Over the ten years, I have learned so much about juicing. Many people will tell you that juicing is not great for you, because you lose fiber that you get when eating whole vegetables and fruits.
Hmm, yes. There is some truth to this. So, my diet is a combination of whole fruits and vegetables along with juices.
When I was pregnant, I drank a lot of store-bought juices. They made me feel seemingly healthy, I knew juices were good for my health and that of my baby's. Half-way through the pregnancy, my doctor started to get concerned with the rate of my weight gain. She said the culprit was store-bought juices.
This discovery got me interested in reading juice bottle labels, and how NOT HEALTHY some of the juices can be. When I started to look at the labels, I realized several juices are not 100% juice, many of them have a high sugar content. I started to ask myself, does this bottle of juice have the same freshness and amount of nutrients that a freshly-squeezed glass has?
I noticed store-bought bottle labels said 'From Concentrate', 'Not from Concentrate' or 'Frozen Concentrate'. And so I questioned: How does it matter if the water was removed, or the fruit was dehydrated, condensed, re-hydrated and pasteurized? Isn't the real, fresh thing a better deal?
So, lets say for the moment, buying store-bought is a NO. But you still crave those juices? What about those freshly squeezed from stores such as Jamba Juice, Pressed Juicery, Robeks and Nekter ?
Yes, they are always an option. And some of their offerings are actually delicious. Some of them have daily bundles, VIP clubs and reward programs. But a normal person on a budget, they are still quite pricey.
I waited for eight years before buying myself a juicer. I can't believe I waited that long, and I should tell you - Read this piece and then just go for it. BUY A JUICER.
I am writing this piece to share my research on the juicers that I bought and what I recommend. There are two kinds of juicers in the market that I would recommend you look into: Masticating and Centrifugal
About 18 months ago, I bought the Omega Masticating Juicer which put me back $380.
Obviously, it was a serious investment. It was slow, and it extracted a lot of juice. One of the best in the market for sure. All the parts were plastic, but it was easy to clean. There was no blade in the unit at all, so it's super safe. After a few months of using it regularly, something went wrong. The actual machine unit was absolutely fine but the unit stopped throwing out the fiber into the compartment it was supposed to. I could return it to Bed Bath & Beyond, full store credit.
Then, I bought the Breville Juice Fountain which was much cheaper, at $180. This was a centrifugal juicer. I chose this one because it said that it juiced not only fruits but also vegetables. I have been using it regularly since. It extracts far less juice from greens than the Omega. (In other words, I use a lot more greens for the same juice quantity that the masticating juicer pulled). It is easy to clean, and except for the greens, all other vegetables and fruits are well extracted.
I also bought the company's Clean and Green 30-count bags which is an expensive box, but allows me to throw the waste directly into my compost bin. It is just convenient! I use the 20% BBBY coupon so it falls a bit cheaper.
Freshly squeezed juices are healthy and make you feel good. My daughter's favorite juice is carrot, which tastes way better than the Trader Joe's carrot juice. (which is also pretty darn good, btw). I usually go for spinach/kale, with cucumbers, apples, and a little bit of celery and ginger. Or I squeeze myself some celery juice. So many great juice ideas!
Note: This is NOT a sponsored post. I have not been paid by any of the brands to talk about them. I am merely documenting my experience.
