vegetable juice

[gigigo]

hey guys

ive got a question regarding vegetable juices and thought maybe you can help me.

Whats the difference between eating say 2 pounds of greens/vegetables raw and juicing/drinking them in regards to nutrients and calories?

To my understanding the only difference is the missing fiber in the juice or is there more to it? What about the protein content of the veggies?

thanks

[ETeSelle]

Post this over on Jeff's forum. He's explained this a few times, I think.

[GeoffreyLevens]

All that is missing is the fiber but also, because of that you absorb it much much faster than you would if you ate the entire amount of produce. There are pros and cons, Jeff and Dr McDougall come down in favor of eating them entire. Even if blended, like in Vitamix, with all the fiber present, it is still broken down into tiny particles and so the second, rapid digestion issue is still there. Also, you can probably consume a whole lot more of them blended than whole. Not such a big deal w/ things like kale or cabbage but if you are blending in fruit or more calorie dense veg like carrots or beets, it could become an excess calorie issue

[noelalexis2000]

I have problems with leafy greens of almost any kind. As long as they are cooked I seem to tolerate them but if I eat a salad of most kinds of lettuce or raw kale or other greens I get intense stomach pain, like I am in labor. I don't understand why I cannot handle them but was thinking about juicing greens to see if I could drink them. Any ideas?

[GeoffreyLevens]

My wife used to get that, stomach pain from raw greens. Recently, she started eating tiny amounts of salad daily, softer lettuces esp, and chewing them very well. Over a period of several weeks her tolerance has dramatically improved and now she can pretty much just eat a salad like anyone else though kale is particularly hard to chew and may take a bit longer.

[noelalexis2000]

Thank you, I do tend to eat to fast at times. At first I thought it was sprays on the lettuce but even organic will do it. Especially romaine and even leafy greens. I have notice the little mixed lettuces seem to not bother me so much. I am trying to eat more kale, collards and I love swiss chard. The swiss chard seems okay when cooked for me. Do you think that green juice might be a possibility since it is a drink. Guess I will try it and let you know. Thanks again, for answering my post!

[GeoffreyLevens]

Just start with very small amounts and gradually increase every few days until you get to whatever you think a serving to be. It may just take time for your digestion to adapt

[Faith in DC]

it is ok to cook greens too. I do not like raw kale or collards. I like mine cooked, very well. Swiss chard if young is ok raw to my stomach.

[noelalexis2000]

I like them cooked as well but thought maybe I could get more of the nutrient value if I juiced them. I really guess cooked is better than not at all. I think swiss chard is my favorite.

[Faith in DC]

well I can put away a lot of cooked greens. I really love them in everything.