JOY OF JUICING

While we were visiting our daughter in Florida recently, we watched a compelling documentary about a sick and overweight Australian businessman who came to the USA to perform a juice fast for 60 days. See here. 

It was fascinating to watch as the man, Joe Cross, traveled all over The US and stopped at farmers markets or roadside stands. In the rear of his vehicle he had a juicer and would juice the vegetables right on the spot. He checked with his MD before he began and hoped to eventually eliminate the prescribed medicine for his skin disease which was making him sicker.

Cross was losing fat, little by little. He would speak to other young people about their diet and they would mention the usual fast- food fare. A couple of people looked like they could have benefited from the juice regimen, but said they loved their junk food too much.

Cross kept juicing twice a day, and eating nothing else. His fat continued to diminish and after tests with his physician, he could actually drop the medicine routine and its side effects.

Driving through Arizona, Joe Cross met an obese over the road driver and started talking with him. The man had trouble walking from his rig to the truck-stop center. Joe invited him over to his vehicle and offered him a glass of juice. They got to talking and it turned out both men had the same disease. The trucker liked the beverage but wasn’t sure about committing to a juicing program. Joe left his number with the trucker.

At the end of the 60 day juicing program, Joe was no longer fat, sick and nearly dying. He was no longer taking the medicine and his disease had completely cleared up.  He went back home and went about his business.

Later, that obese trucker telephoned Joe and asked for help. Joe agreed to return and provide help.  The driver, although in his early 40’s, could barely walk a block without having to stop. When he was younger he was a champion swimmer in school. He followed Joe Cross’s advice and through the ensuing weeks lost a lot of fat and was able to jog long distances. He was so grateful he started volunteering to help other overweight people.

My daughter wanted me and my spouse to start juicing and purchased a juicer for us that day. We bought a bunch of vegetables and started juicing. The Education Tipster likes it and participates in the twice daily juicing event.

My daughter urges everyone to start juicing, as the concentrated nutrients (vitamins, minerals, enzymes etc) help stave off food cravings as they satisfy your body’s food needs. 

There are a couple of important points to remember.

1. Wash the vegetables and fruit to be juiced.
2. Go easy on the fruits used, too much fruit sugar is not healthy
3. Do include a little fruit with the vegetables for a more palatable flavour.
4. Rinse out the juicer as soon as possible, before it gets dry and is hard to clean.
5. Drink the juice as soon as you can, before oxidation sets in.

We traveled over 130 miles round trip to buy some Bitter Melon, which is a bitter vegetable reputed to be very effective in controlling blood sugar. After awhile you can get used to the amounts and varieties of fruits and vegetables you may prefer. I use bitter melon with carrot, celery, spinach, bell pepper, zucchini, cucumber and a little watermelon, apple and orange. You can juice almost anything, but not banana or avocado.Read the manual accompanying your juicing machine for more information.

We met a Russian man at that market who has been juicing for 15 years, since he got here. He looked very healthy.

Here is a simple juicing recipe to get started: 3 carrots, 1 tomato and a handful of spinach. It tastes like V8 juice, but its much better for you because it contains live micronutrients and no preservatives.