Citrus fruits—the number one best-seller for pirates everywhere! But seriously, what is citrus juice and what’s it good for?
First off, citrus fruits are essential in a well-balanced diet because of the high concentration of vitamin C they contain. Vitamin C is very important in treating and preventing several diseases, scurvy being the most popular one. Tasty and filled with flavor, citrus fruits are very easy to process in order to get juice. Although the pulp contains fiber and minerals, the juice is the most nutritious part of the fruit.
Throughout this article, we’re going to discuss the need for citrus in your diet, the different properties that each fruit possesses and some tasty recipes that will make for some awesome, healthy treats.
What is Citrus Juice?
Since there are many different types of citrus fruits, we first have to determine which one of them is better for what. To begin, citrus fruits are a great source of fiber, so while consuming them as juice is tasty, make sure to eat a whole once in a while to get your daily dose of fibers.
Oranges, for example, contain two-thirds of your daily dose of Vitamin C and since they’re pretty sweet and tasty, you can eat them or make juice out of them. They even contain a pretty significant amount of Calcium, which is absorbed quicker than that found in milk.
You can try a variety of juices to make sure your body gets the recommended daily amount of vitamins You should also study recipes based on what you need, for example, minty lemonade can relieve headache pain, stimulate weight loss, sweet pomelo can resolve digestion problems, and more.
Aside from the fact that orange juice will keep your bones healthy, it is also very effective in boosting immune system and cleansing body of toxins. Orange contains plenty of vitamins and minerals that can help improve blood flow and balance blood pressure, so adding it to your diet is definitely a must.
That being said, try not to drink orange juice too much as it does contain a lot of sugar. Since you have to squeeze around four and six oranges for a full glass of juice that also means you will be wasting a lot of fiber.
Grapefruit juice can also be helpful if you want to eliminate toxins from your body, but it might taste more sour and bitter than other types of juices. Although adding honey could solve that issue, it will also increase the acidity level of the drink. In order to sweeten the drink, you can cut and squeeze a fresh mandarin, as they’re very sweet and will further add to the nutritional value.
Keep it Balanced
The citrus juices mentioned above are all healthy, but they’re all quite acidic, so it’s important not to have excessive amounts of juice. Water is still the best thing that you can drink, so a glass of juice a day should provide plenty of vitamins and minerals without suffering any sort of side effects.
In addition, high blood sugar levels can really have harmful effects on your body and overall health. It’s important to keep track if you suffer from any sort of disease that requires you to follow a strict diet. Too much sugar can truly have harmful effects on your behavior and health as well. Studies show that it can have a very negative impact on the functionality of your brain.
Different Types of Juicers
What is citrus juice without a great juicer? For starters, think about what you’re looking for. Do you want a juicer that can give you a better juice yield from squeezing lemons, grapefruit, and oranges? Then, you shouldn’t purchase something too complex. Or maybe you’d like to purchase something more versatile, something that’s going to grate and squeeze carrots, apples, beets and other, other types of hard fruits and veggies. In that case, look for a complete package.
For citrus fruits, we recommend you buy a manual citrus juicer. It’s a pretty classic design—a cone at the top that’s used for piercing and squeezing the citrus fruit. At the base of the cone, there’s a grate that will hold the pulp and allow it to leak all of its juices.
Typically, a manual citrus juicer is great if you’re not planning on making more than one or two glasses of juice. More than that, you’re looking at a lot of time wasted for very mediocre results.
If you’re the type of person who likes to mingle and get crafty at parties, then get an electric juicer. It’s basically the same product; the only difference is that it works faster.
You can go for electric centrifugal juicers, which are motorized and have various accessories that allow you to separate juice from pulp and foam, and are more efficient. Typically, an electric centrifugal juicer will be more expensive but will return a higher yield of juice and can be used for vegetables and fruits, so it’s a much better value.
There are other types of juicers, but these are by far the most common and affordable, so we’ll let you do the research if you’re interested in buying something more sophisticated.
Conclusion
To sum it up, citrus juice is great for you if you’re drinking it in healthy doses. There are a lot of different types of juices, like orange juice, lemon water, lemonade, and more. If you get bored of drinking one, just make sure to research various recipes to spice your diet up.
Remember that while citrus fruit has delicious juice, you still have to eat one once in a while, since they’re excellent source of fiber. Don’t drink too much juice either, since it will definitely increase your blood sugar levels.
We hope that we were able to answer your questions. Make sure to follow our advice and stay healthy!
