Juicing for Beautiful Skin

Flawless skin: an unexpected side effect of juicing

Most everyone who tries juicing does so for health or weight loss, and will attempt to subsist on juice alone for anywhere from three to 30 days during what the health community has come to refer to as a juice fast or cleanse. But not me. Not anymore. Now when I juice, I do so for amazingly flawless, beautiful skin – a little known side effect of juicing I discovered during my one and only juice fast a few years ago.

Growing up, my dad taught me about the health benefits of juicing by allowing me to taste a few of his creations whenever he and my mom made juice. Thinking back, I wonder if my mom’s interest in juicing had more to do with weight loss than overall health, as she had tried many diets over the years. Though both she and my dad were also very health conscious.

In mid-2007 I had been traveling for a lengthy time and had put on some extra pounds from eating out and eating poorly on the road. I started researching what I could do to regain my youthful, trim figure and encountered the concept of juicing for the second time. In fact, everywhere I looked for advice I inevitably saw juicing… juicing… juicing… over and over again. It was so popular it seemed like a fad, but I purchased a few books on the subject anyway, and within a few hours of reading about the process, I was hooked too!

For the first time in my life I had found real, scientific explanations for exactly why and how juicing could improve your health, and was drawn immediately to the idea that I could detoxify my body of all the junk from my bad eating habits, improve my overall health and energy levels, and lose weight too! It was like a miracle pill in the form of a natural solution.

My 30 day juice cleanse

I read that to improve my overall health and energy, I would need to juice for at least 21 days, and to lose weight, I would need at least 30 days. But why, I wondered. Why was 21 such a magic number? Why 30? What actually happens inside the body on a juice cleanse? I found a lot more milk than meat from the various health blogs I was consulting during my search to answer this question, so I purchased three top seller books on juicing, one of which was The Detox Prescription: Supercharge Your Health, Strip Away Pounds, and Eliminate the Toxins Within, which I read from front to back twice. I also sought out more scholarly online research, which did indeed eventually lead me to some answers. Here’s what some of the experts had to say:

Juicing rests the stomach. Digestion uses up a lot of energy, especially if you’re routinely eating foods with little nutritional value. The longer it takes, the more fatigued you may feel. If you’re one of the tens of millions of people on acid blocking drugs or if your stomach doesn’t produce enough acid naturally (as can happen in older people) the digestion process can take even longer. Juicing in a sense pre-digests your food for you to give your stomach a much needed rest.
Juicing rests your gut. Your ability to gain and lose weight depends largely on your metabolism, which is largely influenced by the presence of good gut (intestinal) bacteria, or lack thereof. Saturated fats, refined carbs, pesticide-treated produce, and certain medications such as antibiotics can unbalance or even kill off the good bacteria in your gut, resulting in a slower metabolism and possibly weight gain. Juice can pass through your gut easily, giving it a much needed rest, while also helping your gut to repair itself so your metabolism returns to normal.
Juicing rests your liver. The liver is your body’s main detoxification organ, but it is often overworked. Americans have 147 industrial chemicals on average in their bloodstreams, namely because our livers are overworked filtering out all the other toxins or because they simply don’t know what to do with some of the chemicals we’re using in our foods these days. Juicing gives your liver time to flush out the backlog of toxins.
Juicing reduces your appetite. It may seem contradictory, but many people who have undertaken juice cleanses have reported a noticeable decrease in cravings. Many swear by it as a means of breaking addictions to unhealthy and harmful foods.
Juicing eliminates harmful foods. If you think you may have a gluten sensitivity or be lactose intolerant, a juice cleanse can help you find out. Juicing eliminates all of these potentially problematic sources of food from your diet. Once your cleanse is over you can reintroduce them gradually and one-at-a-time to find out which are causing your body to experience problems.
Juicing gives you vitamins and nutrients. Cooking destroys some potent nutrients in foods, to include some B vitamins and digestive and anti-inflammatory enzymes. Juicing keeps nutritious fruits and vegetables in their raw form, preserving these nutrients.
Juicing helps you lose weight. A juice cleanse diet is naturally low in calories, so you’ll likely lose weight during the process. Some will likely be just water bloat, but you’ll burn some fat too.
Juicing boosts energy. If you have a caffeine addiction, juicing can help you break the habit and boost your energy. Many people who have tried juice cleanses have reported greater energy and motivation than they ever had with caffeinated beverages.
Juicing rehydrates your body. Many beverages such as coffee and tea are diuretics, meaning they leave your body (via the toilet) almost as quickly as they enter. Juicing can help you rehydrate and stay hydrated throughout the day, leading to less brain fog and the elimination of toxins.
Juicing heals your cells. Many of the best fruits and vegetables for juice cleanses are rich in antioxidants, which eliminate the numerous free radicals our bodies absorb every day from sources such as the sun’s UV rays. Free radicals, if left unchecked, can eventually cause DNA damage leading to a variety of medical issues and potentially premature aging. Juicing can help keep these possibilities from becoming reality.

