nutrients Archives

Juicing Nutrition Facts

Overview

The beneficial nutrients that can be obtained from juicing are many and varied. Additionally, they are touted as being one of the best ways to generally improve your health and aid with weight loss. Cooking is known to reduce the nutrient value of foods. Additionally, our bodies have been known to wear out with the effort of digesting processed and unhealthy foods. How do we know which nutrients are released by juicing and what benefits they provide? We’ll take an in-depth look at the beneficial nutrients you can obtain by juicing your own fruits and vegetables. Additionally, we’ll learn how you can make sure you are receiving the best benefit from your produce.

Vitamins and Minerals

Vitamins and minerals are micronutrients and they support the ongoing healthy functioning of the body. Vitamins are organic and particularly susceptible to destruction by heat, acid and air, therefore cooking can easily reduce their effectiveness. Minerals fare a little better because they originate in water and soil where they are absorbed by fish, fluids, animals and plants which we in turn consume.

This raises a question about the nutritional value of processed foods. Studies have shown the nutrient value is reduced as a result of the processing. One of the reasons juicing is so popular is because freshly extracted juice from organic produce retains the vitamins and minerals required for bone renewal, effective functioning of the nervous system as well as heal wounds, prop up the immune system and repair cellular damage.

Water Soluble Vitamins

Biotin, riboflavin, folic acid, thiamine, niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin B5 and vitamin C are some of the more important vitamins. Their function is to product energy, make collagen, release energy as well as create cellular tissue and proteins.

Fat Soluble Vitamins

These are better known as vitamin K, vitamin D, vitamin A and vitamin E and their purpose is to maintain the viability of the nervous system, lungs, eyes, gastrointestinal tract and skin. Again, fresh juicing of raw fruits and vegetables provides these vitamins while they are still in an active state.

Important Minerals

Some of these include calcium, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, phosphorous and sodium. Their role is to ensure the appropriate balance of water in the body is maintained, ensure bone health as well as nurture healthy skin, nails and hair.

The Benefits of Juicing Fruits and Vegetables

Enzymes

The best way to describe these is as biological proteins which break down the food we ingest so that metabolism and other cellular activity can occur. There are metabolic enzymes, digestive enzymes and food enzymes. It is the food enzymes that occur naturally in raw food which are released during juicing. They assist digestion and help to absorb other foods

What Juicing Does to Vitamins, Minerals and Enzymes

In a nutshell, juicing separates out the nutrients from indigestible fiber so that the body is flooded with easily digestible nutrients. Colon tissue absorbs the nutrients into the bloodstream so that all areas of the body receive a share of them, leaving you nourished and energized. Digesting juice requires little energy, yet you immediately receive an intense nutritional hit. The absence of fiber in the juice also aids in the nutritional lift.

Raw and Fresh are Best

Enzymes are destroyed by air and heat above 114 F. Therefore, vegetables and fruits which have been juiced should be consumed immediately so that the nutritional benefits may be obtained. Enzymes can be thought of as living food because they are responsible for the rejuvenation of all living elements in the body. Enzymes are the driving force behind the hundreds of thousands of chemical reactions which naturally occur on a constant basis throughout the body. The importance of maintaining enzymes can’t be emphasized enough. They are essential for food digestion and absorption in addition to the important production of cellular energy. Enzymes and vitamins which have been heated have little or no nutritional value. You should use caution when selecting a juicer which might heat the juice, deleting the nutritional value.

Antioxidants

Antioxidants are generally known as the fighters of free radicals or unstable molecules. Free radicals or unstable molecules may occur as a result of a mutation and result in cellular damage. The body naturally produces an antioxidant as it gives up some of its own electrons to prevent the free radicals from multiplying. Another way to think of it is like breaking a chain reaction. The beneficial result is that the free radicals will stop multiplying. Antioxidants are not nutrients as such although they do occur naturally in foods.

Some common antioxidants are carotenoids, flavonoids, quercetin and catechins. These occur naturally in apples, tomatoes, kale, green tea blueberries and onions. These fruits and vegetables are commonly used for juicing so as to boost antioxidant activity within the body. Again, raw and fresh with immediate ingestion is the best way to capture the benefits.

