Juice bars are popping up left and right in San Diego and beyond because drinking a fresh juice is the new “in” thing to do for reasons like weight loss and ridding one’s body of all the nasty toxins. Sounds great, but, are juices really that good for your health? While there are many benefits of juicing, there are also plenty of unhealthy aspects too.
In order to make sure that your daily juice is actually good for your health, we’ve listed 3 nutrition-focused elements to beware of before drinking your next juice. Click here to see my fabulous tasting green juice recipe.
Below, find out what the benefits of juicing are and why healthy fruits and vegetables may or may not be so good for you after being juiced. We’ve also listed which fruits and vegetables are high in sugar and how to decrease blood sugar levels with the addition of certain fats and proteins.
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Benefits Of Juicing: 3 Things To Avoid When Drinking Juice
1. High Sugar
Some juices have way more sugar than others. Even though it is natural sugar from fruit (vs. artificial sugar from processed foods or junk food), it still has an effect on your blood sugar levels. If you are interested in the benefits of juicing and you are looking to maintain a healthy weight and to avoid diabetes or high cholesterol, it is important to keep your blood sugars from spiking too high and from dropping to low. The good news is that some juices have less sugar than others, especially those that are vegetable based. See below for fruits and vegetables that are low in sugar vs. those that are high in sugar.
Low Sugar Juice Ingredients:
- kale, spinach, broccoli stems, celery, collard greens, wheat grass, etc.
- cilantro or parsley
- lemons or limes
- ginger
- green apples
High Sugar Juice Ingredients:
- carrots
- beets
- oranges
- sweet apples (pink lady, honey crisp etc.)
2. No Fiber
During the juicing process, the fiber from the plant (fruit or vegetable) is separated from its juice. Fiber helps to slow the absorption of sugar into the blood stream and thus without the fiber, your blood sugar levels will spike more rapidly. It is important to slow down the absorption of sugar into the blood stream. Ingredients that are higher in sugar, like fruits, are not necessarily bad for you, you just want to be aware that they tend to be higher in sugar and worse for your blood sugar levels, especially when the juice is separated from the fiber.
3. No Protein or Fat
When you combine carbohydrates (or sugars) with a protein and a healthy fat, you drastically slow the absorption of sugar into the blood stream. Therefore, in order to get the optimal benefits of juicing, you should add a healthy fat – like a handful of almonds or ¼ avocado – and have a small serving of protein on the side – like a hard boiled egg, ½ chicken breast, or plant-based protein powder. By combining your juice with a protein and fat, you will be able to maintain stable blood sugar levels, speed up your metabolism, and enable your body to burn fat faster!
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