I did everything right. I used only organic fresh fruits and mostly green vegetables. I fasted without any cheating for a full 21 days and was aiming to make it to day 30.

Shortly after I began researching juicing to deal with my weight, I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS.) A 21 day juice fast seemed right up my alley at that point, especially considering that many of the symptoms my research had led me to believe could be cured by a juice cleanse (such as brain fog and low energy) were also symptoms of my MS.

I did everything right. I used only organic fresh fruits and mostly green vegetables. I fasted without any cheating for a full 21 days and was aiming to make it to day 30.

By day 5, I really had not seen any of the detox side effects my research had led me to believe would appear by this time. Plus, I was craving real food. My brain wanted to put texture into my mouth. It was missing the pleasure of my saliva working to process food.

Each day I continued my fast and each day I saw no effects of my detox efforts save for fatigue. I became more and more tired with each passing day. I weighted in every day and became addicted to answering the question, “Am I losing weight?” As it turns out, I was consistently losing one pound per day. So that was pretty cool at least, or so I thought.

Still I continued. I am a competitor by nature. When I do something, I’m in it to win. I aim to succeed and I don’t quit. It simply isn’t my nature. However, by the last week all I could do was sit and watch TV. Getting up to walk outside and get the mail simply took more energy than I had. So, on day 22 I ate real food. I had made it 21 days but there was no way I was going to continue to day 30.

Did the books lie? Was juicing just a fad based on pseudoscience after all?

I didn’t follow the advice about bringing solid food back into my diet at this point either, or slowly reintroducing meat. I ate Mexican and drank a beer, and I felt so much better!

On my way home I couldn’t help but wonder, “Did the books lie? Was juicing just a fad based on pseudoscience after all?” I had done everything right, yet my juice cleanse experience was about as far removed from what everyone seemed to think I should feel. My body just didn’t seem to fit the bill of what the books said should happen. What happened next was even worse!

The next morning I weighed in with a total of 18 pounds lost. I didn’t want to ruin the one thing that seemed to have actually worked during my juice cleanse so I decided I would still carefully watch my diet and eat healthier. Going out for Mexican and beer would have to become a thing of the past.

I reduced my calories to 1200 per day and made sure the foods I was eating were rich in nutrients. I increased my exercise too, yet each day I weighed in I would see that I had gained back another pound until by the end of the month I was right back to where I had started.

That’s right. All the weight came back. I’m sorry, but I didn’t have 18 pounds of water weight. What I did have was food stored in my digestive system working its way through my body. You see, a person’s digestive system is never truly empty, unless he or she has just juice cleansed for the past 21 days. Each day when a person eats, the food in the digestive system remains and until it is either used (converted into energy or fat) or disposed of (via waste.) Solid foods retain most of their weight even while being processed in your digestive system so if you eat one pound of food, you will gain about one pound, at least until your body finishes processing the food.

