Vegetable Juice Diet

feellife/iStock/Getty Images

Vegetable juicing or fasting helps cleanse the body to increase metabolic performance, improve stamina and enhance energy output. A vegetable juice diet has a high vitamin, mineral and antioxidant content. It rids the body of toxins so you operate more efficiently, thanks to the improved overall function of the body’s organs and detoxification process. Proponents say that with a vegetable juice diet, you eat less and feel more energetic.

Juicing Significance

AVAVA/iStock/Getty Images

Drinking fresh vegetable juice allows you to consume more vegetables than you would normally be able to eat. An average person can easily take in the 1 pound of raw vegetables per 50 pounds of body weight that many nutritionists recommend we should have each day.

Boost Immunity

RomarioIen/iStock/Getty Images

Vegetable juicing can jump-start the body’s immune system. Advocates of a vegetable juice diet say it aids in healing the pancreas, prevents degenerative disorders such as arthritis, and even inhibits life-threatening diseases. Studies continue on these effects.

Recommended Vegetables

Bruce Block/iStock/Getty Images

Some of the best vegetables recommended by health enthusiasts include red, green, romaine and escarole lettuce, carrots, celery, apples, cucumbers, beets, wheatgrass, parsley and cloves of garlic. Fresh carrot juice by itself is a favorite among juicing devotees.

Vegetable and Fruit Combinations

Meliha Gojak/iStock/Getty Images

The combination of vegetable and fruit juice makes a popular drink. However, fruit juice can raise insulin levels. Vegetable juice alone does not. Still, fruit juices are highly recommended over processed soft drinks. And consuming vegetables and fruits is a simple way to combat many cancers, according to the National Cancer Institute and other reputable associations. Vegetable and fruit juice may play a significant role in cutting the development of Alzheimer’s disease, according to at study at Vanderbilt University.

Juice Fasting

Gajus/iStock/Getty Images

Many natural juice lovers drink vegetable juice as a way of fasting. Consuming only vegetable, or fruit, juice for a day or a few days is considered a safe and helpful way of fasting instead of just drinking water. It helps eliminate wastes and strengthens new tissues with the nutrients from juices. It's recommended that water consumption continue with the juice diet to help the body flush toxins through the kidneys. Juice fasting should last no more than a week because vegetables alone don't provide the nutrients you need for energy and health over a long period.

Appetite and Weight Loss

Goodshoot/Goodshoot/Getty Images

A vegetable juice diet is ideal for healthy weight loss. The diet adds important nutrients to the body without the consumption of fat. The vegetable juice diet also acts as an appetite suppressant. Cravings disappear because the juice packs the body with necessary enzymes, vitamins and minerals, helping to stabilize blood sugar levels and allowing the body to function normally.

Juicer

gawriloff/iStock/Getty Images

If sticking with a strictly vegetable juice diet, choose a juicer that specializes in juicing vegetables. Some juicers geared toward fruit have a rough time juicing leafy green vegetables. With a small investment, people are creating their own in-home juice bars to share with friends and neighbors.