Benefits of Juicing and the Truth About Juicers

The Benefits of Juicing:

1. Juices from raw produce are rich in enzymes that help reverse cancer.
2. Juicing helps you consume huge amount of vegetables and fruits that you cannot otherwise get from just eating. Most people find it hard to eat the recommended one pound of raw vegetables per 50 lbs body weight daily , but this is very easy to accomplish by drinking vegetable juice.
3. Concentrated amount of vitamins and minerals are given to the body in a very absorbable form. These vitamins and minerals do miracles on the body: they act as antioxidants, help slow down the process of aging, help improves the general physical and mental health, and promote well being in general.

Juicing for Beginners:

Step 1: Choose your Juicer Carefully

If you are new to juicing, we highly recommend getting an easy to use, durable, and mid-priced juicers that produce high quality juice. Cheap juicers like the Black and Decker juice extractor produce lower quality juice, break more easily, and don’t last very long.

What we use at home and the office are the mid-priced Omega 8003 and Champion Juicers (see photos below) that you can get from Amazon.com for less than 250.  Compared to the $2,300 Miracle Pro Juice Extractor, Omega 8003 and Champion are more affordable, durable, easy to operate, easy to clean, and they produce high quality juice. Here are the differences between the two:

• Champion: It is durable, non-filter type juicer that is preferred by those who juice liters of vegetables and fruits everyday, like athletes (and other individuals who prefer no-fuss, easy to operate equipment) as it can pump out juice a lot faster than the filter-type. For those who prefer more pulpy juice (like us) and prefer less work (with less chopping of vegetables), we recommend Champion.

 

• Omega: Commonly used by health food stores and physicians, Omega 8003 uses filters for less textured / less-pulpy juice. It also has a rubber platform that absorbs vibration when juicing, this feature enables the machine to last longer and work a lot quieter than other brands.

Step 2: Select Your Produce

Organic Vs. Non-Organic Juicing: As much as possible, we highly recommend consuming organic fruits and vegetables.

a. Organic.

The most common mistake that people do is not using the rind and hull because these are where the highest amount of vitamins and minerals are. When organic produce is used, there is no need to worry about the chemicals and other unwanted toxins on the peelings.

b. Non-Organic.

The biggest concern of juicers of non-organic produce is getting a concentrated amount of chemicals along with the nutrients taken in. Indeed, this can outweigh all the benefits of juicing. Celery, spinach, lettuce, and carrots are among the most pesticide loaded vegetables that you can get non-organically.

What to do when juicing non-organic produce?

1. Wash the produce well.
2. Peel the very outside layer.

Step 3: Start Juicing!

Start with the familiar vegetables that you like, e.g. carrots, cucumbers, or celery. Most people tolerate these more (as far as taste and digestibility are concerned).

When more accustomed to the taste of vegetable juice, you can try adding other less tasty ones like cabbage, spinach, and parsley.

We recommend that you drink your juice right after making it. This is comparable to eating pounds of fresh vegetables at one time.

What are the Most Common Wrong Juicing Practices that People Do?

a. Mixing fruit and vegetable juice.

For better flavor, people usually mix these two. However, it takes two different groups of enzymes to breakdown fruit and vegetables. If the body can’t produce these two groups of enzymes fast enough, bloating / flatulence can result.

The only fruit you can mix with vegetable to improve taste is apple.

Why apple? Apples don’t have the really high amount of sugar that other fruits have.

 

b. The type of juicer used matters.

The pulp and the hull are great sources of fiber and other nutrients. Pulpy drinks are usually better compared to the smooth-textured ones. To make more pulpy juice, we recommend: Champion.

However, if you totally dislike the rougher texture of fruit pulp, it should not hinder you from juicing at all! Drinking less pulpy drinks is a lot better than not drinking any. For smoother, less pulpy juicing, we recommend Omega 8003.

Unpleasant Effect:

Most people complain of nausea when juicing. Why?

1. Vegetable juice is not as palatable as fruit juice. This is why using your favorite vegetables first will make it easier for you to adjust.
2. Juicing also triggers the liver to dump a bunch of toxins out to the blood stream that eventually would get excreted. This also causes nausea. To lessen nausea, we encourage small, frequent drinks.

There’s a reason in nature why fruits and vegetables have fiber and mass that when we consume them, they are digested / broken down by the body slowly. However, for those who need certain nutrients and enzymes badly (like cancer patients), the fastest way to supplement the body with these nutrients is through juicing.

 

The 3 Best Juices You Can Ever Drink

 

1. Carrot.

What does it have?

• Beta carotene which is good for the eyes and skin.
• Fiber which is good for the digestive system, among other benefits.
• It is also a big detoxifier of the liver

 

How much to drink?

Drinking 8 to 12 glasses of carrot juice per day has great benefits, the only downside is getting sugar rush. This is the ideal amount that most health books recommend for cancer patients.

Three (3) glasses for healthy individuals.

 

2. Wheat grass.

Take wheat grass in small shots to avoid nausea. It has similar effect to that of drinking celery concentrate, which causes nausea related to too fast absorption of chlorophyll and vitamin B complex at one time.

Green (chlorophyll) is what receives energy from the sun. Unlike roots, (e.g. carrots), leaves receive more energy from the sun. This energy is relayed / transferred to the body more effectively.

The other benefits of wheat grass:

• Powerful detoxifier.
• Great for dental problems.

How much to take?

Two to three ounces, 2 to 3 times a day. Spread it out so you don’t feel nauseous.

 

3. Cantaloupe

Non-sugary produce that contains very high amount of nutrients in its rind. It also doesn’t trigger nausea as much as the first two.

Cantaloupes growers also don’t use too much chemicals on these produce as they are not very prone to bugs and fungus (unlike other vegetables and fruits), making cantaloupes one of the more organic choices for juicing.

 

The main benefit of juicing really is taking in the active enzymes from “live” produce (e.g. raw carrots, raw cantaloupes, and freshly harvested wheat grass), which you can’t get from anything else. Vitamins and minerals can be introduced to the body by taking commercial supplements. But enzymes, at their best, are derived from juicing raw fruits and vegetables.

Article by
Dr. James C. Weaver, CCEP, DC and
Jeanette M. Villar-Weaver, RN

Tagged as: food, health, health and fitness, juicers