…my poor body didn’t have a way to know to use the fat as fuel while I was on my juice cleanse, hence my fatigue, since I kept feeding it carbs, albeit in liquefied form.

When I was on my juice cleanse I had ZERO solids going through my digestive system so everything was processed fairly quickly. When I went back to eating real food I didn’t take into account that some foods take longer to process than others. Some will fly straight through you, while others can take a day or longer. So, in reality, I didn’t really lose any weight – no excess fat was removed from my body. Not even a little, and my poor body didn’t have a way to know to use the fat as fuel while I was on my juice cleanse, hence my fatigue, since I kept feeding it carbs, albeit in liquefied form.

Sorry vegans, but I believe I need real animal protein in my diet. I’ve always been a high protein eater so my body was used to 60+ grams of protein per day. The only significant source of protein I was getting while on my juice cleanse was from the wheat grass. I had to force myself to drink it. Maybe wheat grass is flavorful to some, but I thought it tasted like pure dirt. By day 10 I had to stop. It was expensive, so why should I spend my money on something that tasted bad?

The only lasting benefit to my juice cleanse was the effects it had on my skin. During my cleanse I was so focused on watching the scale and dealing with my fatigue that I didn’t think to look in the mirror at first, but once I did I noticed that my skin had a new found youthful glow. Patchy spots were now smooth. Areas that had looked dull and lifeless for years once again had color. Sagging areas of skin were once again plump. It was like I had discovered the fountain of youth! Now if only the fountain could taste a little better!

I did find quite a few juice recipes I liked (that did not include wheat grass) and I formulated one myself which I really love and will share with you in a few moments.

So, what did I conclude from juicing?

To this day, I actually still juice despite my first experience, mainly to get the necessary amounts of fruits and vegetables in my diet and for the amazing skin care benefits I had discovered during my first juicing attempt. I juice periodically a few times per year as a meal replacement. For example, I’ll juice for 7 to 10 days for my lunch, while eating breakfast and dinner as normal. Since juicing removes all the fiber from the plant, adding back fiber in my breakfast or dinner works best for my age. I don’t know if my first juicing fast went so horribly because I have MS or if it is like this for more people than who would care to admit. But since that time I’ve created my own unique juice recipe to maximize the skin care benefits I observed and make it more palatable.

I don’t know if my juicing fast went so horribly because I have MS or if it is like this for more people than who would care to admit.

I’m not arguing against anyone doing a juice cleanse. All I’m saying is that trying to go 21 days on nothing but juice did not work for me. As I said, I still juice to this day (though I do hate cleaning the machine – it has way too many parts and has to be taken apart and washed after every single use.) Just because a full 21 day juice cleanse didn’t work for me doesn’t mean it won’t work for you. Juicing actually does have some irrefutable benefits that apply to everyone, to include:

Juice enzymes are the best form of nutrition. They go straight into the bloodstream without having to sit in the stomach and wait to be digested. Because they go straight into the bloodstream you get the most out of them – unlike a vitamin pill.
Because it takes an entire head of kale to juice one ounce, you are actually getting the benefit of eating A LOT more veggies than you would consuming a super-vegetable like kale in its solid form.
Juicing fruits is great for overall health, while juicing vegetables is geared more towards weight loss.

Juicing for beautiful skin – what type of juicer should I use?

Whether you’re considering trying a juice fast or you’re like me and you just want to add juice to your existing diet and reap the skin care benefits, you’ll likely become frustrated to the point of hating juicing if you don’t get a good juicer because of how horrible it is to clean. I’ve owned several juicers since my juice fast, some of which worked better than others. Here’s what I recommend you look for in a juicer.

My first juicer was a pretty good one. It had a wide mouth opening so I could use whole apples, even though I always cut them in half anyway. The one downside to this juicer (this was the one I used for my fast) was that it was made of plastic, so juice acids would stick to it like there was no tomorrow. The machine was dishwasher approved but it still had to be cleaned ASAP. You couldn’t just rinse it out, put it in the dishwasher and run it later. Plus, though the pitcher itself was dishwasher safe, not all the component parts were, so these needed to be cleaned by hand.

