Health concerns dispelled with an easy, hassle-free game plan - Part 4
Would you like your kids to get a healthy dose of greens without them throwing a tantrum?
Do you imagine getting your daily veggie and fruit ration in a one-stop sort of way?
Improve your health, feel younger and have more energy by noshing on fresh produce throughout the day or even better, getting into the habit of getting your “daily intake” the easy way.
An effortless way of adding greens to your diet, in case you’re not keen on them, is to juice them
Juicing fruits and vegetables will help you achieve peace of mind relating to your health concerns.This way you get to eat vegetables and fruit with great taste and reap all the benefits:
- Promote a stronger immune system
- Help in disease prevention
- Gives a quick energy boost and increase stamina
- Helps flush excess water and detoxifies your body
- Helps control weight naturally
Raw vegetables and fruits have natural occurring chemicals called phytochemicals. They have been found to influence the biochemistry of our bodies in powerful and helpful ways.
The presence of these phytochemicals and live enzymes in raw fruits and veggies is what makes juicing a great alternative to fight health concerns.
Eating whole greens as juice will make you look and feel better, will help slow down the aging process, you’ll enjoy energy and vitality and you’ll be able to control your weight naturally!
Phytochemicals and enzymes are extracted in the juicing process, so they are more readily absorbed to your bloodstream
According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, phytochemicals have the potential to:
- Stimulate the immune system
- Block substances we ingest from becoming carcinogens
- Reduce inflammation
- Prevent DNA damage and enhance repair
- Reduce oxidative damage to cells
- Slow growth rate of cancer cells
- Help to regulate hormones
A juice can become a mighty cocktail of health and vitality!
Phytochemicals are a potential future pharmacy!
Phytochemicals are found in:
- Fruits and vegetables (beta carotene and other carotenoids)
- Red wine (resveratrol)
- Tea (polyphenols)
- Cruciferous vegetables (isothiocyanates)
Many of these phytochemicals are sold as supplements, but there is nothing as good as taking the actual fruits and veggies. To cover your health concerns and optimize your well-being, add them to your diet in combination with other foods and you’ll be well on your way to better health.
Juicing raw fruits and veggies has another fabulous advantage and it’s called: enzymes
Enzymes are biological catalysts acting to speed up chemical reactions in your body as varied as: digestion, respiration, nerve function, muscle growth among many other functions.
Your body is constantly using enzymes to digest food (by breaking down large molecules), to foster DNA replication (by unwinding DNA coils so they can replicate) and to eliminate toxins (by breaking down toxins in the liver).
However, enzymes work under certain conditions and are killed otherwise. They function best at body temperature (around 37°C). At cooler temperatures they work slower but they are completely denatured at higher temperatures.
Contrary to store-bought juices, juicing at home allows these valuable enzymes to survive and help you ingest their full benefit
Fruit juices or smoothies bought in the supermarket are better than grabbing a soda but the best option is juicing at home.Mass-produced juices are pasteurized and homogenized to increase shelf life. Pasteurization is a standard industrial process that heats up liquids or foods to kill pathogenic bacteria to make the food safe to eat.
An easy example is milk, it is usually pasteurized to 280° to 302°F – that’s why you can buy it in a hermetically sealed container with no refrigeration.
To keep the goodness of enzymes in your juice you should always use a juicer with high torque power to keep temperatures down. Juicers with low torque are not powerful enough to extract juice from produce without building up heat.
Another alternative to drinking your fruits and veggies is to blend them
Adding a granny apple to a mix of vegetables will make your juice instantly sweeter!Juicing will extract the water and nutrients from your fruits and veggies and leave the pulp out. This juice is easily absorbed by your body.
Blending will mash up all the fruit and veggies keeping the fiber intact. You would benefit from the fiber intake and its digestive power.
Juice is smooth and watery while smoothies are creamier and textured.
Consider juicing as a quick way to add fruits and vegetables in your diet if you don’t normally consume any. Or use juicing as a great addition to an already healthy diet to supplement your health efforts.
If you have health concerns but hate eating fruits and vegetables, juicing is the perfect way of drinking your greens
Depending on the combination of fruits and veggies in your drink, the final liquid can be as sweet and savory as you like – they taste delicious! Make sure you drink your juice right away or immediately refrigerate it for maximum 24 hours.
The variety and quality of your food plays a vital role in your health.
In connection with your individual health concerns and needs, specific food items should be considered.
In the next story, we’ll take a look at how to buy produce and how to better store it at home.
This will help you preserve your food, save money and time and keep the nutritional value of your hard earned cash.
Part 5 - The quality of our food
BreastCancer.org, Foods containing phytochemicals, www.breastcancer.org
PBS, 5 things you need to know about juicing, www.pbs.org
American Institute for Cancer Research, Phytichemicals: the cancer fighters in your food, www.aicr.org
Mayo Clinic, Nutrition and healthy eating, www.mayoclinic.org
BBC, Enzymes, www.bbc.com
