Top 5 Benefits of Celery Juice (And Why You’ll Feel Amazing After Drinking It)
Celery has long been thought of as a low-calorie veggie for dieters or thoselooking to lose weight. Or even as a healthy snack when you were a kid.Anyone remember “ants on a log” at snack time [celery stalk filled withpeanut butter & raisins on top]? It clocks in at just 10 calories per stalk, but it has so much more to offer youthan just water and some healthy fiber. Check out these 5 reasons below that should make you consider adding thiscrispy fresh veggie to your daily diet. Plus, a few bonus recipes at the endand my favorite easy no-fuss way to get all the nutrients of celery inevery day without any of the hassle of buying, washing, prepping, juicing,cutting, or cooking it.
1. Celery is full of antioxidants.
By now, most of know that antioxidants are good for us. But what do theydo? They protect your body, including cells, blood vessels, organs, etc… fromoxidative damage and stress. We live in a world that is full of stress thatcomes from many sources: from the environment, we are in (both physically& mentally), the food we eat, the water we drink and more. So we need allthe antioxidant help we can get! Eat up. Celery also contains vitamin C, beta carotene, and flavonoids, but in additionto that, there are at least 12 other antioxidant nutrients. Fruits and veggiesalso contain phytonutrients (flavonoids are phytonutrients too) which aidethe body in functioning properly and also are known to help thwart disease.
2. Celery helps reduce inflammation.
Chronic inflammation in the body has been found to be an underlying root ofmany serious diseases. But another great benefit of celery is that is about 25different anti-inflammatory compounds that help to reduce inflammation andprotect against it.
3. Celery supports your digestion.
Reducing inflammation & fighting oxidative stress (the job of antioxidants)support your entire digestive tract where all of the food we consume passesthrough. But there’s a little something extra special that celery has called“apiuman” which has been shown to reduce stomach ulcers and helpsimprove the stomach lining in some animal studies. We touched on it earlier, but celery has such a huge high water content(almost 95%) and contains great amounts of soluble & insoluble fiber. Bothwater & fiber are crucial for healthy and regular digestion.4. Celery may help reduce cholesterol & blood pressure We already talked about the role of fiber in digestion, but did you know thefiber in celery may actually help lower cholesterol levels? It does this bypicking up the extra cholesterol compounds as it passes through your gut,and then gets rid of them through the elimination process. A study from the University of Chicago found that, “phthalide (a compoundfound in celery) reduced bad cholesterol by 7% and blood pressure by 14%”.That’s pretty awesome. Just another reason why celery is so great for you!
5. Celery has an alkalizing effect on the body.
Celery has all kinds of minerals such as magnesium, sodium, iron etc…whichhave an alkaline effect, or neutralizing effect, on acidity in the body fromacidic foods and stress in the body. Plus, all of these minerals found in celeryare vital for life and many essential functions of the body.
Quick Tips for Buying & Storing Your Celery
Crisp & solid stocksYou want to look for fresh & crispy stalks. Itshould pretty much snap if you were to bend it in half. You don’t want itto be flexible and bendy. Fresh leavesJust as you want your celery stalk crisp & fresh, youwant the same for the leaves. You want your stalk & leaves to be full ofgreen color and avoid leaves that look yellow, wilty, or have brownspots on them. Hold the chopKeep celery in its whole form right up until you’reready to consume it to maintain all of its awesome nutrients. Even ifit’s exposed to air and/or stored for just a few hours it will losenutrients. Steam itCelery is one of the rare veggies that will actually retainalmost all of its nutrients after steaming. Eat within five to seven days after purchaseFresh is always best,right? Same applies to your celery stalks. Going much passed thisyou’ll be losing nutrient value and it will be not be crisp. Eat the leavesFor a little extra boost in calcium, potassium, andvitamin C eat the leaves! That’s where celery actually holds the mostof these nutrients. The leaves get a little wilty and don’t store superwell so enjoy the leaves within a day or two after purchase. The leaveswould be an easy thing to chop off & toss into a salad or smoothie.
Quick Tips for Preparing Your Celery
Add it to your favorite soups & stir-fries.Like we mentioned earlier celery maintains most of its nutrient profile when steamed orheated, so adding it to your favorite soups and/or stir-fries just gives you another couple of options of adding this superfood to your diet. Remember classic chicken noodle soup with those chunks of yummycelery?
Juice it Fresh
If fresh-pressed juices are your thing…do it! Celery makesa great addition to a fresh-pressed juice. My personal fave if I’m takingthe time to juice is a small apple, lemon, celery, ginger, and any otherleafy greens I have in the fridge at the moment.
Try Organic Celery Juice Powder
My absolute favorite way to juice celery. I love juicing, but I’ve got to be honest. It is a total mess and a hassle. I definitely still do it fromtime to time, but doing it daily is just not something that is realistic forme and my busy lifestyle. So that’s why every morning I mix this organic celery stalk powder intomy fresh cold spring water. This helps me reap all of the benefits thatcelery has to offer, and it’s super easy. I sip it first thing in the morning for help hydrating and cleansing mysystem, improving digestive health, and refreshing my routine with keyminerals, electrolytes, and polyphenol antioxidants.† So after you’ve learned a little bit more about this amazing veggie, how areyou going to incorporate celery into your diet on a more regular basis?! I’dlove to hear from you. †These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product isnot intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
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