Juicing Tips From JES
May
13
Written by:
5/13/2013
Judith wrote:
MINERAL-PACKED GREENS:
Women needn't be concerned about their teeth and bones, or about acquiring osteoporosis as they age if they alkalize their bodies by eating lots of mineral-rich dark leafy greens regularly! And for me, there is no easier way to pack in the greens than by whipping up smoothies. I like to think of the smoothie as an extra set of teeth, it does the chewing for you, because breaking down some of those tough greens (like kale and collards) via chewing is not always easy (or palatable.) Many don't like raw kale and collards. For any diabetics out there, I also understand that regular ingestion of dark greens helps balance blood sugars out. I just can't say enough about dark leafy greens! And having had GD, there's one more thing I discovered regular ingestion of dark greens do for people with GD - these mineral-rich greens have a calming effect on the nerves, I don't know the science behind it, just that it does and everyone else says the same thing and I know it first hand to be true - dark greens calm the nerves. But you gotta get enough and get 'em in regularly - hence the SMOOTHIE! Here is a green soup recipe Dan McDonald makes using his juicer machine people might be interested in, in which he goes into some detail about the medicinal properties of his ingredients (as well as juicer machines. Dan's videos can get rather intense - a good thing I think.)
Note from Elaine--apple cider vinegar (1 teaspoon daily diluted in water) can also be used to alkalanize the body and stabilize blood sugar levels.
MY MOSTLY RAW FOOD EXPERIENCE SO FAR:
Since acquiring GD in Jan 2008 (and remitting since Sept. 2009) when I began eating a mostly raw food diet out of desperation (and out of a serious distrust of doctors), and after having cut out ALL processed foods, one HUGE plus I experienced is that my taste buds changed over time. I discovered I lost cravings for junk food! I wasn't even tempted at work where junk is often displayed. I believe the reason has to be because when your body is so well nourished and hydrated, you just feel so good you don't need or want junk. (Once in a while I tasted a chip or other piece of junk out of curiosity and it didn't taste the same as I remembered, I lost interest, not kidding!) I'm not religious about 'being raw' and don't care for people who are. I think people have to find what works for them. Cooked foods I eat include hard-boiled eggs, fish, sweet potatoes, quinoa, wild rice, beans and legumes. I encourage readers to try incorporating more raw fruits and veggies into their diet, it might change their life. No doubt it did mine, it caused me to recover and completely remit from GD. (And Elaine, I began supplementing with what you advised - CoQ10, Acetyl-L-Carnitine, and D3 - helped resolve my heart palps during GD, I remember it felt like a little fish flipping around in my chest! I continue to supplement these to this day.)
BLENDERS FOR MAKING SMOOTHIES:
First off I have nothing against juicing - for me it's just more economical to make smoothies, I'm on a tight budget and like to eat organic, so it just makes sense to go the smoothie route, it takes so much more produce to make juice. In addition, the smoothies keep me full (as they still contain all the fiber.) Also, juice, no matter what kind, CAN spike blood sugar. For making my smoothies I use a Blendtec blender, I hear Vitamix is also a powerful blender. A weaker blender may require you add more liquid, or add your ingredients a little at a time versus at once as I do with the Blendtec. But there is no need for a newbie to run out and spend lots of money on a fancy blender, before I bought my Blendtec I was making smoothies with my Osterizer. Once I was 'hooked' (because after a month of packing in nourishment like never before and noticing AMAZING changes in my body and mind and knowing this was going to be life-long thing), THEN I invested in the Blendtec.
From Elaine:
The next blog has Judith's dark green smoothie recipe. A big thanks to JES for compiling this information.