Flushing the liver seasonally is great for overall health.  The liver is one of the hardest working organs in our body.  It helps maintain and support bodily functions.  It handles all sorts of toxins assisting our body’s natural cleansing mechanism.  And if something else stops functioning, the liver is known to step to the fore and fill in.

The Liver Flush Smoothie

• ¼ tsp whole cloves
• 3-5 sprigs of parsley
• 2 oranges or tangerines, peeled
• ½ lemon, peeled
• ¼ cup filtered water
• 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 clove of garlic, peeled.
• ½ grapefruit, peeled
• 1-2 inches of fresh ginger, peeled
• 2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil

Start with the water and then add ingredients one at a time to optimize the blend.  Add the oil last.  If the smoothie is too thick, add more water.  Drink first thing in the morning.  If you are sensitive to oranges, use 2 grapefruits.  Do the liver flush for three days once a season.  For optimum results, surround your liver flush days with an all vegetarian and whole grain (such as quinoa) diet to facilitate cleansing.  One of the most important ingredients in the liver flush is the parsley:

The Power of Parsley

Parsley is a well-loved herb.  Native to the Mediterranean, parsley has been well cultivated throughout the world.  Parsley is easy to grow and once established in your garden will return year after year.

Parsley is more than a pretty garnish.  Parsley has a huge presence among other herbs in term of nutrition and health. Parsley adds positive nutritional impact when used in small amounts. Parsley is a blood builder and a kidney cleanser.  Parsley eliminates toxins from the body, and therefore it’s the perfect addition to a liver cleanse.

More Reasons to Love Parsley:

Cancer Fighter: parsley has an organic compound called ‘myristicin’ that inhibits tumor formation and helps fight against oxidized molecules (i.e. it’s an antioxidant).  Myristicin can also neutralize carcinogens found in cigarette smoke.  Myristicin’s tumor fighting front is typically the lungs.

Antioxidant Power: parsley contains luteolin whose job it is to search out and destroy free radicals. Luteolin also helps the body metabolize carbohydrates. Parsley contains a nice quantity of Vitamin C and Vitamin A, both of which provide antioxidant support.

Anti-Inflammatory Action: the aforementioned luteolin and Vitamin C also helps to reduce inflammation. When regularly consumed, these two nutrients combat osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Immune Booster: Vitamin C and Vitamin A are immune boosters.  Vitamin C accelerates the body’s ability to repair itself.  Vitamin A fortifies mucous membranes, the lining of the eyes, and the respiratory tract.  Vitamin A also directly feeds our white blood cells, our frontline fighters against infection.

Heart Health: parsley has folate (vitamin B9) which converts the amino acid and homocysteine into harmless molecules. When homocysteine levels are too high, the blood vessels of the body become threatened.  Ward off heart disease with the regular inclusion of parsley in your diet.

Bone Building: Just a two tablespoons serving of parsley provides over 153% of the daily recommended value of Vitamin K.  Vitamin K helps to synthesis osteocalcin which builds our bones.  Vitamin K also prohibits the build-up of calcium deposits assisting us in the fight against atherosclerosis, stroke, and heart disease.  Finally, vitamin K assists in the creation of a healthy nervous system by providing support for the maintenance of the myelin sheath that covers our nerves.

Add parsley to any juice or smoothie recipe to enhance the nutrition.  Eat parsley daily as part of your healthcare regime.  Your body will thank you.

What do you use parsley for? Add a comment, become a friend!

Kale is an all around awesome green food. It removes toxins from the body and has been shown to detoxify at the genetic level, too.  Kale’s high vitamin resource naturally supports the immune system. Kale’s other nutritive properties assists in the prevention of constipation, atherosclerosis, and high blood pressure. If you wish to maintain your weight or are on a weight-loss program, Kale is a beneficial addition to your food program. Kale reduces the risk of five types of cancer, including bladder, breast, colon, ovary, and prostate.

Nutritional breakdown of the evergreen Kale

Kale is a knock your socks off WOW when it comes to being good for the body. Green, lean, and mean, Kale is a good source of copper, calcium, manganese, and potassium. It’s also dense in Vitamin A, C, B6, K, and lutein. Kale is high on nutrition and low on calories, with one cup containing only 33 calories.

