Juices, Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer

There was an important study that came out a few months ago in the International Journal of Food Science and Nutrition.

Investigators from Dundee in Scotland decided to look at the health benefits of fresh fruit juice. While it is widely accepted that fruit and vegetables lower the risk of some cancers and of most cardiovascular diseases, the role of pure fruit and vegetable juices has never been clear. In fact many textbooks have said that 100 percent juices play a less significant role in reducing risk for both cancer and cardiovascular disease than whole fruits and vegetables since they contain less fiber, and it had been assumed that it was the fiber that was the key to their value.

The researchers analyzed a variety of studies that looked at risk reduction attributed to the effects of both fiber and antioxidants. They found that the positive impact offered by fruits and vegetables is derived not from just the fiber but also from antioxidants which are present in both juice and the whole fruit and vegetables. Juices are comparable in their ability to reduce cancer and cardiovascular risk compared to their whole fruit/vegetable counterparts.

This research goes a long way in demonstrating that fruit and vegetable juices may play an important role in reducing the risk of various diseases.

A study published in the American Journal of Medicine in September found that consuming a variety of 100 percent fruit and vegetable juices was associated with a reduced risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Japanese American individuals who drank three or more servings of fruit and vegetable juices per week had a 76 percent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease than those who drank juice less than once per week. That finding seemed robust, even taking into account other potential variables. So I think that we may be able to add juices to our strategies for reducing the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease as we get older.

There is another point of importance. Some of the fad diets claim that fruit juices should be avoided at all costs, since they can cause the release of insulin, and insulin is bad. Those proclamations have usually come from people with a limited background in biochemistry or metabolism. The research shows that they were not correct. The key is balance, and as part of a comprehensive nutritional approach, juicing can be very helpful.

And a final point: careful use of juices has long been one of the “secret” components of our system of weight management.

“Drinking freshly made juices and eating enough whole foods to provide adequate fiber is a sensible approach to a healthful diet.”
–Jay Kordich (American Health Expert, Author and Lecturer, 1921-)

“If people would only stop putting into their bodies the things that are creating their physical problems, and eat a predominantly raw vegetarian diet, along with raw vegetable juices, almost all physical problems would soon disappear from the face of the earth!”
–Reverend George M. Malkmus
 (American Minister and Originator of the Hallelujah Diet, 1934-)