The Juicy Details on Juicing: What You Probably Don’t Know

I’m just going to come right out and say it: It’s 2018 and I still don’t know what juicing is. Do I need to implement it in my diet? Do I need to make a change? How much juice are we talking about, really?

There’s a lot of debate as to whether or not juicing is beneficial. Does it actually improve your health, or is it something you should only try if you’re dieting? Should you try it at all? If you’re like me, you buy your juice pre-squeezed so all the machines and different foods are intimidating. No worries, I’ll walk you through what I’ve found out about juicing.

So what is juicing?

The most basic form of juicing means squeezing the heck out of a fruit or vegetable until some juice comes out, but there’s way more to it than that. Mayo Clinic says, “juicing extracts the juice from fresh fruits or vegetables. The resulting liquid contains most of the vitamins, minerals and plant chemicals (phytonutrients) found in the whole fruit. However, whole fruits and vegetables also have healthy fiber, which is lost during most juicing.”

According to this, you lose a lot of the essentials if you don’t drink freshly-squeezed juice. So if you drink juice as soon as it comes out of the juicer, you’re getting more vitamins and minerals and…phytonutrients? What are those? They’re basically antioxidants, and they’re found in plant foods like fruits, vegetables, beans and grains.

What about the other part of that definition? Healthy fiber is found naturally in food. Just think of the pulp in your orange juice. Eating fresh oranges will usually give you more healthy fiber than drinking orange juice from the grocery store and it’s because of the pulp. When you squeeze, you often get rid of the fiber. According to Discover Health, a lot of the juice you buy with added fiber doesn’t come from that fruit.

Phew! Now that we’re covered, are there health benefits to juicing?

Couldn’t you just eat fruits and vegetables to gain nutrients and fiber? Why do you have to go through the juicing process, especially if it gets rid of fiber?

Discover Health says that juicing can help people who lack certain vitamins in their diet, but according to Mayo Clinic, “There’s no sound scientific evidence that extracted juices are healthier than the juice you get by eating the fruit or vegetable itself.”

So…why do it?

There are some pros to getting into juicing.

• If you really don’t like eating fresh fruits or veggies, or you can’t stand that pulp in your orange juice, this could be an easy alternative.
• If you’re someone who doesn’t typically drink water, having some flavor in your fluids could be a big help. Juicing can help you stay hydrated.
• If squeezing a stress ball can relieve stress, why not squeeze some fruit to do the same? You should probably use a juicer instead of your bare hands, but if you mix the right foods together you could reduce stress. More fruits and vegetables in your diet equates to higher energy.

You should also consider some of these cons.

•  As we found out earlier, juicing leaves important fiber behind. Discover Health says that fiber contains many extra nutrients, including polyphenols, which help to prevent cancer.
• Kaiser Permanente says that juice could have a high calorie count thanks to all that fructose, or sugar inherent in fruit. Without the fibers, your blood sugar might spike.
• You might have to factor in food costs. If you don’t have a juicer you have to buy one. You can get them for cheap, or below $50, but the most expensive juicers can cost over $500. Then there’s the fruits and vegetables themselves, which tend to be more expensive than processed foods.

I’m still not sure if juicing is right for me, especially since I don’t need a strict caloric intake every day like an athlete. There’s also no hard scientific research to prove that it’s the best option for our diets. Experts seem to be torn on the subject, although most agree that there are both advantages and disadvantages.

Word on the street is that blenders are a good alternative to juicers and might be better because they use the whole fruit. It’s up to you how you want to consume your fruits and veggies, so do your research and see what works best for you.