Kales biggest claim to fame is its massive amount of Vitamin K, providing over 1,000% of the daily value. Vitamin K is essential for normal blood clotting. It protects your bones from fracture and prevents bone density loss, especially important for post-menopausal women. Kale also prevents calcification of your arteries.

Vitamin A in Kale is over 192% of the daily value. Vitamin A is useful for protecting your eyes and vision. Followed next by over 88% of the daily value is Vitamin C, which is of course one of the best immune boosting vitamins. Kale also sports fiber, manganese, copper, calcium and more on it’s list of body-boosting mineral power-ups. Eating Kale 3-4 times a week raw, juiced, or cooked will power-pack your system with nutrition.

All of these nutrients add up to an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory cocktail that is great for the body.

Choose Organic Kale – Here’s Why

Kale is one of the vegetables most affected by pesticides, so it’s a best practice to choose organic kale when shopping. If organic Kale is unavailable, thoroughly wash the Kale before cooking and eating it. An alternative to buying non-organic Kale is to grow it yourself in your own organic garden. Kale grows easily in the ground, raised beds, or pots, and the plant will thrive in cooler climes.

The Green Machine – A JuicyJosh Original

• 1 head of romaine
• 1 bunch of organic kale
• 1 apple of any variety, quartered
• ginger root (1-2” slice)
• 1 lemon (peeled)

Juice the romaine and kale and then add the apple, ginger, and lemon. Add more ginger or lemon to taste.

Post your comments – what are your favorite Kale recipes, juiced or cooked?

I just love imagining the expression of profound “Huh?” on your face. (Or maybe I just overestimate my cleverness) Anyway, what I’m talkin bout Willis is Vitamin K; that amazing “koagulating” substance essential for healing our wounds. Now I’m no dummy—at least that’s what my mother tells me—but “koagulation” is the way our Danish friend Henrik Dam, the researcher who discovered the stuff spelled it, and that’s what put the “K” in Vitamin. Now for years scientists have believed that coagulation (see I can spell it) seemed to be the only boon of this baby but recent discoveries have shown that in fact Vitamin K plays other crucial roles in the body which means possibly the assessment of our recommended optimal daily intake should be reassessed.

So why is it essential? Basically, the body uses Vitamin K to produce a range of different proteins. Some are used to produce factors that allow blood to coagulate while other vitamin K-dependent proteins are used for maintaining healthy bones and keeping arteries unclogged. Sarah L. Booth, Ph.D., a scientist at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University and one of a small group of vitamin K nutrition experts in the world says that “Vitamin K allows a protein called osteocalcin to bind to calcium in bone, which helps maintain bone density.” In a separate 10-year long study of 72,000 women, researchers found that those who consumed the most foods containing vitamin K had a 30 percent lower risk of hip fractures than those whose diets contained the least vitamin K. There’s also evidence showing that other vitamin K-dependent proteins may have a role in preventing hardening of the arteries, which constricts blood flow and can trigger heart attacks.

Currently the recommended daily intake of vitamin K based on the levels that are needed to maintain normal coagulation is 90 micrograms for women and 120 for men but considering the new evidence, experts suspect that the most effective level may be higher. The problem? In the words of Dr. Booth, “At the moment, we don’t have the data to say exactly what optimal intake should be.”

Now don’t panic! Vitamin K deficiency is extremely uncommon so just get a hold of yourself. The main dietary sources of vitamin K are dark green vegetables, so just eat as many salads and drink as much fresh juice as you can and you’ll probably be alright. Now vitamin K is also abundant in many vegetable oils, including soybean, canola, and olive oil but always remember that leafy green vegetables of all kinds contain vitamin K. From spinach, kale, and green leaf lettuce to broccoli, asparagus and arugula, there are plenty of sources of vitamin K but a good rule of thumb is the greener the leaf, the more vitamin K it contains. Now remember you’ll need a masticating juicer for the leafy green veggies but almost nothing is lost in the juicing process so go to town.

Be Well,

Juicy Josh

877MyJuicer.com

That cantankerous ol’ sea captain had some plain good sense. Don’t worry. