Heart Healthy Orange Julep Juice

One of the questions I get several times a week from fans is should I juice or do smoothies? The answer depends on what you are looking to accomplish. In a nutshell, NOTHING beats a glass of pure organic vegetable juice. Nothing. It is the most efficient and effective way to bathe your cells in nutrition without the nutrition having to compete with the fiber during digestion. Of course, juicing is the best possible way to cleanse and detox as well.

When juicing, the juicer extracts the juice from the produce. The “juice” is the water and most of the nutrients the produce contains, leaving behind the pulp. Blending smoothies on the other hand, there is no left-over pulp. Blenders actually pulverize the produce to make a smoothie. I dedicated an entire post to the difference between juices and smoothies, and the nutritional benefits of juices in particular. You can check it out HERE.

Here is a juice for you that is not only extremely tasty, but is a very quick way to infuse your body with vitamin C, beta carotene and calcium. This juice is also incredibly heart-healthy. In fact, a recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that consuming about two cups of orange juice every day for one month significantly lowered diastolic blood pressure. The study also showed better functioning of the inner lining of blood vessels including significantly better ability to widen (called “vasodilation”) immediately following the orange juice. When the blood vessels widen, there is less resistance to blood flow which reduces the heart’s workload, and serves as an important indicator of overall cardiovascular health. Ultimately, this study supports a larger body of evidence that has shown citrus fruits are associated with many cardiovascular benefits including a lower risk of acute coronary events and stroke.

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 oranges

• 10 carrots

• 6 mint leaves

Juice and Enjoy!