BE WELL
Juicing Can Be Amazing With Caution!
Shelley Tidmore, contributing editor
Taking a holistic approach to health through the integration of cold compressed juicing organic produce and consumption of raw foods is your best health insurance plan when taking into account, expense, time in versus away from day to day responsibilities, energy surplus or deficiency, and your overall functioning. Few things are more accurately stated than the old adage. You are what you eat.
The second edition of this series focuses on healing ailments with caution in juicing, with the addition of another great recipe I created a few weeks ago.
Embarking on juicing as a regular regimen or even as a healthy hobby to boost nutrition, one feels like a culinary scientist. I easily spend four hours at length in my kitchen exploring various ways to combine flavor and function of ingredients. Many colleagues and members of the health community see me coming with a stack of colorful containers and either brace themselves (some concoctions are purely for function), or clap like a seal in excitement for taste testing my more flavorful concoctions. I’ve experimented with just about every type of juice under the sun. See the photograph included in this article to see what my counter top often looks like at home on a Saturday afternoon.
What I have found to be true is that much research and measurement of precaution should be considered prior to experimenting. I’ll make it easier by breaking down a few important details I have found:
- Juicing CAN accidentally pack on pounds and create an acidic environment in the body with improper nutrient balance. It is important to balance fruity high sugar blends with low sugar vegetable blends. One cannot juice fruits for flavor and drink 6 daily for three days straight and assume they’re doing good for health. You can do quite the opposite and wreck your PH balance while packing on unwanted pounds.
- Juicing one potent vegetable alone or drinking too much of one potent vegetable can cause surprising negative side effects. Example: The Beet. Drinking more than an ounce or two as a stand- alone can cause upset stomach, partial or total temporary paralysis of the vocal chords for an hour or more, and accelerated heart rate. There are other produce you should research before juicing to read about potential dangers as a stand- alone juice. Do your homework prior to experimenting.
- Juicing can be WONDERFUL for chronic illnesses, healing, and anti-aging. Just last night I had an anti-aging collagen boosting hydrator elixir for my skin. This time I combined one large cucumber and a four stalks of celery with a twist of fresh lemon. Lemon is cleansing and packed with Vitamin C (great for the skin), and celery is one of if not the most hydrating vegetables known, while cucumber is wonderful as an anti-inflammatory while boosting hydration as well. Many juicing recipes are created for the specific purpose of healing acne, joint pain, cognitive sluggishness, sleeplessness, blurred vision, and much more.
As a reminder, it is crucial that you only use truly organic fresh produce. The taste of raw, organic produce is not only better, but because the juice form of produce sends nutrients directly to your cells, the same is true for potential chemicals and pesticides. Don’t take the risk. Always juice organic and wash produce well.
The purpose of juicing is for cleansing, energizing, and healing. We discussed that our bodies expend massive amounts of energy breaking down food. Through juicing, nutrients go straight to work and healing and alkalization occurs. It is suggested to juice for a 24 hour period weekly, or for several days once or twice per month until you choose a more thorough cleansing approach carefully guided by your physician.
I chose to provide a delicious starter recipe to boost energy and pack your day with antioxidants early on to get your day going with high energy and tons of vitamins and nutrients.
Juice for energy:
Thoroughly wash produce. Remove the seeds from the papaya. Leave the skin of the apples and kiwi- nutrients are packed in the skins of fruits and often times you can use the rind as well. Remember pits are the pits. Throw them out.
(2 Servings)
1 granny smith apple (great for digestion)
1 red delicious apple (great for digestion)
5 kiwi (super fruit!)
1 papaya (packed with energizing nutrients)
½ bunch of cilantro (cleansing)
1 grapefruit (caution: while being a metabolism booster, this fruit can block some medicines)
Serve and enjoy!
For more information or comments, contact: Shelley.Tidmore@gmail.com.
