- The Anticancer Lifestyle Program Awarded Nutrition Accreditation
- Rediscover the Authentic Magic Bag: A Comforting, Therapeutic Classic
- Winter Thriving
- Warming Winter Entrées
- Before a Lump Develops
- Learn to Cook Healthy & Holistic Food
- Birthday Crepe Cake
- 3 Trendy Summer Salads with Protein
- 5 Causes of Chronic Inflammation and How to Prevent Them
- Be UTI-free with Utiva
- The Easy Way to Grow Your Own Food
- Grow Your Own Tomatoes
- Fresh Herbs for the Spring
- How to Grow Sprouts
- Top 5 Spring Superfoods
Psst. Juicy Juicing Secrets
Does juicing offer a genuine health boost or is it a bust?
Do an internet search on juicing and you will find plenty of articles on how it can cure everything from skin problems such as acne and rashes to diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Celebrities such as Megan Fox and Salma Hayek are turning to juicing for weight loss and healthy, glowing skin. But is juicing the best way to get our vegetables and fruit? Is juice fasting a good way to lose weight? Let’s take a closer look.
The Power of Produce
Vegetables and fruit should make up the bulk of our diets to lower the risk of cancer, diverticulitis, heart disease and stroke. Fresh produce offers a variety of disease-fighting nutrients such as fibre, vitamins and minerals, and phytochemicals.
Juicing can be a helpful way to meet the recommended daily servings of vegetables and fruit for good health. Fresh juices can help you get more phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals into your diet, especially if you have a small appetite and aren’t able to handle the bulk of fruit and vegetables.
Juice is not a Meal Replacement
While fresh juice is an excellent way to top up on phytochemicals, a juice is not a meal. Juicing removes the fibre from fruits and vegetables, which is needed for a healthy digestive system, to prevent constipation, and to prevent colorectal cancer. Fibre is also essential to help prevent and manage diabetes and heart disease. Removing the fibre means you are left with only carbohydrates or sugar. Without any fibre, fat or protein to slow it down, this sugar will enter your bloodstream quickly, causing a blood sugar spike. This will trigger a large release of insulin to help the sugar travel into your cells. It is best to avoid these quick rises and drops in blood sugar to maintain your energy levels and for diabetes prevention and weight control.
Juice fasting is not a healthy way to lose weight either. Drinking only juice will prevent you from meeting your protein needs, which could lead to losses of muscle mass rather than fat. Losing muscle will cause your metabolism to slow down, making it even more difficult to lose weight. By consuming only juice, your diet will also be low in important nutrients such as essential fatty acids, iron, zinc, calcium and vitamin B12.
Is eating raw produce or juicing better than cooked vegetables? It depends. When vegetables and fruit are cooked, some of the water-soluble vitamins such as vitamin C are reduced, but that doesn’t mean we should be eating all of our produce raw. There are some nutrients such as lycopene, a phytochemical found in tomatoes, that actually increase with cooking. Because both raw and cooked produce offer health benefits, include both in your diet.
The Smart Way to Experience a Juice Boost
1. Keep the fibre.
Aim to eat 5 servings of whole fruits and vegetables first. Once you meet that goal, you can add juicing as a strategy to get extra servings. Try blending fruit or vegetables into a smoothie rather than juicing to include the fibre.
2. Focus on vegetables.
Make your juices mostly vegetables with some fruit for sweetness to help control calories and sugar.
3. Balance your blood sugar.
Enjoy your juice with some protein and a bit of healthy fat to stabilize your blood sugar and to keep you feeling full for longer. A handful of nuts or a cup of Greek yogurt are great choices!
4. Choose colour.
Choose vegetables and fruit in a variety of colours for a multitude of health benefits.
*Note: Aim for 1 serving of whole cruciferous vegetables/leafy greens per day to reduce cancer risk, but avoid juicing or eating several servings every day as this can cause thyroid problems.
Christy Brissette is a registered dietitian and media spokesperson specializing in nutrition to prevent and manage chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Christy develops, facilitates and researches innovative programs such as cooking classes.
Related Posts
Latest News
-
Winter Thriving
Are the shorter days and colder weather leaving you feeling...
- Posted November 1, 2020
- 0
-
The Anticancer Lifestyle Program Awarded Nutrition Accreditation
The Anticancer Lifestyle Program (ACLP) has been welcomed as an...
- Posted November 13, 2020
- 0
-
Rediscover the Authentic Magic Bag: A Comforting, Therapeutic Classic
Seeking relief from all these months of uncertainty? Looking to...
- Posted November 3, 2020
- 0
-
Warming Winter Entrées
The rich flavours of browned beef only get better when...
- Posted November 1, 2020
- 0
-
Before a Lump Develops
The statistics today are alarming: one in eight women will...
- Posted October 25, 2020
- 0
-
Learn to Cook Healthy & Holistic Food
Holistic Culinary Program now offered by CSNN Toronto East Branch...
- Posted August 31, 2020
- 0
-
Birthday Crepe Cake
Add a little Flourish to your next birthday with this...
- Posted July 16, 2020
- 0
Join our E-Newsletter
Quote of the day
Prize Giveaways
-
Win! A Sugarmat Yoga Mat
Sugarmat, the clever creator of the lightest (and most beautiful) yoga mats has teamed...
- April 8, 2019
- 0
-
Instant Pot® 6 Quart Prize Giveaway
Instant Pot® Duo is a smart Electric Pressure Cooker designed to be Safe, Convenient...
- October 25, 2018
- 1
Featured Events
-
Guelph Organic Conference 2020
Experience over 40 workshops: Jan 23 – 26, 2020The free Trade Show runs: Jan...
- December 13, 2019
- 0
-
Bentway Skate Trail’s Official Opening
Toronto’s Newest Public SpaceLocated Under the Gardiner Expressway Saturday, January 6, 2018 @ 11am#BENTONWINTER18...
- December 6, 2017
- 0
Product Profile
-
Be UTI-free with Utiva
A New Way to prevent UTIs…naturally. The all too familiar urinary tract...
0 comments