What are the Health Benefits of Green Juice?

Green Juice Benefits

green juice benefitsI have been interested in and studied nutrition for many years, but had never got into juicing. After all, there are only so many changes you can make at a time! It wasn’t until I got a Jack LaLanne Power Juicer as a gift about 5 years ago, that I started to juice. The timing was perfect. It was only a few weeks later that my wife Veronica had two of her wisdom teeth out. These wisdom teeth were deeply embedded and had grown horizontally (not vertically!). The result was two weeks of liquid food only and serious pain killers. This was my crash course in juicing.

I have since learned, practiced and experimented a lot with juicing. Used different types of juice extractors, some are better for making green juice recipes than others, you can read more about this at best juicer for greens. As I learned more about juicing and nutrition, I came to understand that green juice is the healthiest of juice. “Going green” can apply to juicing too. So then, what is green juice?


What is green juice?

The answer to this is a simple one! Green juice is any juice that is made mostly with or completely with green vegetables to produce a juice that is – well – green in color! Some of the most used green vegetables for making green juice are:

  • Kale
  • Spinach
  • Collard greens
  • Green cabbage
  • Broccoli
  • Celery
  • Lettuce
  • Parsley
  • Wheatgrass


It is common to add a fruit such as an apple or a lemon, or sweeter vegetables like carrots and cucumber to the mix to make green juice a little more tasty.


What’s green juice got that other juices don’t?

This question is really at the foundation of the benefits of green juice, and is one that I asked myself when I first started to hear the buzz about this healthy colorful beverage. Are not all juices made equal? Are not wonderful colored juices such as pomegranate juice, blueberry juice, strawberry juice, carrot juice just as good as green juice? Isn’t variety the real key? These are all good questions, and the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. However, if someone were to ask the hypothetical question “if for some reason you were only allowed to drink one color of juice, what would it be?” – I would be forced to say green. Let me explain why. (Read our post Benefits of Juicing for a general idea of the health benefits of juicing)


The Sugar Factor

The first and foremost reason for me comes down to sugar. Green juice has minimal amounts of calories and sugar because green vegetables are low in calories and sugar. Other colored vegetables such as carrots and beets, tend to be sweeter and contain more calories and sugar. An 8oz glass of carrot juice contains about 15 grams of sugar. Fruit juice is even more sugary, and for that reason I keep my fresh fruit juice intake to a minimum. At most I drink a 4oz glass 3 times a week. The fact that juice loses its fiber, which is the component of fruits and vegetables that slows down the rate at which sugars are absorbed into the blood stream is also an important point to bring up. Fruit juice can cause blood sugar spikes, and if over done can increase the risk of health conditions that come with excess sugar intake. Here are a 146 reasons to cut down sugar intake. Also check out our post Is Fresh Fruit Juice Bad for You? However, don’t be scared off by this, within moderation fruit juice is fine, just be aware of the amount of sugars you are consuming in a day.


benefits of green juiceFor checking the amount of calories and sugar in juice I use My Fitness Pal Calorie Counter. This is the only place that I have found that provides calorie information for a variety of fresh-made fruit and vegetables juices, even including green juices such as cabbage juice, broccoli juice, kale juice and more. When searching use the words “raw” and “fresh” to find what you need. For example type “raw kale juice” or “fresh spinach juice”. Using this system you will find that most green juices contain zero sugar, or just a gram or 2 of sugar for an 8 ounce glass. Of course, this makes sense since the raw whole green vegetables contain very little sugar. We can drink lots of green juice and not be concerned.


“So the essence of green juice benefits is you get all the goodness of antioxidants, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, without the concern of overdoing it with sugar. Green juice is just pure concentrated liquid nutrition – pure health benefits”



The Chlorophyll Factor

Green vegetables are green because of the chlorophyll they contain. The darker green they are the more chlorophyll they contain. Kale and spinach are therefore greater sources of chlorophyll than celery. It is the benefits of abundant chlorophyll content then that are unique to green juice, and these benefits are powerful. Here are some known benefits:

