How many times have you heard one of these statements: "I found this new all natural juice, I drink so much of it! So healthy :)", "I bought a new juicer and it is FAN-TAS-TIC, I am going to drink up most of my calories and cleanse my body"?
Let's get to the bottom of this... It is absolutely okay to drink fresh juice if you enjoy it. However, if you are doing this solely for health reasons, I'm sorry to break this down to you, but I would actually recommend that you eat your calories instead of drinking them.
Here are three reasons why solid food wins in the solid vs. liquid battle:
1. There is no such thing as a cleansing diet. Our body is a powerful machine that actually gets rid of toxins by itself, drinking up our calories doesn't help in removing toxins whatsoever. Additionally, liquid diets are usually very low in calories which, when combined with a deprivation of certain nutrients such as B vitamins, fiber, iron, and zinc causes our metabolism to slow down and results in nutrients deficiencies. In the long run, our metabolic rate decreases leading to weight gain, and we could also show physical and/or functional signs and symptoms from nutrient deficiencies.
2. Some studies have shown that liquid calories do not act the same way as solid calories when it comes to satiety. These studies suggest that it takes longer for satiety signals to be perceived by our brain when we consume our calories in a liquid form. This indicates that we might actually consume more calories than we think when we drink up our food. On the long term, this may lead to weight gain.
3. If you are given the choice between a bowl of berries and an orange or these same fruits blended with some water in a mixer and you want to make your choice solely based on health concerns, which option would you choose? Our juicing fanatics may want to choose the latter option. Well, let me tell you that it is actually better for health to consume the fresh fruits because they preserve the fiber which has many health benefits such as regulating blood sugar, improving satiety, and maintaining a healthy bowel function.
So these are my ideas about juicing, I intend by no means to create fear of consuming liquid calories; In fact, I think it is healthy to add some life and variety to our diet by consuming a little bit of everything. My intention in this post was really to shed the light on the myth which suggests that drinking up all (or most of) your calories is better for you. And again, I love moderation, balance, and lots of variety in my diet! I bet you do too :)
Cheers
Hello Ms. Awwad, I do agree with your perspectives on juicing especially when thinking about the total amount of calories that could be consumed, the lack of fiber, and the potential effects on blood sugar control for diabetics. That being said, I also know that for some people who hate eating vegetables, juicing provides an acceptable way to get in a variety of vegetables that they would not normally consume, which increased the vitamin, minerals, and phytochemicals content of their overall diet. I recommend that when making a juice, to key on vegetables more so than the fruits, and that they limit the total amount consumed to no more than 1 - 2 cups per day. For people living with diabetes, the carbohydrates in juices (even those made yourself) is more readially available that those of whole fruits due to the fiber that remains in tact. Care should be taken understand how the juice reacts in your body, counting the carbohydrate provided. Thanks Ms. Awwad for your perspectives on this popular food practice.
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for your comment Mrs.Greer. I totally agree! :)
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