What’s Better for You: Juices or Smoothies
In a world where health and healthy living is becoming crucial by the day, it is no surprise that folks are not only looking to keep fit by exercising, they are also ensuring that they eat as healthy as they can. Speaking of eating healthy, it is a well-known fact that eating more of fruits and vegetables is good for one’s health. The subject matter exerts over at frontlineer.com argue in fact that one should ensure that they take at least five servings of fruit and vegetables every day. The benefits of this is clear with studies showing that consuming the recommended share of fruits and vegetables significantly lowers the risk of stroke, heart diseases as well as Alzheimer’s disease. However, even given their benefits, consuming five or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day can be a tough ask even for the best of us. Enter juicing and blending which makes it easier for folks to hit their targets as far as fruits and vegetables are concerned. The question that then arises is which of the two, juices or smoothies, is better health-wise? Well, there arguments for and against each, and this article will look to highlight them to ensure you have the information you need to answer said question.
Let’s start with juices, and specifically their pros. One of the biggest advantages that juices have is that it provides a great avenue for folks who don’t really like taking their vegetables and may normally stay away from them, to consume the recommended daily quota as far as vegetables go. This is because juicing allows them to juice vegetables, mix them with other more palatable juices such as apple juice, making the vegetable juice more appealing to partake, and then drink it. This allows them to gain all the nutritional benefits of vegetables, without having to undergo the misery of consuming something they don’t necessarily enjoy. Others may have busy schedules, such as professional athletes, and as such taking juices enables them to meet their requirements in a time-saving manner. Another advantage juices have is that given juicing involves only taking the liquid part and leaving behind the pulp or fiber, juices end up being highly concentrated and as such, as per frontlineer.com, a small portion of juice has nutrient levels equivalent to a number of servings of vegetables and fruits.
Leaving pros behind, juices also have a number of cons. Of the biggest revolving around the fact that, as compared to smoothies, they are not as filling. This is because they only contain the liquid part, without the pulp or fiber. Another drawback, one covered over at frontlineer.com is the fact that juices don’t come with the benefits associated with the fiber and pulp, especially where the gut is concerned, in aiding digestion. Juices made from high sugar fruits and vegetables also cause one to experience a sugar rush, especially if it is not accompanied by any food. It is also important to take note of the cost implications as juices can be more expensive to make as compared to smoothies as one needs a large amount of produce to produce an equivalent amount.
Switching gears and taking a look at the pros of smoothies, one of the key ones is that they contain all the nutrients and benefits of the fruits and vegetables involved. This is because the process of making them involves blending the whole of the fruit or vegetable. Smoothies are also much more filling than juices due to this fact. Another advantage is that, when making a smoothie, one can be able to add other types of foods to it like nuts, seeds, yogurts among others, which enables one to increase the protein or healthy fat percentage in the smoothie. This makes smoothies more nutritionally balanced than juices, which make them great as post-workout recovery drinks or even as replacement for meals.
Smoothies also do have cons, with the fact that smoothies, due to their thick nature, can sometimes take one some time to get used to. Also, according to the folks over at frontlineer.com, smoothies can lead to one consuming more calories than they can burn which if not checked can prevent one from losing weight, or even gaining weight, with the same likely to happen if you drink a smoothie with a meal and not as a meal on its own. What this means is that you end up consuming two meals at a go which may mean that a healthy beverage like a smoothie, may actually end up being an impediment to your health by causing issues with your weight.
From the foregoing discussion, it is clear that both juices and smoothies have advantages and disadvantages and as such choosing between the two depends on what one is looking for, personal preference and any recommendation done by a nutritional expert. As usual, there is more to be learned on this and other topics by visiting frontlineer.com.