  • Wound Healing. Research dating back to the 1940’s discovered that chlorophyllin (a component of chlorophyll) helps wounds to heal faster.
  • Powerful Antioxidant. Chlorophyll and chlorophyllin are both potent antioxidants that have anti-cancer properties and help prevent our cells from oxidative damage.
  • Detoxification. Chlorophyll attaches to toxins, especially heavy metals, and removes them safely from the body. Chlorophyll also cleanses the liver by protecting it from cancer-causing cells.
  • Blood Building. The chlorophyll molecule is almost identical to that of the heme part of our red blood cells. Although not yet confirmed, chlorophyll is believed to help increase red blood cell count, and may help with anemia.
  • Alkalizing. One of the most potent benefits of chlorophyll is its alkalizing effect on the body. Because of its chlorophyll content, green juice is one of the most alkalizing foods that we can consume. The benefits of reducing the amount of acid in the body (given that over acidity is an epidemic) cannot be understated. The more acidic the body, the more prone it is to illness and disease. Acidity is a breeding ground for bad health.



The Everything Else Factor

Just because green juice is green because of the chlorophyll it contains, doesn’t mean that is the only antioxidant it contains. The list of antioxidants in green juice are mind-blowing. You will be receiving the antioxidant benefits of beta-carotene, sulphorane, vitamin C, vitamin E, lutein, zeazanthin, kaempferol, quercetin, and many others with long unpronounceable names. In addition to this your green juice is a great source of many trace minerals, including calcium and magnesium, and a great source of vitamin K and living enzymes.

This all adds up to one of the most nutrient dense health promoting drinks that exist. Yep, juice of other colors are important too to get a diversity of antioxidants and other nutrients, but if there is one juice that contains more nutrients than all others, it is a juice that come in the darkest green.
🙂

Happy Juicing
Darren

Sources:
http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/phytochemicals/chlorophylls/
http://www.livestrong.com/article/542432-does-chlorophyll-cleanse-the-blood/

Aloe Vera Drink Benefits

Aloe Vera Drink Benefits

aloe vera drink benefits

The aloe vera plant is native to Africa, India and various other arid environments and has been utilized for 1000’s of years for the treatment of burns, skin infections and wounds.. Cave paintings in the south of Africa depict the therapeutic use of aloe, and it is said that Alexander the Great seized an island near to Somalia for its aloe plants. The aloe juice drink is condensed from inside the skin of this plant’s leaves and is under study for its possible benefits for health.

Aloe Vera Drink Benefits Digestion
Considered an extremely soothing juice, aloe vera is utilized for helping with the recovery from a number of digestive issues, including ulcers, colitis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Research indicates that aloe vera’s polysaccharide compounds can calm the digestion and assist the replication of epithelial skin cells which line the inner intestinal tract. Aloe might also be helpful for additional digestive issues, including candida albicans, constipation, rectal itching and hemorrhoids, according to Balch in her book “Prescription for Nutritional Healing.”

Aloe Vera Drink Benefits for Blood Sugar
Research is beginning to demonstrate that aloe vera drinks might also be helpful for normalizing blood sugar levels and therefore could be helpful for diabetics. The Aloe Vera Guide highlights that aloe vera might help to stimulate insulin production in the pancreas. This has a particular usefulness for anyone with diabetes type 2, where the pancreas still produces some insulin. In addition, unlike other medicines for diabetes aloe vera juice drink doesn’t cause weight gain.

is aloe vera juice good for you

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Joint Repair Benefits of Aloe Vera Drink
Many types of arthritis bring about joint deformation and immobility. Aloe juice drink features high levels of trace minerals that encourage enzyme reactions within the joints that are affected by arthritis, permitting them to heal more quickly. Aloe vera juice drink also features a high amount of glucosamine, an all-natural compound present in healthy cartilage, which can help with the repair of damaged joint cartilage afflicted with arthritis.

Soreness Relieving Benefits of Aloe Vera Drink
Arthritis sufferers generally encounter soreness and stiffness throughout the joints. The anti-inflammatory compounds in aloe vera juice drink lessen this tenderness by alleviating pressure in the swollen joints. Once this pressure and inflammation is reduced, joints can then move more openly without discomfort and pain. Having the ability to move and workout can help also with arthritis since it fortifies the joints and their surrounding muscles to keep the body flexible.

Aloe Vera Gel Benefits for Burns
Gel from the aloe vera plant leaves or commercialized gel products can soothe skin that is burned from over-exposure to the sun. Used topically for your skin, aloe vera gel cools down the burn whilst it offers deep moisturizing for the damaged skin cells. It has shown wonderful therapeutic qualities for skin that is inflamed because of allergies, eczema, rashes, scraps, minor cuts and even insect stings too!

