33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss - Part XIII - Creating Delicious and Healthy Concoctions

What’s the best thing about getting into a juicing program? It helps you get the fibers, vitamins, and minerals that your body needs to function and develop. If fruits and vegetables aren’t really part of your daily diet, you’re putting your own body and health at a disadvantage. By juicing fruits and vegetables, you can get most of your dietary needs in one glass – easy to prepare and easy to drink. But to make a well-rounded and healthy drink that will also help you lose weight, you need to learn all about fibers, vitamins, and minerals, and what kind of food can offer them to you.

Fibers

Not a lot of people know that there are two types of dietary fiber in food – soluble fiber and non-soluble fiber. Soluble fiber dissolves is the kind of fiber that dissolves in water, but not completely. Instead, it turns into a gel-like consistency that slows down digestion and helps make you feel full longer which encourages weight loss. Also, it helps maintain healthy glucose levels and lower LDL or bad cholesterol. Some of the food that have soluble dietary fibers include apples, strawberries, nuts, blueberries, cucumbers, celery, and carrots.

The other kind of dietary fiber, insoluble fiber, also has a healthy effect because they pass through your digestive system relatively intact which helps speed up the passage of food and waste. It also has a slight laxative effect that helps prevent constipation. The food that have insoluble fibers are celery, carrots, tomatoes, dark leafy vegetables, and raisins.

Getting your daily dose of fiber is important for a complete and healthy diet and it’s especially helpful for losing weight. Most Americans get only 15 grams of fiber per day but according to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, women need25 grams of fiber per day while mean need as much as 30 to 38 grams per day. Adding food with high fiber content can go a long way in meeting your daily fiber needs.

Vitamins

Have you ever wondered what vitamins really are? Vitamins are small organic compounds that the body requires for normal cell function and development but can’t produce for itself which is why it’s important to get vitamins from our food. And while we may only need small quantities, they’re very important for keeping the body up and running.

The lack of vitamins in your diet can lead to serious deficiency diseases like scurvy which is caused by the lack of vitamin C. Scurvy is a serious disease that is easily prevented by eating food rich with vitamin C like citrus fruits, cantaloupe, mangoes, and papaya. When your body doesn’t have enough vitamin C, your gums will become spongy, you will experience joint pain, and blood spots will appear under your skin. Your teeth will also become lose and you could also experience bad breath. Thank goodness it’s easy to grab an orange or mango and add it to your juice.

There are two kinds of vitamins – fat-soluble vitamins and water-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in your fat tissues and in the liver. They last longer inside your body because they’re easy to store and can stay inside your system for months. Water-soluble vitamins aren’t as easily stored in the body as fat-soluble vitamins and leave your body very fast. Usually they get expelled when you urinate. Because of this, you need to add food rich in water-soluble vitamins in your juices every day.

 There are currently 13 recognized vitamins today. They are vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, vitamin B6, vitamin B7, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K. The fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K while the water-soluble vitamins are vitamin C and all the B vitamins.

Minerals

Unlike vitamins which are organic substances, minerals are inorganic substances that the body also needs for normal body function and development. There are kinds of dietary minerals – macrominerals which the body needs in large doses and trace minerals which we need in small amounts.

Let’s talk about what could happen to the body when we don’t get enough minerals. Potassium is one of the easiest minerals to ingest, thanks to potassium rich food like bananas and avocados, but people still suffer from potassium-deficiency all the time. The disease caused by lack of potassium is called hypokalaemia and it causes a wide range of symptoms that include vomiting, constipation, heart palpitation, fainting, depression, delirium, psychosis, and hallucinations. Some forms of hypokalaemia include an inability to move your muscles and a dark coloring of the nails.

Potassium is only one of the macrominerals that the body needs to stay fit and healthy. Other macrominerals include calcium (found in nuts, tofu, and low fat dairy products), phosphorus (found in dairy), magnesium (found in green leafy vegetables like kale and spinach, nuts, soybeans, and coco), chloride and sodium. Chloride and sodium are important macrominerals but we are rarely lacking of the two because they’re carried in the body through salt.

The trace minerals that we need are iron, zinc, manganese, copper, fluoride, molybdenum iodine, chromium, and selenium. If you’re wondering which ones are the most important, they are iron, copper, zinc, and selenium. You can find iron in most vegetables and legumes as well as whole grain products. Copper can be found in nuts, most fruits and vegetables and legumes. Zinc can be found in most meats and seafood while selenium can be found in whole grains and meats.

Review

That’s a whole lot of information to digest in one sitting, but mind you, it’s very important information. Just to make sure that you’ve got everything pat down, let’s do a quick review of the important parts of this chapter.

There are two types of fibers in your food – soluble fiber and non-soluble fiber. Both help give you a clean gut and make your bowel movements regular but soluble fiber gives you the added advantage of making you feel full longer, maintaining healthy glucose levels, and helping reduce LDL or bad cholesterol. Pay particular attention to the amounts of fiber in your juicing ingredients – it is the key to a healthy weight loss program. If you feel that your juicer is taking out too much of the fiber content, don’t be afraid to scoop some back in, especially in the case of apples or pineapples.

Like fibers, there are also two kinds of vitamins – fat-soluble vitamins and water-soluble vitamins. Fat soluble vitamins (vitamins A, D, E, and K) can be ingested less regularly like maybe once a week since storing them isn’t a huge problem. In fact, they can stay in your system for months. Water soluble vitamins on the other hand (the B vitamins and vitamin C) leave your body the same day you take them in through your urine. That’s why it’s important to eat or drink vitamin B and vitamin C rich food every day.

