Drinking squeezed juice is a very common way to get nutrition from our daily diet. Many of you may drink juice by this way every day. However, researcher pointed that both the vitamin C and dietary fiber in the juice is less than raw fruits and vegetables.
Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is an essential organic compound that help to maintain human activities, improve the body’s immunity, strengthen cell tissue, and prevent scurvy. You can eat more fresh fruits and vegetables to prevent bleeding gums. There are a large amount of antioxidants in fruits and vegetables, however, these antioxidants like vitamins, flavonoids, and anthocyanins will reduce if you squeeze them directly. The high speed rotating blade of juicer will destroy all of the cells in fruits and vegetables, which will destroy the vitamin C.
After the fruits and vegetables are being squeezed, insoluble elements will stay in juice residue, including calcium and dietary fiber. Therefore, drinking juice will reduce the intake of dietary fiber from fruits and vegetables, whereas it can provide effect to prevent and reduce the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Besides, the insoluble fiber can prevent lesions of gastrointestinal system, and stimulate the intestinal peristalsis and promote defecation. However, due to the reduction of dietary fiber, drinking juice can’t promote the digestion can it will induce constipation sometimes.
Should fruits and vegetables be squeezed into juice?
Different groups have different need for diet. There are certain groups that need to drink juice to increase the intake of fruits and vegetable, such as old people, patients who have a gastrointestinal surgery, pregnant women with severe pregnancy reaction, people with high blood pressure. If you don’t like to eat fruits and vegetables, drinking fresh juice is also a choice to get more vitamins and dietary fiber. But you should know that fresh fruit and vegetable juices are more nutritious than fruit-vegetable mixing beverages.
According to the National Health Survey in 2003 to 2006 in US, people who drink juice every day can get more nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, and magnesium. Besides, the US Dietary Guidelines recommended adults eat five to nine servings of fruit every day or take pure fruit-vegetable juice as a replacement.
How to reduce the nutrients loss?
Before squeezing the fruits and vegetables, you should put them into boiling water for a few minutes so that the oxidase can be eliminated. Thus, the loss of vitamins will be reduced and the juice yield will be increased. In addition, it’s beneficial to put some sour fruits like lemon to the mixture to replenish the vitamin C.
Tips for making fresh juice:
Choose fresh fruits and vegetables that are in season.
Take several kinds of vegetables to mix with fruits so as to reduce the amount of sugar in the juice.
Don’t add sugar or honey to the juice.
Drink the fresh juice as soon as possible to prevent the vitamin loss and the breeding of bacteria.