Why is Aloe Vera Juice Good for You?

What is Aloe Vera?The aloe vera plant is an indigenous desert plant native to South Africa. It is used to help treat ailments which include insect bites, burns, various skin problems and constipation. Drinking aloe vera juice or using it topically is really a powerful way to experience the benefits of this therapeutic plant. Aloe vera juice is very useful to have close at hand all of the time.

How Aloe Vera Works
If you cut open an aloe vera leaf you’ll find a transparent, sticky gel, comparable in consistency to commercial aloe vera creams and gels that you can buy in the drug store. The gel is what holds the answer to the aloe vera plant’s therapeutic qualities. The aloe vera plant features glycoproteins and polysaccharides, each of which bolster our immune system. Polysaccharides encourage skin cell growth and repair, whilst glycoproteins soothe alleviate pain and irritation. So if someone ask you “why is aloe vera good for you?”, you know what to say!

So what is aloe vera juice good for?

Wounds and Burns
In the book “Prescription for Herbal Healing“, the author Phyllis A. Balch says that aloe vera juice helps speed up the healing of wounds and burns by boosting the amount of oxygen transported to cells within the affected area. Maryland University Medical Center states that it features active compounds referred to as Glycoproteins which help to accelerate the process of healing by relieving inflammation and pain. Additionally, it features polysaccharides that stimulate skin repair and growth. Aloe vera is likewise helpful for treating eczema, psoriasis and seborrheic dermatitis (dandruff).

Aloe Juice and Immune Health
The gel of the leaves of the Aloe plant feature many therapeutic compounds, including anti-inflammatory fatty acids, salicylates, aloe resins, acemannan, anthraquinones, as well as polysaccharide-like compounds. Because of these elements, Aloe Vera juice is a highly effective antibiotic, anti-microbial and anti-fungal agent, which makes it a potent immune boosting herb that has the ability to protect against various kinds of infections. Aloe can fight off dozens of different types of bacteria, such as the bacteria that triggers pneumonia, also it can inhibit the growth of the candida fungus, the fungus which is accountable for most yeast infections.

Anti-Cancer Benefits
Recent studies indicate that aloe juice can both prevent and kill cancer. Scientists have demonstrated that aloe juice might specifically prevent lung cancer. The Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center details numerous potential anti-cancer substances that are present in the aloe plant. The compounds aloeride, acemannan, and DEHP have been shown to kill-off cancerous cells and could help to improve the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy medications. More research is needed to substantiate the anti-cancer qualities of aloe juice

Digestive Health Benefits
Aloe vera juice, or the more powerful liquid portion called aloe bitters, can be quite a fast and helpful treatment for constipation. As outlined by nutritionist Phyllis Balch, in comparison with additional herbal laxatives like cascara sagrada or senna leaf, aloe pulls less fluids into the bowels which makes it more unlikely to cause diarrhea or dehydration. In addition, drinking a 1/2 cup of aloe juice 3 times each day can help heal hemorrhoids flare-ups.

External Aloe Vera Juice Benefits
As well as drinking aloe vera juice, you may also use it externally to ease burns, and to help heal a number of skin problems. Aloe is extremely soothing; it can lessen skin inflammation, itchiness and blistering, and it can help your skin heal faster. An article from the book Herbal Supplements Guide, says that Aloe is extremely helpful for healing serious skin issues, like psoriasis, eczema and acne. Aloe vera gel is easily the most widely used type of Aloe placed on the skin. Lots of the gels nevertheless are highly refined, and stripped down of many of aloe’s natural therapeutic nutrients. Lots of aloe products consist of little or none of the active aloe compounds and as a result are not very effective. Therefore, using pure and organic aloe vera juice, which is minimally processed, would be more healing than using any store-purchased version of this gel. This article states further that getting a top quality pure organic aloe vera juice which is GMP certified, guarantees that there’s an adequate amount of active compounds to receive the healing benefits of aloe.

In health
Darren Haynes


Pure Aloe Vera Gel Uses and Benefits

Uses for Aloe Vera Gel

The gel of the aloe vera plant has been utilized for soothing and healing purposes for 1000’s of years. Aloe vera is a very moist plant which grows in warmer environments and can be utilized fresh out of the plant, in prepackaged extracted gels or as formulations with some other ingredients.