I watched this documentary on juicing called Fat Sick & Nearly Dead in which they used a Belville juicer, and not once did they complain about the clean up afterwards. The guys in the movie juiced for health for several months and lost a ton of weight. When I saw their results I began to wonder, “Maybe I should look into juicing again.”

So back to Amazon.com I went to look for a new juicer. I needed a new one since I had given my other one away after my fast. I looked for several qualities during my search, to include:

A wide mouth for apples
Commercial performance, home kitchen convenience
2 speeds for hard versus soft vegetables
A minimum of 1000 watts of power to get the most out of each plant*
EASY TO CLEAN

*I had learned from my last juicer of 800 watts that I juiced only half of the plant. So, instead of getting a full ounce, I was only getting half an ounce, and was throwing away as much juice as I was fiber.

This time around, I wanted a really good juicer, and after shopping around, had narrowed my choices to two “finalists.”

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I decided to go with… [insert drumroll here]

I spent over a month researching juicers. I was considering the first one because its design reminded me of a wheat grass juicer. Its specs were very commercial grade and powerful and it had some great reviews. But ultimately I went back to the Belville for all of its stainless steel parts, giving it more ease of cleanup, and its reviews were simply outstanding. If I ever need to buy another juicer it will definitely be a repeat of the same.

I am more than pleased with my choice. I don’t think there is a better juicer on the market! And guess what? It’s actually easy to clean. It’s made of stainless steel, which rinses off easily – something I didn’t know at the time.

If you can’t really afford a good juicer, here is the first one I purchased and other than my clean up issue- it’s a pretty decent juicer:

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My juicing library -books you may want to read

Here are a few of the other books I purchased initially in case you’re interested. Even though my first experience juicing did not go very well, I would say these two books still have some credible, useful information for anyone looking to learn more about juicing.

The Juicing Bible has hundreds of recipes with full color images. It also covers a variety of medical conditions for which juicing can help such as autoimmune diseases, ulcers, and inflammation. So if you wanted to help heal your liver, there’s a special drink you can make just for that purpose. The publishers of The Juicing Bible also publish a Vegetarian Cook’s Bible and a Smoothies Bible, which are both very similar and nice.

The Healthy Green Drink Diet covers actual diets for health with recipes to energize, lose weight, and feel great. I have the hard cover copy which is of excellent quality. Every page has full color images. The book also shares the difference between juicing and blending, as well as some natural superfoods you can use in your juice drinks such as aloe vera, avocado, bee pollen, and even raw chocolate. Something I really liked about this book was the detailed information of what’s actually in some of your vegetables, for example, how much Vitamins A, D, E, and K are in some of the greens.

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What they didn’t share, however, and what I am about to share with you now is the #1 motivation that keeps me juicing to this day, and that is the benefits of juicing for skin care. In fact, I have yet to find a decent book or online article on juicing for skin care purposes, so I figured I’d just write one myself and share what I’ve learned through first hand experience. I was too focused on watching for all the other effects juicing was supposed to give me like increased energy and weight loss to pay much attention to what was going on with my skin during my first experience juicing, but now that I’m not starving myself I’ve noticed some rather incredible effects on my skin whenever I juice these days.

The appearance of your skin is a very good indicator of your overall health, so it makes sense actually. After all, we know that for some people, eating unhealthy foods can lead to acne breakouts, and for some people with rosacea, over-indulging in alcohol can trigger a flare-up. So it stands to reason that making good choices when it comes to your diet would be reflected in your skin as well. More than that, it’s the truth – and I’ve seen it first-hand in my own skin.

