To Juice or Not to Juice....That is the Question.....

An alternative title to this post would be "Lets Eat Kale instead of Squeezing It!".    As it is January, many of us want to cleanse out all the poisons from the holidays.  Not only do we feel that our insides need a good bath, but some of us want fast results with our own personal health goals.  Juicing has become quite popular of late for a variety of reasons.  Even in the Calgary Herald this week, there was an article about juicing and as a professional it left me with more questions about why people are so obsessed with this craze?

When I think of juicing, sure its great that people can go buy juicers (so many kinds!) and make their own. And fresh squeezed orange juice (or fresh squeezed anything) tastes much better than store bought, but at the end of the day, it is just juice.  The concept of juicing everything from apples and oranges to kale, lettuce and spinach makes me question why not just eat the whole food and get all the nutrition benefits including the fibre and roughage (and what does the juicing-population do with all that waste???).  When people start to consume this juice AND eliminate other foods in their diets and call it a cleanse,  I feel that they are misinformed.  Eliminating grains from our diets, for example can be dangerous, as it is the key macro-nutrient that provides us with energy.  All in the name of cleansing.

Cleanse.  The word sounds amazing.  Renew.  Refresh.  Rejuvenate.  There is nothing wrong with wanting to make a changes in the way you live.  But why not strive for balance instead of the latest fad?  Including foods from all food groups, and ensuring you have a good sources of whole grains, fruits and vegetables and protein (including calcium rich sources too!)  is really the easiest way to reset yourself and get you on track.  Rather than eliminating key nutrients, include a variety of foods to give you adequate fibre, vitamins and minerals.

 I don't know about you, but I would rather eat a delicious kale salad with fresh pear and goat cheese any day over kale and lettuce juice mixed with extract of spinach and apple.  I guess that's just the foodie in me talking!  Bottom line...lets eat our fruits and vegetables instead of squeezing them!



juicing-craze article from the Calgary Herald...
http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/diet-fitness/cleansing+craze/9391975/story.html