In the past 10 years, juice bars have popped up all over our area which has made it convenient to access juices whenever possible as making your own can be a time consuming process. However, there is debate as to which is healthier juicing or blending.
Well, it comes down to what benefit you want to receive from either one. Be aware that whether you juice or blend, you may be ingesting a lot of sugar if you use a lot of fruit. To balance this, it’s best to juice with vegetables solely or adding small amounts of green apple for taste. With blending, protein powders, yogurt, nut butters and flax, hemp or chia seeds may be added to increase the fat and protein content which will stabilize the glucose factor in the smoothie and limit the glucose spike from consumption.
Juicing provides a concentrated form of vitamins, minerals, polyphenols and vegetables. It can improve your digestion, detoxification process and provide your body with antioxidants. It’s best done on an empty stomach and then no food for 30 minutes after ingestion for best absorption.
Juicing at home is best as you are in control of the ingredients, there’s no pasteurization and you can drink it immediately which gives you the most benefit from the enzymes present in the fruits and vegetables you are juicing. Depending on what you wish to juice will dictate the type of juicer to purchase. The downside of juicing is that you are removing the pulp and fiber which is important for gut health and you use a lot of fruits and vegetables in the process which can be expensive. Juicing is limited in protein and fats, too.
Centrifugal juicers grind up produce with tiny teeth on a rapidly spinning basket. The juice is then forced through a fine mesh sieve. This can produce a lot of heat which can affect the quality of the juice and enzymes.
Centrifugal juicers work best for juicing carrots, apples, and other hard fruits and vegetables, versus high-fiber leafy greens like wheatgrass and kale. They are usually less expensive and work fast. They produce more waste and have a wetter pulp and are louder than other types of juicers.
Masticating juicers using augers to press the maximum amount of juice from the pulp, which results in high yields and very little foaming or oxidization.
This slow juicer technique allows for easy juicing of leafy greens, such as wheatgrass, spinach, and kale. Also known as “cold press” juicers, masticating juicers take more time to produce juice but don’t heat it up. That is thought to preserve more nutrients in the final juice. These are usually more expensive but are quieter and are great for juicing leafy greens, sprouts and celery. I use an Omega 900 and they’re around $400.
Blending can be used as a meal replacement as it is filling, and you may include fruits, vegetables, fats and protein. The process is easy, as you can put all your ingredients in the blender, mix and you’re done.
There’s minimal prep time and you are consuming all of the product so you are benefiting from nutritional value, the fiber content (soluble and insoluble), plus the additional proteins and fats from nut butters, seeds, protein powders and you may be able to ingest vegetables you are not likely to eat on their own. There are multiple blenders on the market these days specifically for smoothies or for multiple uses. I’ve had a Vitamix for over 20 years and it’s the old standby. They start @ $400.
Personally, I do both blending and juicing depending on what my nutritional needs are for the day and how I’m feeling. The days I drink juice, I am conscious of eating a lot of fiber during the day too, so my gut isn’t deprived of pre/pro biotics I receive from the fibrous foods and keeping my digestive tract healthy and moving. Again, the advice I think is most important with either juicing or blending is to be aware of the sugar content of the ingredients you are using so you limit the glucose content and spike that may occur as a result of consumption.