So You Bought a Juicer, Now What?

There is a lot of hype about juicing and how good it is for us, but is it all true? What are the benefits of juicing and what are the ways that juicing can help improve your overall nutrition? These are just a couple of pertinent questions you should ask before you start juicing.

Benefits of Juicing

Juicing is indeed an exceptional tool that can be used to improve overall health, immunity and energy levels. Juicing allows you to absorb all of the nutrients from vegetables without any waste. Many people have a less than efficient digestive system due to poor food choices over the years. When vegetables are juiced, the food enters the digestive tract in a sort of “pre-digested” form. Juicing is an easy way to consume a great deal of healthy vegetables at one time. For some people, eating enough fruits and especially vegetables is difficult. With one or two glasses of fresh juice, you can easily meet your daily requirement. Juicing is also beneficial because you can add a wide variety of vegetables to your diet. Regular food rotation helps keep the body healthy and prevents food allergies from developing.

Vegetable Juice is Not a Complete Meal

Contrary to what some people may think, vegetable juice is not a complete meal. Fresh vegetable juice contains remarkably little protein and no fat so it can not be treated as a complete meal. If you are going to drink juice, do it, in addition to your regular meal, not in place of it. Unless, of course, you are undergoing a medically supervised fast or detoxification program where juice is substituted for a meal. This should only occur for a short period of time.

The Importance of Pesticide-Free Vegetables

To get the most health benefits from your vegetable juice it is best to choose organic produce whenever you can. Organic and local vegetables are the freshest and healthiest option. Supermarket and conventionally grown produce is loaded with pesticides and consuming them will only work against your health goals.

Beginner Juicing

If you are new to juicing, it is best to start out with a few easy-to-digest vegetables. Some terrific options include cucumbers, fennel and celery. Once you have tried these three vegetables, move on to the lettuces and spinach and finally to such things as cabbage, Bok Choy and stronger greens including kale and mustard greens. To make your juice drink tastier, you can add such things as lemons, cranberries and fresh ginger. Herbs such as parsley and cilantro will also give your juice a bit of a kick. Be sure to give your digestive system time to get used to the juice. If you have been on a mostly processed diet, it may take a little while to adjust to the cleansing effect that the juice has on your body.

-The Alternative Daily