Fidget Queen, thank you SO much for all the great information! I'm sorry you're not able to get the quality veggies you'd like but at least you're able to make lemonade from your lemons. (pun intended
) I'm not a huge parsley or cilantro fan so I'd have to find a substitute for those but I love your lemon and ginger suggestion. Do you peel the skin on the ginger?
I had heard many years ago, that you shouldn't mix vegetable juice with fruit juice as your body would do better separating those differing enzymes. I know Jack LaLanne always mixed the two together as well as many others so perhaps that theory is shot out of the window.
I will definitely buy organic celery and even carrots if I can. Do you know if you're supposed to drink fresh juice on an empty stomach or doesn't it matter?
Thanks again for all the info! Happy juicing!
Bam
You're certainly welcome.
I don't have any problem mixing fruit and vegetables, and I actually eat fruits and vegetables together in meals all of the time. I wouldn't avoid that if I were you, as I see no reason for it. That said, I don't add much fruit. Only enough to make it more enjoyable, as I don't think drinking fruit juice is the best thing for you (because there's no fiber to help regulate the speed at which the sugar enters the bloodstream). That's why I make celery my base - it has such a mellow flavor and I could drink it all day long. When you add in only one bunch of cilantro and/or parsley to the mix I mentioned, you don't taste it much. Herbs in general are just so full of minerals and vitamins that I like to include them. Basil and mint work beautifully, too. Well, mostly mint, as basil gets a weird taste to it if you don't drink it immediately. Actually, I think mint would make a delicious addition the lemon/ginger mixture. Hmmmm....
I prefer drinking the juice on an empty stomach, but there are varying opinions on this. Sometimes I just don't, because I eat so much that if I waited until I had an empty stomach, I'd never get it down. Some say you absorb more minerals with nothing in its way, others say you absorb more when you drink it with food as your body is already automatically in the digestive/absorptive process. I think the most important thing is to make sure it's fresh. It tastes better and I think it's healthier. I can't make myself get caught up in the exact when/how/wheres or I'll go crazy.
The only thing I am careful about is eating too much fat along with anything that has a lot of fruit it in. It causes major problems for me, so if you drink the juice after eating, try to make sure it didn't have too much fat. I'll have absolutely no digestive troubles that way (and I drink a whole liter at once usually).
Oh, I wanted to add that you should be careful about drinking the lemon water. Years ago, when I first started doing this, it caused problems with my teeth (way too much acid on my teeth all day long). Now I use a soft straw (think the large starbucks straws) and am careful to keep it off my teeth. Very easy, and I actually drink a lot more that way.
I've also considered juicing the green stuff and then pureeing it with fruit - Pineapple, for example, as that way you'd have the fiber for it. Try to replicate Odwalla or Naked Juice or something. I haven't done it yet, but it might be an idea for you.