Minerals are similar to vitamins except they’re inorganic while vitamins are organic. There are also two kinds of minerals – macrominerals and microminerals. Macrominerals like potassium and calcium are the minerals that the body needs plenty of while microminerals are only needed in trace amounts. The most important macrominerals are potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. The most important microminerals are iron, copper, zinc, and selenium.

So there you have it; the three factors that make your juice healthy. By creating a balance between the three, you can be healthier, live longer, be more energetic, and lose weight at the same time. In the next chapter, we’re going to look at the common ingredients that you can use for juicing and the different amounts of fibers, vitamins, and minerals they can offer you.

Just to make things even easier for you when you start cranking out those juices, here is a chart of the different vitamins and minerals that you’ll find in fruits and vegetables and what they can do for your health and well-being.

Fibers
Soluble fibers	Makes you feel full longer and helps fight cravings. Helps with weight loss. Helps control blood sugar levels. Helps maintain bowel health. Lowers cholesterol level.
Non-soluble fibers
Vitamins
Vitamin A	Maintains good eye vision and health. Helps with treating acne. Gives you healthier-looking skin. Strengthens your immune system. Inhibits the production of DNA in cancer cells. Gives you a healthier reproductive system.
Vitamin D	Helps with the absorption of nutrients, especially calcium and phosphorus. Strengthens the muscular system. Strengthens the bones. Regulates blood pressure. Helps reduce stress and tension.
Vitamin E	Stops bad cholesterol from being oxidized and from building up in your arteries. Protects from cellular DNA damage that can lead to cancer. Improves blood glucose metabolism and helps with diabetes. Helps prevent heart diseases.
Vitamin K	Protects your heart. Prevents osteoporosis. Strengthens your bones. Keeps calcium in your bones and out of your arteries.
Vitamin C	Prevents cancer. Helps in the maintenance of the body’s immune system. Prevents cataracts. Keeps cholesterol from oxidizing in the bloodstream. Reduces the risks of heart diseases and strokes. Helps maintain good oral health.
Vitamin B1	Helps with energy production. Helps with cardiovascular functions and health. Helps ensure good eye health. Improves brain function. Helps maintain a healthy nervous system.
Vitamin B2	Helps your body break down calories more efficiently. Helps with the production of red blood cells. Makes your skin healthier. Helps maintain healthy eyes for better vision.
Vitamin B3	Significantly reduces the risk of heart disease. Helps lower the level of bad cholesterol. Assists in the energy production of cells. Boosts the immune system. Helps give you a healthier digestive system.
Vitamin B5	Helps synthesize many important components for the human body like amino acids and fats. Helps reduce stress and other mental problems. Helps promote heart health. Helps build stamina. Helps boost the immune system. Gives you healthier skin and health.
Vitamin B6	Helps maintain healthy brain functions. Helps in synthesizing antibodies that fight diseases and sickness. Helps maintain normal nerve functions. Helps in the formation of red blood cells. Helps in the break down and digestion of proteins.
Vitamin B7	Helps in the growth and replication of cells. Synthesizes important components like fatty acids and amino acids. Helps prevent hair loss. Gives you healthier skin. Ensures a proper functioning heart. Helps in the maintenance of muscle tissues. Reduces cholesterol levels in the human body. Plays a role in DNA replication and gene expression.
Minerals
Potassium	Regulates the blood and tissues on a cellular level. Plays a vital role in the ‘sodium-potassium pump.’ Vital in energy metabolism. Important for normal growth and muscle building. Important in maintaining cardiovascular health. Important in keeping the nervous system healthy.
Calcium	Strengthens bones and teeth. Regulates muscle functions and helps with contraction and relaxation. Regulates heart functions. Helps regulate blood clotting. Helps in the transmission of nervous system messages. Helps with enzyme functions.
Phosphorus	Plays a role in energy production. Plays a role in protein synthesis (DNA and RNA). Acts as a buffer to maintain normal pH in the blood.
Magnesium	Plays a role in protein synthesis. Improves muscle functions. Offers relief from symptoms of menopause and premenstrual syndrome. Helps in the absorption of calcium.
Sodium	Used to control blood pressure and blood volume. Needed for your muscles and nerves to work properly.
Chloride	Maintains the proper balance of blood fluids. Chloride is also an essential part of digestive juices.
Iron	Plays a role in the transport of oxygen in the blood. Essential for providing energy. Vital in making sure that the immune system functions properly.
Copper	Helps in providing energy. Helps repair connective tissues and in maintaining elasticity and collagen health. Plays a role in pigmentation of the skin. Acts as a catalyst for a number of body functions.
Zinc	Helps stimulate the activity of more than a hundred different enzymes. Responsible for a number of different functions in the human body. Important for a healthy immune system. Helps in properly synthesizing DNA.
Selenium	Plays a structural and enzymic role. Needed for the proper functioning of the immune system. A key nutrient in counteracting the development of viruses. Catalyst for the production of active thyroid hormones.
Molybdenum	Acts as a catalyst for enzymes. Plays a role in metabolism. Contributes to the antioxidant capacity of the blood. Accelerates the removal of toxic substances. Fights inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
Chromium	Enhances the action of insulin. Plays a role in metabolism and the storage of carbohydrate, fat, and protein. Monitors the blood sugar. Reduces food cravings. Prevents hypertension. This is a sample from the book 33 Juicing Recipes for Weight Loss--to get the complete recipes you can get the book here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NB0RD8I