Home
>
Nutrition
>
Juicing - A Beginners Guide

Juicing - A Beginners Guide

You can spot a juicer a mile off at the supermarket or greengrocer. Apart from the huge number of carrots and apples they are loading into their trolley, they also have that slightly smug, see-how-healthy-I-am look about them. Or is that just me?! Actually, I don't buy a lot of carrots and apples any more, because (other than my indiscretion with a packet of shortbread this week) I've radically reduced the amount of sugar I take in. My juice of choice is a vegetable one, a green one - but more about that later, first let's ask...

Why is juicing so good?

In my article Enzymes and Raw Food, I explained why eating enzyme-rich food is so important. If you are buying cartons (or bottles) of juice, even many of those labelled 'freshly squeezed' you are almost certainly missing out on the enzymes. Why? Because they are likely to be pasteurised. There are different methods of pasteurisation, but all of them involve heating to temperatures a lot greater than 118F - which is the point at which enzymes are killed.

Fresh juices, on the other hand, are packed with enzymes, vitamins, minerals etc. and they taste a zillion times yummier too. Plus if you invest in a good juicing book, you can select your ingredients based on your immediate health needs too. I recommend Superjuice: Juicing for Healing and Health by Michael van Straten.

Do I need a juicer to juice?

Wel, yes and no. There are so many juicers on the market and the prices vary radically. I always recommend that you start with a mid-priced model that is easy to clean. This is important. If cleaning it is a right old pain, you will be put off using it which is no good at all.

The US market is probably quite different, but for UK readers, I use the Breville AWT JE3 which retails at just under a ?100. It's by no means the best juicer on the market, but it is very good for the price and a doddle to clean. Plus the new model features two speeds, one for hard produce and one for soft fruits.

There is also the Magimix Le Duo which I understand to be better than the Breville AWT and is the same price.

If you are reluctant to invest in a juicer at the moment but you already have a blender, you could just stick to smoothies. Or for around ?5, you could buy yourself a nylon sprout/nutmilk bag and simply strain the juice from the pulp to create your healthy drink. Make sure you chop up the produce and add some bottled water too.

What should I juice?

If you have acid reflux/heartburn problems, candidiasis, thrush, diabetes, IBS or an IBD, then you should avoid going overboard with fruit and sweet veg juices eg. carrots. (Actually this strategy will benefit anyone with any health issue!)

The irony is that the sweet juices may be the ones you are most drawn to, but sugar feeds microforms (like yeasts, fungus, molds, bacteria and viruses) which thank us by excreting acidic, toxins into our blood stream when they 'digest' the food we give them!

Your best bet is to stick to green juices which aklalise the body. I really struggled with this to start with as the flavour is a bit of an acquired taste but then I discovered lemons! My favourite juice now is...

Claire's Green Goddess
100g of curly kale
2-3 sticks of celery
4-5 inches of cucumber
5-6 Green beans
A quarter of an unwaxed lemon (with peel)

The lemon really does do something special to the flavour. For those who are concerned about the acidity of lemon, here's an interesting thing; lemon is only acid outside the body. Once it goes in, it alkalises. Same is true of white grapefruit and lime. But not oranges or ruby grapefruit whose higher sugar content makes them more acid inside the body.

If you have a sweet tooth and the lemon isn't working for you, you could try adding an apple instead, but aim to reduce the quantity over time.

Should I peel?

Obviously, you will want to peel some fruits and veg, eg. a pineapple. But using organic produce means you need only give the produce a good scrub rather than peeling it which is recommended for non-organic produce.

And one final tip...

If you want to add ginger to a juice and your juicer tends to spit the chunk of ginger out without really juicing it, put it through your garlic press and stir in to the finished juice! Happy juicing.

................................................................................. .....................................................
Claire Raikes is a Wellbeing Coach, Speaker and Writer who 'cured' herself of a chronic, disabling and potentially life-threatening bowel condition without the use of steroids, surgery or any other traditional medical intervention. She now shares her passion for natural and vibrant health through coaching, speaking and writing about the importance and power of a truly healthy diet.