My juicing recipe for skin care

I’ve created my own special juice blend for the skin. My recipe is as follows:

Juicing Apples for Skin Hydration

As the adage says, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but as I’ve recently learned it can also keep a few other undesirable effects away like wrinkles and dark spots. Here’s what juicing apples can do for your skin:

Brighter and Lighter Complexion – Apples have one of the highest concentrations of natural collagen and elastin, two of the main substances responsible for keeping your skin youthful and flawless, in nature.
Skin Hydration – Apples can hydrate, cleanse, and balance the oil production in your skin.
Anti-Aging – Regular ingestion of apples can help reduce or even eliminate fine lines and wrinkles.
UV Protection – Apples contain molecules that act as natural protection against the sun’s UVB rays. Eating or drinking apples won’t protect you from UVA rays though and should not be used in lieu of sunscreen.
Anti-Acne / Anti-Blemish – Apples are naturally cooling and are also great for balancing your skin’s oil production.
Toning – Apples make wonderful toners that help to tighten your skin and stimulate blood circulation to the skin surface.
Eye Care – Apples contain a small amount of Vitamin A (retinol) – a prime ingredient to look for in any eye cream. Consuming apples regularly can do wonders for puffy, tired eyes.
Skin Cancer Prevention – In addition to Vitamin A, Apples also contain a generous amount of Vitamin C, both of which play an important role in your skin’s growth and development, as well as its protective barrier, which protects your skin from the free radical damage that can lead to skin cancer.

Anti-Aging Skin Care and Carrots

You may have heard that carrots are good for your eyes, but did you know they’re also great for your skin? Some of the top benefits of drinking carrot juice for skin care include:

Anti-Aging – Carrots are rich in Vitamin C, which aids your body’s production of collagen – a key molecule in preserving youthful skin elasticity. Carrots are also rich in Vitamin A, which has antioxidant properties great for combating signs of aging such as wrinkles.
Anti-Blemish – Since carrots are naturally rich in Vitamin A, they can be quite helpful in combating skin blemishes related to Vitamin A deficiency such as acne, rashes, and dermatitis.
Sun Protection – Carrots contain a nutrient known as Beta Carotene, which helps condition and protect the skin against the sun’s harsh UV rays. In fact, some people consume carrot juice during the summer months as a natural sun block.

Juicing Celery for pH Balancing and Skin Toning

You may have heard from health and fitness experts that celery has negative calories, meaning your body will burn more calories to digest it than the actual celery stalks will put into your body. But did you know celery is also great for your skin? Benefits of juicing celery for skin care include:

Prevents Skin Cancer – Celery contains eight natural anti-cancer substances to include phyto-nutrients that stop free radicals from causing the DNA damage that can lead to cancer, and acetylene, which can help prevent existing tumors from growing.
pH Balancing & Skin Toning – Celery helps reduce the acidity of the skin to keep your overall pH balanced so your skin looks and feels blemish-free.
Keeps Skin Young – Celery is rich in vitamins A, B, C, and K, which all play important roles in the production of collagen – the molecules responsible for keeping skin smooth, young, and wrinkle-free.
Hydrates Skin – Celery is 95% water and can give you lasting hydration, as well as soft, supple skin.
Glowing Skin – Celery contains natural minerals to include calcium, potassium, and magnesium, which act like vitamins for your skin and give you that healthy, coveted glow.

Juicing Lemon for Skin Brightening

Lemons are great for skin care. Don’t put your lemons in your juicer though. Just squeeze them into the pitcher once you’ve juiced everything else. Benefits of lemon juice for skin care include:

Skin Brightening – Lemons contain generous quantities of Vitamin C as well as other citric acids, which can help brighten your skin over time.
Anti-Aging – Lemons’ high concentrations of Vitamin C also make them excellent for neutralizing free radicals and boosting collagen, both of which will help you maintain youthful, wrinkle-free skin.
Exfoliant – Lemons are rich in alpha hydroxy acids, which can help your skin maintain its youthful cell turnover rates, leading to less need for scrubbing exfoliation. AHAs also help preserve your skin’s youthful elasticity.

