrigerator is sitting full of what I should have eaten for the week, I juice them. Remember the heat involved in cooking destroys the micronutrients. Fresh juice provides the highest possible nutritional value. Drinking enables the body to better absorb vitamins, minerals and all the goodness the juices have to offer.
One of my favorite juice recipes:
2 inches of fresh ginger
½ apple or 1 cup fresh pineapple
3 beets
The juicer that I use is a masticating juicer. It is the Omega NC800HDS. This juicer is easy to use and clean. There are 3 types of juicers: centrifugal, cold press and masticating. The cold press juicer, the best most expensive style of juicer, presses the juice out of the produce. Centrifugal juicers, the most popular home juicer, use force pushing the produce against a fast moving blade. Masticating juicers crush the produce at a slow speed and is as cold to cold press that you can get without actually purchasing one.
Juicing can be as easy or as hard as you make it. If you haven’t, give it a try by juicing the vegetables that you would have otherwise cooked. Let me know how it works!
[1] https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/juicing/faq-20058020
Teresa
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