I get asked the question a lot.. What is the difference between juicing and blending?

The difference is, when the juice is separated from the pulp, you can easily consume a much larger volume of vegetables than you could by drinking a smoothie containing pulp. The concentration of nutrients is higher per volume in a juice than a smoothie.

Drinking fresh, fibre-free juice (particularly on an empty stomach) eliminates strain on the digestive tract because the juicer has already done most of the digestion work for you, having separated the fibre from the juice. Without fibre to digest, the juice can be efficiently shuttled into your bloodstream within 30 minutes.

A word of caution: When you remove the fiber from the produce, the liquid juice is absorbed into your blood stream quickly. If you are only juicing fruits, this would cause a rapid spike in blood sugar therefore for kids it is always best to include water in their juices and lots of vegetables.

Although juicing is great for delivering concentrated nutrients to the cellular level, it does not replace need for salads and smoothies. A whole food site consisting of raw foods is still essential  to a healthy diet.

Smoothies, blended soups, and blended salads are excellent ways
to get a variety of raw, whole foods with fiber into your daily routine. Because they are filling and substantial due to their fiber content, they help curb the temptation to eat too much cooked food

Try to drink your juice or smoothie straight away. After 15 minutes, light and air will destroy much of the nutrients. If you can’t drink it straight away, transfer to an airtight container until you’re ready like a mason jar. Ball mason jars have lids that actually seal so no air ( when your juice is filled to the brim) can get in and oxidize your juice.

For more information on the benefits of juicing check out The Raw Food Mums ebook 'The little book of juices and juicing here