Juicing Ginger for Glowing Skin

Ginger is much more than a simple spice. It’s also great for your skin. Benefits of juicing ginger for skin care include:

Smoother Skin – Ginger helps stimulate circulation, which can lead to less inflammation and circulation-related skin conditions such as cellulite.
Anti-Aging – Ginger possesses a naturally high antioxidant content which helps neutralize free radicals before they cause the DNA damage that can lead to premature aging. Ginger is also known to help lighten age spots.
Glowing Skin – Ginger is rich in protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, Vitamin C, and Vitamin B3, all of which will help your skin maintain a youthful, healthy glow.

Liver Detox and Cancer Prevention: Adding Beets to Your Juicing

You may think you hate beets right now, but the resulting juice from beet roots tastes nothing like what you’d expect if you’ve eaten them in solid form. Benefits of juicing beet roots for skin care include:

Cancer Prevention – Beets contain betacyanin, which can help prevent the formation of cancerous tumors and detoxify the body from harmful toxins.
Anti-Aging – Beets contain a pigment known for its ability to prevent oxidative stress, which could otherwise lead to visible signs of aging.
Anti-Acne – Drinking beet juice can help prevent and reduce acne and boils thanks to its natural anti-inflammatory properties.
Glowing Skin – The ingestion of beets can help promote skin cell turnover, leaving you with radiant, glowing skin.
Liver Detoxification – Beets can help improve liver function largely by thinning the bile that flows through the liver, creating less of a backlog so more toxins get filtered out, and you have healthier looking skin (not to mention a boost in your energy level.)

Juicing Kale for Cellulite

Kale is the most popular vegetable for juicing simply because it is so healthy for just about every purpose you could imagine, including skin care. Benefits of juicing kale for skin care include:

Skin Hydration – Kale contains more than 100% of the daily recommended dietary amounts of Vitamin A – great for dry, flaky skin, which is often deficient in Vitamin A.

Eye Care – Kale contains generous quantities of Vitamin K, which can help reduce the appearance of dark circles under the eyes.
Anti-Aging – Kale helps prevent premature aging by fighting free radicals with its super-high concentrations of antioxidant vitamins.
Anti-Inflammatory – Kale possesses natural anti-inflammatory properties, making it great for fighting inflammation-related skin conditions such as bruising or cellulite.

Adding Pumpkin Fiber for Totally Beautiful Skin

Pumpkins, like bananas, are one of nature’s energy bars. They’re loaded with potassium, which helps keep your muscles functioning at their best. But more than that, pumpkin is also great for the skin. Benefits of pumpkin for skin care include:

Anti-Aging – Pumpkin contains vitamins A and C, both of which help boost your skin’s natural collagen levels to it stays looking smooth, youthful, and wrinkle-free.
Complexion Enhancement – Pumpkin seeds contain generous quantities of alpha hydroxy acids and Vitamin E, which help maintain your skin’s outer barrier and regulate sebum oil production so your skin isn’t too oily.
Exfoliant – Pumpkin’s natural fruit enzymes help promote skin cell turnover, giving you natural exfoliation.
Great Source of Fiber – Getting enough fiber in your diet isn’t just essential for maintaining a healthy weight, it’s also essential for your skin. Fiber helps cleanse your body of all the dust, grime, pollution, fats, and toxic chemicals you’re exposed to each day. Having less junk inside your body can go a long way towards staving off wrinkles and other effects of aging.

How to Prepare Your Skin Care Juice Recipe – proportions and tips

Recipe – Laura’s Favorite Juice Recipe for Skin Care

One bag of apples (red, green, or yellow) – I prefer green for tartness
One bag of carrots (approx. 2 pounds)
2 full stalks of celery
1 medium – small beet
½ tsp of ginger
a few handfuls of kale
½ lemon
1 can Libby’s 100% pure pumpkin

As to how much to the above items, I think this is more about taste buds. You may find that you prefer to use more apples than me, or less. Here’s how I prepare my skin care juice:

How to Prepare:

Wash all your fruits and vegetables
Tip your carrots and celery
Cut your apples in half
Rinse and drain your kale

Be sure to wash ALL your fruits and vegetables before juicing!