Aloe Vera Gel Uses for Skin Conditions
Ointments and products created using aloe vera have been shown to have some evidence for treating seborrhea and psoriasis. Additional skin problems that might benefit from aloe gel include burns, blisters, insect bites, allergic rashes and frostbite. It offers relief after too much exposure to the sun and could assist in preventing blistering from the sunburn. Pure aloe vera gel uses also include reducing irritation and itching as a result of a number of skin problems, including bug bites, shaving burns and abrasions. Placed on small cut and scratches, aloe might perform a better job than cortisone cream at lowering the pain without the risk of thinning or damaging your skin.

Hair Conditioning Uses of Aloe Vera Gel
Popular as a moisturizer for skin, pure aloe vera gel features a similar regenerative influence on hair. Aloe gel conditions hair, leaving it shinier and softer. Mix 1/2 a cup aloe gel with the juice from half a lemon. Add in hair-supportive essential oils, such as rosemary for greasy hair or peppermint for dried-out hair. Apply such mixtures to wet, fresh-washed hair. Leave on for about 5 minutes, then rinse.

Pure Aloe Vera Gel Benefits for Relieving Dandruff
One of the uses of aloe vera gel is that it might help with dandruff relief, especially in cases of seborrheic dermatitis. This disorder causes scaly skin and inflammation upon the scalp. Seborrheic dermatitis patients who applied aloe vera ointments to their scalps twice a day for 6 weeks encountered a 62 % reduction in symptoms such as itching and scaliness, as outlined by a study publicized in the “Journal of Dermatological Treatment” back in 1999.



Aloe Vera Gel Uses for Herpes
University of Maryland Medical Center reports that aloe vera applied topically can be useful for treating the genital herpes symptoms, voicing a study of males who usilized aloe vera for treating genital herpes outbreaks and experienced a quicker recovery of herpes sores compared to men that used a placebo lotion. Should you have genital herpes, speak with your physician about pure aloe vera gel uses for treating your outbreaks.

Shaving Uses for Aloe Vera Gel
This wonderful use of aloe vera gel is often overlooked or even not known about, but aloe vera gel makes an excellent natural alternatice to shaving creams. In fact you will most likely find that it does a better job at keeping you face feeling softer and kepping the inflammation of shaving at bay. I can attest to this personally.

Best Wishes
Darren Haynes

Is Pickle Juice Good for You or is Pickle Juice Bad for You?

Is Pickle Juice Good for You or is Pickle Juice Bad for You?

Well the answer to the fundamental question “is pickle juice good for you or is pickle juice bad for you?” is simply this – both. There is one key benefit to pickle juice – sports nutrition – and one key disadvantage – possibly increasing acid reflux.

Acid Reflux (Heartburn)
Vinegar is in fact one type of food that is not advised if you have acid reflux. The University of Columbia suggests that this is due to the acidic nature of vinegar irritating an already sore wind pipe. Vinegar is a substantial ingredient for making pickle juice, so the notion that pickle juice can help stop acid reflux is contrary to typical medical health advice. Actually, when Jennifer Huget of “The Washington Post” attempted to find proof for a similar claim that cider vinegar combats acid reflux, Professor. Joel Richter at the Temple University of Medicine shared with her that he “completely had no idea how apple cider vinegar would aid someone with GERD and acid reflux.”

The notion that pickle juice aids acid reflux seems to be entirely a matter of word-of-mouth. No scientific research seems to exist, neither has there been official speculation why the brine could be beneficial. This means that drinking the juice while you have acid reflux might be risky; you may wind up tempting fate and upping your pain, especially when you have been told by your physician to not use vinegar. Additionally, if you’re keeping an eye on your salt intake, taking pickle juice is actually a bad idea since pickle juice is high in sodium.

Sports Drink Benefits
Pickle juice generally features high quantities of electrolytes, including salt. This makes pickle juice much like sport beverages in its effects within the body. Electrolytes assist nervous system function and helps cells communicate with each other via nervous impulses. Whenever you deplete the electrolyte levels in your bloodstream by exercising, it can result in muscle tissue cramping. A 2003 study released in the Journal of Athletic Training highly recommends athletes that use pickle juice for replacing fluids to dilute the juice due to its high acidity and salt content.