Juicing is an easy way to get healthy fruits and vegetables into your diet. But more than simple nutrients, juice can help you get an important boost of energy for your day-to-day activities. Instead of turning to caffeinated drinks, with their side effects, try natural juices with these ingredients.
1. Anything containing chlorophyll.
Chlorophyll gives green plants their color. The molecules in a plant's chlorophyll absorb sunlight and incorporate its energy into making food and oxygen. Part of all leafy greens, chlorophyll helps enhance your energy levels by detoxifying your liver and improving your digestion.
Many green vegetables contain chlorophyll. Some of the most popular for juicing include:
Most green juices offered at a juice bar contain a large variety of these leafy greens, combined with some fruits for better taste.
2. Parsley.
While parsley contains chlorophyll, it deserves special mention because of its spectacular ability to combat fatigue. In addition, it helps with a wide variety of other ailments.
Because of its higher iron levels, parsley can help reduce fatigue due to anemia. Supplements can make taking iron hard because they can cause side effects like constipation; they also are difficult to absorb. While it could be challenging to eat several bunches of parsley in a day, it's relatively easy to juice large amounts and ingest all the benefits that come from its use.
3. Coconut.
Besides tasting delicious, coconut water contains electrolytes including potassium. These can help you rehydrate more effectively than water alone. Being dehydrated can make you feel more tired and give you headaches, backaches and other ailments that make focus and concentration hard to come by.
4. Chia seeds.
These small black seeds from a plant related to mint are packed with nutrition, but they contain a lot of protein to help keep your blood sugar stable.
Additionally, chia contains an antioxidant called quercetin, which helps increase oxygen levels in the blood and endurance.
5. Milk.
Milk can help you take in more nutrients from the other ingredients in juice. In a study done on older adults, an increase in milk and other dairy products helped increase energy levels and many levels of vitamins and nutrients in the blood.
You don't have to put milk into your juice drink -- a bit of yogurt, especially Greek yogurt, provides the same benefits with even more protein. Plus, it can help enhance the taste of some juices and smoothies.
Any fresh produce that you put into your juice drinks can help improve your health, but some will make you better able to get through periods of fatigue. Try any or all of these five ingredients during your next trip to the juice bar to reap the benefits that they offer.
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