Are Drinking Green Juice in the Spirit of the Whole30?

[kirbz]

I've read A LOT about smoothies and fruit juices during your Whole30. Smoothies are out and fruit juices should only be used as a sweetener.

However, I haven't read much about green juices (juicing and blending are NOT the same thing!!). I have a Norwalk juicer and like to juice vegetables with a very small amount of fruit. I'm talking a recipe that has something like alfalfa sprouts, romaine, parsley, lime, spinach and an apple. It  tastes like lawn mower clippings but I truly believe in the health benefits. 

Should I be drinking that during my Whole30? I'm not talking as a meal replacement or even as a replacement for other greens. But if I drink one in the afternoon or perhaps with a fully-compliant meal, is that okay? 

In general, I'm honestly not sure about drinks. I know Melissa talks a lot about bone broth drinks and tea so it doesn't seem like drinking non-water drinks are bad... I'd appreciate any clarity you could provide! 

[SugarcubeOD]

Not drinking smoothies and juices during your whole 30 is a recommendation not a rule, so if you choose to do it, you're not breaking your reset.

However, you may want to consider changing your habits for the Whole30.  There probably are health benefits that you can get from juicing but could you not also make a salad out of alfalfa sprouts, romaine, parsley, spinach and apple with a lime vinegarette?  Yes, you could and that would be more in keeping with the Whole30.  There are health benefits to drinking these juices but these do NOT outweigh the benefits of actually eating the food.

Whole30 wants you to change what you put on your plate, consider changing your habits... all that to say, yes, if you want to drink the juice, you can, but it's not recommended and there are better ways to get those nutrients.

Also, drinking juice and smoothies activates your digestion without actually needing it to work very hard which is not good for your body, can give you false hunger/full signals... as well, even tho most of the juice is vegetables, when you squeeze out the juice of vegetables, you are getting a hit of the sugars that are naturally occurring and a huge hit of sugar in liquid form is not ideal.

[kirbz]

Thank you for your response! I am more than happy to change this habit for the Whole30 to follow the experience as it is intended to be. I've already mentally prepared myself to do so! 

But... I honestly don't get it. I'm sorry, I'm really not trying to be a pain but it bothers me when things don't make sense. Which is why reading It Starts With Food multiple times was amazing! Anyway, so why is drinking bone broth okay then? Because it probably provides some benefit you don't get from eating? It has calories too though, right? So wouldn't it also presumably "activate your digestion without actually needing it to work very hard which is not good for your body, and can give you false hunger/full signals?"

So why would drinking green juice be different? I totally get drinking juices that have a lot of fruit, which is mostly what people can tolerate. But is there really a lot of sugar in spinach and alfalfa sprouts? Because drinking green juice strips the fiber from your veggies so it allows you to absorb the nutrients in a different way than eating your veggies. It truly does provide a different dietary benefit. 

If I just need to accept that it is the way it is because it is, then I'll just take out green juice for 30 days and see how I feel. :-) However, I would love to understand better! 

[kirbz]

Or maybe we really shouldn't be drinking bone broth either, in which case maybe it makes more sense. Just don't drink any calories, eat them!?

[MeadowLily]

Bone broth vs. smoothies.

Bone broth is a source of minerals, like calcium, phosphorus, magnesium,  and potassium, in forms that your body can easily absorb. It’s also rich in glycine and proline, amino acids not found in significant amounts in muscle meat (the vast majority of the meat we consume). It also contains chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, the compounds sold as supplements to reduce inflammation, arthritis, and joint pain. Finally, “soup bones” include collagen, a protein found in connective tissue of vertebrate animals, which is abundant in bone, marrow, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments.  (The breakdown of collagen in bone broths is what produces gelatin.)

What are the benefits of consuming a properly prepared bone broth?

Proline and glycine are important for a healthy gut and digestion, muscle repair and growth, a balanced nervous system, and strong immune system. In fact, a study of chicken broth conducted by the University of Nebraska Medical Center found that the amino acids that were produced when making chicken stock reduced inflammation in the respiratory system and improved digestion. (There’s a reason your mom always made you chicken soup when you were sick.)

The gelatin in bone broth can help to heal a leaky gut, which may be of specific benefit those with inflammatory or autoimmune disorders. These compounds also reduce joint pain, reduce inflammation, prevent bone loss, and build healthy skin, hair, and nails.

http://whole30.com/2013/12/bone-broth-faq/

Bone Broth is good medicine for gut healing.

Smoothies, even those without fruit mess with satiety signals.  After 30 days you can drink green smoothies and green drinks, anything you want to.

"Food that you drink sends different satiety signals to your brain than food that you chew. So when you drink your meal, your brain isn’t getting the feedback it needs to tell your body that it’s had enough of what it needs.  In summary, we’d rather you just eat the food, and skip the smoothie."

 

[laura_juggles]

Juicing also strips all the fiber from the vegetables so you're left with sugar and no fiber to slow down their absorption into your bloodstream. It doesn't matter that it's not sweet or tastes like grass. An 85g serving of romaine, when eaten whole has 2.8g of carbs which is broken down to 1.8g fiber and 1g sugar. You juice that and strip out the fiber - all you're left with is sugar. Ditto with all the other veg you're putting in there. Nutrients too, yes, but you also get nutrients from salad or a blended soup and in those cases you'd still get the fiber. 

 

[Carol]

I highly doubt anyone makes smoothies because they want to pour it in a bowl at their table and eat it with a spoon.      They are designed to be sugared up and gulped down.