by Lawrence Wilson, MD

CARROT JUICE AND OTHER JUICES

An important recommendation on all nutritional balancing programs that I have added since Dr. Paul Eck’s death is for all adults to drink 10-12 ounces (and no more) of preferably fresh or store-bought carrot juice daily.

One can also add a few spinach leaves or other greens such as Swiss chard, beet greens, a little fresh ginger root, beets or celery root to the carrot juice. It will cut the sweetness and add other flavors and nutrients. Preferably do not add fruit to the juice, as it is too sweet and unbalances the juice.

For children, carrot and green juice is very good, also However, give them proportionally less of it, based on their weight. Do not give more juice than this. Too much is too sweet and too yin in Chinese medical terminology for both children and adults.

An alternative to the carrot juice, if you get bored with it or it is not available is, 1 or 2 ounces of fresh or frozen wheat grass juice.

REASONS FOR DRINKING THESE JUICES IN THIS WAY

1. Carrot juice adds extra minerals to the diet. Most people need these minerals desperately.

2. Carrots appear to have a very bioavailable form of calcium that is also very helpful for almost everyone. There are few excellent sources of calcium today, as most dairy products are pasteurized and homogenized, and most dairy, even if raw, is hybridized and not as good as it was formerly.

3. The juice is also an excellent source of many nutrients in a balanced formula that is superb for most people. These include vitamins A (beta carotenes), B, C, E, and others.

CAUTIONS WITH JUICING

· Use a vegetable juicing machine, and NOT a Vitamix or other blender. Blenders do not break up the carrots enough to extract enough of the nutrients. They also mix the juice with too much water and air, which is not desirable. Also, they leave the pulp intact, which is not desirable in this case.

· Examples of acceptable juicers are the Champion, Omega, Bevel, Greenstar and others. Any of these will work. Each have advantages and disadvantages.

· Do not add fruit to your vegetable juice. It unbalances it and makes it more yin in Chinese medical terminology. The only exception is for a child, and then only if you cannot get the child to drink the carrot juice without adding a little apple or even honey would help.

· Limit juice to 10-12 ounces daily. More can make the body too yin in some cases and can interfere with digestion.

· Do not eat when drinking the carrot juice. Have it at least an hour after a meal. Then wait at least 15 minutes before eating a meal to give the juice time to be absorbed easily.

· Do not drink other liquids at the same time with carrot or wheat grass juice. For example, children should not have milk with it, if possible. Have the juice alone and then wait at least 10-15 minutes before eating or drinking anything else.

· A downside to drinking carrot juice is that it may cause your skin to become slightly orange. This is completely harmless. In fact, some people like it, as it makes a person look a little sun tanned.

· People with a lot of yeast problems or extreme sugar sensitivity may not tolerate carrot juice well. The only solution is to use fewer carrots and more greens or other vegetables that are not as sweet such as rutabaga or celery root, perhaps. As one’s health improves, tolerance to the sugar in the carrot juice will improve.

· One or two people report itchy eyes after drinking carrot juice. This is also most likely a result of the sugar in the juice irritating the liver or intestines. Once again, reduce the amount of carrots and increase the greens, as this may help.

· A few people found they felt fine with fresh carrot juice, but did not feel well on store-bought juice. Most likely this is because carrot juice that is not fresh can and will become moldy. Check the date of manufacture and avoid older juice. The only other possible reason is that some carrots are not as healthful as others. It is possible the carrots used in the bottled carrot juice or store-bought juice were not as good as those used in the fresh juice. We prefer organically grown carrots.

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