She publishes a free weekly eZine, In Essence and is compiling an eBook of Healthy Fast Food with 25% of the proceeds going to The Cancer Project, a charity set up by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and nutritionists to educate the public on the benefits of a healthy diet for cancer prevention and survival. If you have a recipe you would like to submit, visit http://www.liveinessence.com for further details. To book Claire to speak at your event, email her at http://www.liveinessence.com.

Airbnb cleaning service Arlington Heights ..

In The News:

Red flags like processing fees, urgent countdowns and requests for full Social Security numbers expose fraudulent settlement sites targeting consumers.

Comprehensive analysis of Google Maps, Waze and Apple Maps examines usability, routing accuracy, data handling and features across the top navigation platforms.

Expert analysis reveals whether wired Ethernet or wireless Wi-Fi connections are safer for home internet use, plus practical steps to secure your network from attackers.

Australian construction robot Charlotte uses sand, crushed brick and recycled glass to 3D print fireproof, floodproof homes with reduced carbon footprint.

Cybercriminals are using fake invitation emails to trick recipients into downloading malware and stealing personal information and data.

Flying drones could help retailers fight a 93% increase in theft rates as Flock Safety promotes airborne security systems to track suspects and deter crime.

The Fox News Artificial Intelligence Newsletter brings you the latest news on the emerging technology every Saturday, highlighting top stories.

Hacker group Radiant stole data from 8,000 children at Kido nursery chain, demanding ransom and directly contacting parents with intimidation tactics.

As 18 states implement bell-to-bell cell phone bans, creative students use Google Docs, iMessage on MacBooks and Post-It notes to stay connected in class.

A sheriff's captain says deputies often spend hours writing reports between calls, but Axon's AI program, Draft One, helps them save crucial time in the field.

Sora 2, OpenAI's new video-generation app, can create AI-generated videos based on a singular prompt. The results are both mind-blowing and terrifying.

iPhone and Android users can reduce Wi-Fi calling battery drainage through settings adjustments, background app limits and stronger Wi-Fi connections.

Work email scams are becoming harder to detect as criminals use AI and spoofed addresses to trick employees into opening malicious attachments and links.

From her Arizona living room, Christina Chapman ran a covert hub that helped North Korean operatives infiltrate U.S. firms, netting $17 million in stolen salaries.

UC Santa Barbara researchers developed a soft robotic intubation system that achieved 100% success rates for experts and 96% for paramedics with minimal training.

Scammers exploit probate filings to target grieving families with fake fees and debts, Kurt "Cyberguy" Knutsson reports.

Automotive giant Stellantis becomes latest victim of widespread Salesforce breaches affecting companies like Google, Cisco and Adidas this year.

A woman from Washington reunited with her missing Maine Coon cat Louie after 11 days using Love Lost, a free AI-powered pet recovery platform.

Expert cybersecurity tips help Mac owners remove malware infections and strengthen defenses with antivirus software, password managers and system updates.

Meta's AI chatbot training rules bans sexual roleplay with minors and block access to child abuse material as regulators scrutinize its safety measures.

Online banking users face a new threat: web injection scams that overlay fake pop-ups to steal logins. Here’s how to spot them and protect your accounts.

Meta introduced Teen Accounts to Facebook and Messenger while launching a School Partnership Program for U.S. educators to report bullying within 48 hours.

Executive order signed by President Donald Trump tasks Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s MAHA Commission with using AI to find new cures for childhood cancers.

New FileFix attack tricks Facebook and Instagram users into running malicious PowerShell commands disguised as Meta account maintenance to deploy StealC infostealer.

Step-by-step instructions help users migrate to Windows 11 while preserving emails, contacts, documents, and software licenses during the transition.

Juicing - A Beginners Guide

Nutrition