Juicing Benefits
Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of a wide range of vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and other nutrients, including phytochemicals – compounds that have been shown to combat cancer.
Since more of the healthful substances found in fruits and vegetables are being discovered all the time, no supplement pill can contain all these compounds. Also, because each plant produces phytochemicals that work against cancer in particular ways, it is suggested that a rich assortment of fruits and vegetables be included in your diet.
It is also recommended that you consume two glasses of live juices a day for health maintenance. Four glasses a day is recommended if you want to speed healing and recovery from illness.
Juicing is an excellent means of adding fruit and vegetables to your diet. Since juice contains the whole fruit or vegetables, except for fiber, which is the indigestible part of the plant – it contains virtually all the plants’ health-promoting components.
Because fresh juices are made from raw fruits and vegetables, all the components remain intact. Vitamin C and other water-soluble vitamins can be damaged by overprocessing or overcooking.
Enzymes, which are proteins needed for digestion and other essential functions, can also be damaged by cooking.
Fresh juice, however, provides all the plants’ healthful ingredients in a form that is easy to digest and absorb. In fact, it has been estimated that fruit and vegetable juices can be assimilated in twenty to thirty minutes.
Ideally, juicing should be made fresh in your kitchen and consumed immediately. Many commercial juices are heat-treated to lengthen shelf life. As previously discussed, this process can destroy important nutrients. In addition, preservatives may have been added. Even pure, freshly made juices can lose some of their nutrients by being allowed to sit for long periods of time. By buying the best products available, properly preparing them for juicing, and processing them in your own juicer, you will produce the most healthful, nutrient-rich drinks possible.
Breville JE98XL Juice Fountain
Green Juices or “Green Drinks”
Green juice cleanses the body of pollutants and has a rejuvenating effect. Made from a variety of green vegetables, green juices are rich in chlorophyll, which helps to purify the blood, build red blood cells, detoxify, and heal the body, and provide the body with fast energy.
Green juices can be made with alfalfa sprouts, barley grass, cabbage, kale, dandelion greens, spinach, and other green vegetables, including wheatgrass. Wheatgrass juice is particularly important in any cancer treatment, especially when radiation therapy is involved. To sweeten and dilute your green juices, try adding fresh carrot and apple juice. (No other fruit juice should be added.) Steam distilled water is another good addition.
Although green juices have great health benefits, they should be consumed in moderation. Try drinking about 8 to 10 ounces a day.
