Why should you start juicing fruit and vegetables? Here are five great reasons to drink your way to 5-a-day!
Juicing could be the easiest way to get your 5 fruits and vegetables a day.
We all know we should eat more fruit and vegetables. We have all heard of the 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day campaign. It can be tough to fit them all in, though, especially the vegetables. So why not make some juice? You can pack multiple servings of fruit and vegetables into a single glass. In fact, according to Stanford Health Care, “1 cup of carrot or celery juice provides most of the same nutrients found in 5 cups of those same vegetables chopped up.”
You can drink juice on the move.
Ever chowed down on some raw kale at the bus stop? How about chomped down some chard during a meeting? No? Well, if you juice those veggies you can! You can drink your juice anywhere. In the car, at your desk, at school or at home. It’s the ultimate portable healthy snack.
Juicing is the fastest way to deliver a variety of micronutrients to your body.
Your body is able to absorb the nutrients from liquids faster than from solid foods. Solid foods have to be broken down before their nutrients can be absorbed into the bloodstream and delivered around the body. A glass of mixed vegetable juice acts like a potent cocktail of nutrients that hit your body fast.
Many studies are now reporting the ineffectiveness of multivitamins; a natural supply of micronutrients may be a much better way to keep your body healthy.
Although this topic is still open for discussion, I believe that nutritional supplements should be, well…supplemental. If your diet is leaving you lacking in a vital nutrient, by all means take a supplement to boost your intake. Just know that there is most likely a food out there that can do the same thing. Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LD states: “Food First, Then Supplements.”
When your body has all the micronutrients it needs, you will feel more focused and energetic.
This might sound like a bold overstatement, but think of it the other way round. A lack of micronutrients will make you feel lethargic and unfocused. The second statement seems a lot easier to relate to than the first. Micronutrients like vitamins A,B,C & K and minerals such as calcium, potassium and sodium are essential to keep all the bodily functions (like energy productions, immune system and endocrine system) working correctly. Give your bod everything it needs and it will perform at its best … and so will you!