I wash everything, especially the apples because I juice the peelings, I semi soak the celery and carrots for about 2-3 minutes and then proceed to wash them. I scrub the beet, and rinse the kale. I let everything sit and drain off the water as I begin to cut and prep for my juice.

Cut celery and carrots into 2-3 inch pieces (you don’t really have to cut them that small, I just do.)
Take a handful of kale and your ½ tsp of ginger down the chute of your juicer (it’s important to juice your kale first because it’s very waxy and may need help getting down the chute. I throw the ginger in with the kale so I get the most juice out of the root since it’s small and the juicer is so powerful. This keeps it from getting on the fiber side of the juicer.
Add your apples, celery, and carrot.s (If you have a 2-speed juicer add your carrots on a higher speed since they’re hard. You can juice your apples and celery on a lower speed.)
Next, juice the beet. (I don’t use the greenery.)

At this point you’re done with your juice machine. Put the resulting mixture into a 2 quart pitcher. Then squeeze your ½ lemon (minus the seeds) into the juice and add your can of pumpkin. Stir until you have an even consistency.

How much juice will this make?

I juice what I want to last me for a week. Not everything fits to juice as one serving. I pull out a large pitcher and as my juice pitcher fills, I pour it over to the additional pitcher. Once everything is juiced, I open and empty the can of real pumpkin into the pitcher, stir and pour into 8oz mason canning jars. I fill the jars until there is not a drop of air left to be in each jar. I close the mason jars tight and place into the refrigerator.

Juicing Tip 1:

Make enough juice to last one week and pour your juice into airtight 8oz mason jars. Then refrigerate the jars. This saves you from having to remake your juice and cleanup each day.

Air will kill the beneficial enzymes in your juice so be sure to fill your jars full and refrigerate them ASAP. Pour yourself a glass of whatever won’t fill a mason jar and drink up.

I’ve been juicing for skin care purposes like this for many years now. I like the resulting flavor from this particular combination of vegetables and fruits, and it helps me to have to only clean my machine once. I get about seven days’ worth every time. I wouldn’t suggest trying to store more than one week’s worth like this because freshness still counts as far as the shelf life is concerned for the component plants.

Shake each mason jar before use. Drink one daily.

“This is the resulting juice from Laura’s skin care recipe.”

How does it taste?

If each ingredient were juiced individually you would notice that the ginger is responsible for adding a heated spice to your juice. The kale would taste grassy and the beets would taste very sweet. Celery, when juiced individually, adds a slightly salty flavor and lemon calms down the flavor to a pleasant zest, helping to balance out the blend. The flavors and tastes of the plants once juiced do not mimic the flavor they would have in solid form, so play around with the joys of juicing, find a recipe you like, and stick with it as your base juice for skin recipe. If you like sweets you’ll enjoy the beets, even if you think you hate beets.

The resulting juice from my recipe is delicious and tastes nothing like what each ingredient would taste like if juiced individually.

Juicing Tip 2:

Save the bags your vegetables and fruits come in and line the juicer pulp side with the bag. This helps keep the pulp side clean so you won’t have as much cleanup to do afterwards and makes the total experience of juicing all the sweeter. You can use the pulp as compost for your garden if you want.

In conclusion….

Perhaps the best thing about juicing for skin care is that there’s no need to starve yourself or do an elaborate juice fast. You only need to juice a couple of times per year intermixed with regular meals to start seeing the benefits to your skin. Your complexion will become much smoother within a matter of days, red patches will diminish, and the anti-aging and anti-cancer benefits are simply incredible!

Juicers and books are listed here as affiliate links – Let me assure you- I actually DO own all I’ve shared and about another dozen books, and 2 more juicers I’ve tossed:-)