Fresh fruits and vegetables are the healthiest foods around, and one great way to unlock their nutritional bounty is through juicing. Converting vegetables and fruits into liquid form preserves all of their great benefits and makes them more palatable and easier to consume. Here are just a few of the ways that juicing can contribute to a healthier diet:
Use organic fruits and vegetables in your juicing. Organic fruits and vegetables have not been exposed to the chemical fertilizers and pesticides used in traditional farming. If you cannot use organic produce, be sure to peel everything before you put it in the juicer. The peel will contain most of the harmful chemicals.
Make sure to let your juicer rest and clean out extra pulp if you are making a large batch of juice, especially when you are using harder fruits. Juicers tend to be expensive, and you do not want to burn your juicer out by overworking it or clogging the juicer.
If you are adding juices to your diet for health purposes, focus on adding green vegetables to your recipes. Juice should be half to three quarters spinach, broccoli or chard for the most nutrients possible. The remainder of the elixr can be made of fruit for additional flavor.
Never add more than one new vegetable to your juice mix at a time. If you do not like the taste of the juice, or your digestive system does not react well to your new juice blend, you will not know what vegetable to reduce or avoid if you add a bunch of new veggies in the same batch.
Start gradually with vegetables. Start by adding bits of vegetables to your fruit juices and work your way up to full vegetable drinks. Vegetables are more nutritious than fruits as a group but not as tasty sometimes. Adding more veggies to your drinks will make your taste buds ready to get that superior nutritional value.
Buy a juicer made of high quality. This is important if you plan to use your juicer regularly. A good juicer will make as much juice as you want, be easy to maintain and clean, and last a long time. Don’t try to skimp on price or you might end up buying more juicers than you want to; bad juicers just don’t stand the test of time.
If you don’t have time to juice in the morning, you can make juice on the weekend and drink it throughout the week. The truth is that the vitamins and other nutrients in the drink will break up as time passes, but it’s better to drink homemade juice, than nothing at all!
When it comes to juicing, one thing that you want to keep in mind is that there are certain types of fruits and vegetables that excel when it comes to juicing. This is important to consider so that you do not waste your time and money. Look to use pineapple, apples, oranges, and carrots for starting off.
When it comes to juicing, one thing that you want to keep in mind is the fact that juice may lose it potency not long after it has been extracted from the fruit. This is important when you consider the shelf live of your product in comparison to your expected consumption rate.
When it comes to juicing, one thing that you want to keep in mind is the fact that many fruits and vegetables have the most amount of nutrients either in the skins or directly beneath them. This is important to consider when deciding whether or not to peel your ingredients.
If your fruits and vegetables are organic, go ahead and juice the peels as well. The skins of produce are loaded with antioxidants and other nutrients, so peeling them will remove a lot of the nutritional content. The only exception is citrus fruits like oranges or grapefruits, where the rinds are not very digestible.
Drink your juice as soon as you make it! If you want to create the best juice for good health, it is vital that you know that nutrients in the juice are lost as after it is made. Vital nutrients diminish shortly after juicing. So, make sure you try your best to drink your juice as soon as you make it.
One of the best juicers that you can use in order to have high quality juice are masticating juicers. These juicers operate on a more gentle process and therefore preserve the juice’s valuable nutrients. Another advantage of using this kind of juicer is that it enables you to store the juice for a much longer period of time.
The pith on citrus fruit, the white part between the skin and the pulp, is full of nutrients that are fabulous for you, so make sure to pull it out of the fruit with the pulp when you’re juicing. It has bio-flavonoids and tons of vitamin C, so bulk up on it during flu season!
Don’t overtax your juicer or you may end up having to buy a new one! Clean out the pulp every time you finish making a cup of juice, and give the machine a break every once in a while to cool down. If you push it too hard, or get it gunked up, you can burn out the motor.
The recommended daily amount of juice intake for an adult is 32 to 64 ounces. Obviously, the more you drink, the less fruit should be included, so only go to the high end if you’re using low glycemic vegetables as the base of each juice. Remember that some vegetables, like carrots, are high in sugar and should only be included in small doses.
Juicing is a great nutritional process that can be just as simple or as complex as a juicer wants to make it. Quick, cheap techniques can offer dramatic health benefits, and a greater investment of time and money can provide even bigger results. Hopefully, the tips presented above can be of use in starting or improving a great juicing routine.
