Healthy Fruits & Vegetables To Juice

The juice from fresh fruits and vegetables tastes delicious and provides your body with some of the nutrients it needs to function properly. Written history of the ancient Greeks indicates that the Greeks used the juice of fruits and vegetables as medicine, according to Steven Bailey, author of "Juice Alive." Adding freshly juiced fruits and vegetables to your diet is a simple way to increase your consumption of these vital food groups.

Benefits

Fruits and vegetables, either juiced or whole, give you energy to maintain your active lifestyle, help you eat enough vitamins and minerals, offer some protection against cardiovascular diseases and may help you maintain your weight due to the low calorie nature of the fresh fruits and vegetables. The Centers for Disease Control indicates that fruits and vegetables contain a variety of nutrients, including fiber. Leaving the skin on the juiced fruits and vegetables when possible increases the nutritional value. Juice in the morning, and then store the juice in the refrigerator for a few hours or take a glass of fresh fruit or vegetable juice with you as a healthy liquid snack.

Fruits

Your imagination is the limit when juicing fruits. You can either juice individual fruits such as plain, peeled oranges, or make your own exotic combinations of flavors such as orange, pineapple chunks and papaya. Leave the skin on apples, mangoes and pears. Oranges and pineapples help you meet your vitamin C requirement. Women and men need about 75 to 90 mg vitamin C a day, respectively. A cup of orange slices has 98 mg of vitamin C and fresh pineapple 79 mg. A medium apple has 4.4 g of fiber, grapes contain healthy antioxidants and 1 cup of mango chunks has 2.6 g of fiber and 1.4 g of protein in addition to calcium, potassium and 60 mg of vitamin C. Use organic fruit when possible, and wash the fruit thoroughly before juicing.

Vegetables

You may enjoy juiced spinach, cabbage or dark green lettuces, especially if you add a juiced fruit for sweetness. Spinach contains almost 10 g of protein, 7.5 g of fiber and 337 mg of calcium per bunch. Romaine lettuce is high in vitamin A and beta carotene. Carrots, a naturally sweet vegetable, have 2 g of dietary fiber, 24 mg of calcium and 230 mg of potassium per large carrot. The orange carrots make a visually appealing frothy drink. Beets, cucumbers and celery are low in calories and make a good companion to leafy greens. Juice the leafy tops of celery and carrots, but peel cucumbers if they have a waxy texture. Two juiced tomatoes contain just 44 calories and 32 mg of vitamin C. Combine the tomatoes with juiced onion and spinach for a slightly spicy, tangy flavor.

Calorie Considerations

You need just two fruit servings and two and a half vegetable servings per day, if you follow a typical 2,000-calorie diet. Because you can drink juice in a shorter period of time than you can chew and swallow the same amounts of fruits and vegetables, you may find that you consume more calories from fruits and vegetables by juicing. Monitor the number of cups of juiced fruits and vegetables you drink each day to ensure you are staying within your overall calorie allotment.

Well-Balanced Diet

Whether you juice your fruits and vegetables or eat them whole, the two are just part of your overall dietary requirements. Adding a grain and a cup of fat-free dairy to your morning cup of juice helps balance your nutritional intake. Other important foods include protein from beans or poultry and healthy oils.