Creating Juice Recipes for Fasting – What You Need to Know
If you are an experienced juicer or even someone who is looking to heal from a chronic disease or condition with the power of whole foods, you may have heard of juice fasting. Juice fasting is essentially a fast, or period of not eating solid food, in which only fresh fruit and/or vegetable juices (and water) are consumed. Proponents of juice fasting claim they are necessary on occasion to detoxify the body and restore health, and have proposed a variety of juice recipes for fasting that they believe to be especially suited to this purpose. If you are anything like the average person today, you have probably consumed a substantial amount of processed foods at some point in your life, and are likely exposed on an almost daily basis to harmful pollutants in the air you breathe, the water you drink, and even in the fruits and vegetables you eat. Now, your body is definitely able to eliminate many of these harmful substances through the normal channels, but its ability to do so slows with age, and not all of the toxins are easily eliminated. For example, heavy metals are often stored in fat cells, and the industrial byproduct sodium fluoride that finds its way into the water supply often accumulates in bone.
The fact that levels of toxic chemicals can build up in your body over time has important implications for your long-term health. Therefore, occasional juice fasts may be beneficial for those who suffer from certain forms of toxicity or who have trouble eliminating certain toxins. Even people who have had a long history of consuming fast food diets would likely benefit. Juice fasts allow your body to focus its energy on elimination of toxins since fresh juices are so easy to digest. In addition, certain vegetables, especially the dark green variety, contain compounds that are known to bind heavy metals and other toxins and thus facilitate their elimination. Commonly juiced fruits and vegetables used in recipes for juice fasting include kale (dark green), cabbage, carrots, celery, spinach, beets, apples, pineapples, and cranberries. Other leafy greens may be incorporated as well. Make sure to use organic produce to the extent possible and the freshest fruits and vegetables you can find, as these will be the most nutritious and contain the least amount of toxins such as pesticides and herbicides. Be sure to use a vegetable wash on any non-organic produce.
Here are a couple of simple juice fasting recipes to get you started:
Super-Cleanser 1 cucumber 4 celery sticks 3 handfuls of spinach 8 lettuce leaves water Fresh parsley and alfalfa sprouts can be added if more taste and detoxification if desired. Lemon-Ginger Cleanser 1 1-inch slice of fresh ginger root 1 whole lemon 6 carrots, including tops 1 apple water Before undertaking a juice fast, you may want to consult a health professional, as there are a few important pitfalls to be aware of. If you have any nutritional deficiencies, eating disorders, low blood sugar, low blood pressure, diabetes, or are on any prescription medications, this advice is especially true. Depending on the length of the juice fast, temporary side effects such as fatigue, low blood sugar, headaches, dizziness, hunger, diarrhea, and halitosis may occur.
If these symptoms become more serious as the juice fast continues, you should end the fast and consult with a qualified health professional immediately. Juice fasting is also not recommended for pregnant or nursing women or before or after surgical procedures, as the body may not cope well with a sudden change in the numbers and types of nutrients it is receiving It is advisable to conduct juice fasts for no longer than 3 days, since certain nutrient deficiencies, especially in calcium and protein, may occur with longer fasting periods. It is important to remember that juice fasting assists your body in reducing the stress of digestion and freeing up energy for elimination, but that all the nutrients your body needs will not be contained in the juices you’re drinking. Therefore, be sure to take it slow, keep it to a short duration, and stop if you are experience significant discomfort or other serious symptoms. If you are considering doing a juice fast, make sure to avoid processed foods, but especially at least seven days before and after the fast. If you find that the juice itself is not enough to sustain you, stick to whole foods as necessary to get you through. With a diet consisting of juicing recipes you can always incorporate whole food when the juice itself is not sustaining you fully.
You’ll generally want to consume somewhere between 32 and 64 ounces of fresh juice per day, depending on your body size and metabolism. You’ll be receiving most of the important nutrients your body needs while still cleansing your system. Hopefully, this article has given you some things to think about regarding juice fasting so you can determine if it is right for you. Remember to do your own due diligence ahead of time and go easy on the juice fasting, especially if you are looking to do it for the first time. Additionally, it is never a bad idea to consult a health care professional you trust to get a second opinion before you start.