I am certain that your reaction, dear readers, are individually diverse after reading the title of this article. Whilst some of you already lead a habit of juicing regularly, you might not familiar with celery added in your juice. There is something about its tangy odour and taste that make it not suitable for a drink. So it may seem. This is when cucumber comes in handy.
Celery is commonly used as a vegetable. Coming from the family of Apiaceae, celery is eaten raw in salads or as flavor in soups and stews. Cucumber is oftenly mistaken as a vegetable whereas it is actually a fruit that comes from the family of Cucurbitaceae.
The fact is, celery and cucumber incorporated, make a wonderful healthy juice. And quite delicious too. I will share a recipe for a fresh celery and cucumber juice later on. Before that, we need to know the benefits of celery and cucumber juice. Both celery and cucumber provide numerous minerals and vitamins for the good sake of our health. Here are 11 benefits of celery and cucumber for our health:
- Both celery and cucumber are a good source of vitamin A. Vitamin A promotes healthy vision. It can also help maintain or improve the appearance of the skin;
- Both celery and cucumber contain vitamin K, although celery carry the highest level of vitamin K. Vitamin K can help increase bone mass by stimulating osteotrophic activity in the bones;
- Both celery and cucumber contain lots of water. Drinking celery and cucumber juice can keep the body hydrated and the body temperatur balanced;
- Both celery and cucumber are a good source of potassium. Potassium can maintain blood pressure in its normal level. Potassium can also stimulate urine production to flush excess fluid out of the body;
- Both celery and cucumber contain dietary fiber. Dietary fiber can help control bowel movement.
- Both celery and cucumber contain low calories. Drinking celery and cucumber juice can keep you full without gaining extra pounds.
- Both celery and cucumber act as a natural alkaline. They can help maintain the acidity and pH of bodily fluid. Since they both contain alkaline, the juice is great detoxifier for the body;
- Both celery and cucumber can act as anti oxidant since they contain vitamin C, flavonoids, and mangenese. These vitamins and minerals can also act as anti inflammatory ;
- Both celery and cucumber contain folate or vitamin B9. Folate promote cardiovascular health by stimulating the formation of amino acid. Folate can also reduce the risk of developing colocteral cancer;
- Both celery and cucumber contain choline. Choline is a nutrient to keep vital organs in the body fuction. It can promote normal brain development, energy levels,muscle movement, and healthy metabolism;
- Both celery and cucumber can promote reduce hair loss and stroner nails.
There is no report of contrary effects between celery and cucumber in human’s health. However non organic celery and cucumber has high pesticide rate which is not good for health. It is preferable to use organic celery and cucumber. But if there is no organic celery and cucumber available in your area, you can always wash them with special fruit and vegetable wash. As for cucumber, do not peel the skin as some of its nutrients are on the skin.
As I promised earlier, I will share a deliciously fresh celery and cucumber juice.
Preparation:
- Choose celery with green leaves and firm stalks. A fresh celery shoul be snapped easily when pulled apart. Do not pick celery with seed stem.
- Choose firm cucumbers, rounded at both egdes, and bright medium to dark green colours;
- For non organic celery and cucumber, wash them with special fruit and vegetable wash under cool running water. For organic ones, wash them with water.
Recipe:
- 1 cucumber
- 2 stalks of celery
- A drop of lemon juice or honey to taste
- Water
How To:
- Juice the cucumber first, followed by celery then lemon juice or honey as you prefer
- Drink it right away or put it in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to let it cool.
Storing Tips
Celery and cucumber has a slightly different treatments in term of storing.
- Cucumber should be stored in the refrigerator to keep it fresh for several days. For the remaining cucumber should be put in a tightly sealed container to keep it from drying out. Ideally, cucumber should be used two or three days and should not be left out at room temperature. Keeping it in a room temperature for too long will make it wilt.
- Celery can be stored in the refrigerator as well. However, several studies show that refrigerated celery can loss a great deal of its antioxidants nutrients. So it is better celery is not stored in the refrigerator. Buy it for one to two days of stock.
Side Effects
Celery is known to provoke allergy in some sensitive people and in some case it can be damaging. Celery seeds are known to contain more allergen than any other parts of its body. Furthermore, researchers identified this celery allergy as “birch-mugwort-celery syndrome”. If you are allergic to birch tress and mugwort, it is likely that you are also allergic to celery and vice versa. If you are still not sure whether you are allergic to celery or not, talk to your doctor about this.