Juicin’ – The Latest Craze

I’ve heard of so many people who’ve taken to juicing in the past few months. I’ve heard of everything from a one day “cleanse” to a 30 day juice-only diet (popularized by the movie “Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead”), from citrus juice only, to anything you can put inside a professional $300 juicer. While fruit juice isn’t bad for you, many people misunderstand the contents of popular “juices” lining the aisles and fridge cases of our common grocery stores.

Juice bottles claim all sorts of things. “Heart-Wise.” “All Natural.” “Energy Boost.” “50% Less Calories.” But the reality is that these are just over-priced, over sugared versions of the true all-natural, low sugar, heart-wise, energy boosting option: water.

Juices that claim energy boosting features use caffeine from coffee beans – so why not drink the coffee itself and cut out the rest of the sugar and calories you’re in-taking with the juice? Juices that claim low calorie or sugar content are usually watered down versions of the original juice, with an artificial sweetener added. So why not drink half a cup of sugar, and half a cup of water instead, leaving out the artificial sweeteners altogether? All Natural claims are often quite misleading. If you pick up a sparkling blackberry drink that claims it is “all natural,” would you expect to see that a majority of the juice is actually that of grape and apple, both inexpensive and not-so-nutritious?

If you’re going to drink juice, then make it count. Fresh is best. Don’t spend an arm and a leg at the grocery store on juices that are full of waters and unwanted additional sweeteners. The best juices, according to a ranking done by Nutrition Action Newsletter, are carrot, orange, tomato, and grapefruit. But even 100% natural juices contain calories and sugar, and most people don’t adjust their food intake to compensate for calories consumed in liquids. For this reason, its recommended to drink about 6 oz of fresh fruit juice per day, and avoid all those over-marketed juice claims in the grocery store.

At Atlanta Personal Chef Service, we always strive to inform our clients about healthy eating habits. Some of our clients do enjoy juicing fresh fruits and vegetables, and we encourage that, and will even assist in buying fresh, seasonal produce and preparing it by washing and cutting. However, many attempted juice diets fail because they result in a high-sugar, high-calorie intake – just the thing you want to avoid when dieting. So instead of dieting, incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables in a healthy way into your normal diet, and if you do choose to juice, do so in moderation. If you’re looking for a personal chef to help you maintain a healthy diet by preparing wholesome and nutritious meals, please don’t hesitate to contact us.