Conclusion

You can see there are many facets to juicing and that the nutrient properties of fresh, organic juice which is not exposed to heat and air are many and varied. Many people use fresh vegetable and fruit juices to improve their health and for many, it is preferable to consuming chemically manufactured drugs to deal with health issues. It is also worth considering that in an age where cancer is prevalent, freshly pressed juiced is one of the few ways that cancer sufferers can obtain the nutrients they need.

References

http://www.health.harvard.edu/special_health_reports/vitamins-and-minerals-choosing-the-nutrients-you-need-to-stay-healthy

http://www.livestrong.com/article/271987-what-are-the-benefits-of-green-juice/

Trying new vegetables and consuming them as a way of improving your health as well as helping improve a specific medical condition, is the main reason people start juicing vegetables. It is fun discovering and trying new vegetables, especially when you don’t have to cook them to enjoy their benefits.

There is much to be said about the benefits of raw vegetables, especially in terms of nutrition and the more variety you can find, the better. It is well-known that fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens, are full of phytonutrients, however some vegetables are easier to prepare than others. The following vegetables are grouped so that beginner vegetable juicers can find the easiest ones to prepare.

Vegetables to Slice and Dice

You can slice and chop the following vegetables into chunks that will fit into the feed chute of your juicer.

Cabbage – take the outer leaves from green and red cabbages and chop them to fit your feed chute
Broccoli – you can juice the stalks and head. Start with the bottom of the stalks first because they are excellent to help move other produce through the juicer. When adding the heads to the chute, be sure to cover the shoot so that tiny florets don’t escape.
Radishes – take off any leaves before adding to the feed chute

Vegetables to Juice Without Peeling

Carrots – no need to peel them, just rub and scrub. The green tops should always be removed because they contain toxic substances. Simply run them straight into the feed chute.
Asparagus – a quick trim of the raw edges on the bottom of each stalk is all that is required
Parsnips – rub, scrub and rinse then slice in half lengthwise before running them through the juicer.
Celery – slice the stalks into two-inch lengths and the leaves are OK to go in as well. Celery is fibrous and stringy which can become caught in the juicer, unlike carrots and parsnips, so slicing into short lengths is necessary.
Summer squash and zucchini – just remove the stems and feed them into the juicer.
Turnips – rub, scrub and chop however rutabagas usually come with a waxy coating, so it is best to peel them.
Sweet potatoes – rub, scrub and rinse before chopping into chunks.

Vegetables with Seeds

Some vegetables with seeds are safe to use in your juicer.

Tomatoes – remove leaves and stem then slice into chunks to fit the feed chute of your juicer, leaving seeds.
Butternut squash – peeling isn’t necessary unless the skin is very tough but you only need to slice it into chute sized chunks, again keeping the seeds.
Red, green and yellow bell peppers – simply remove stems and slice to fit the feed chute. The seeds are fine to include.
Cucumbers – the seeds are fine to juice and unless the skin is waxed, there is no need to peel the skin. Slice into chunks.

Vegetables to Wash Scrub and Peel

Jicama – unless you are someone who likes to leave the peel on, jicama is generally peeled
Beets (aka beetroot) – simply wash, scrub and peel. Juicing the leaves is OK too.

Vegetables With Grit to Remove

You don’t want to eat grit …

Collard greens, Romaine lettuce, kale, spinach– rinse carefully to remove grit before patting dry. Then juice the leaves and stems
Leeks – juice the white root/bulb and most of the green leaves after carefully separating and rinsing all layers. You can slice them lengthwise before rinsing.
Chard (aka Swiss chard or silver beet) – treat the same as collard greens

Even if you are using organic vegetables, you should still follow the guidelines above as well, as always, wash all produce prior to juicing to remove grit, dirt and bacteria. If you follow these guidelines when starting out with juicing vegetables, you’ll have fun experimenting with a variety of taste sensations.

View a list of the top reviewed juicers on Amazon.

Beneficial Nutrients from Juicing: The Facts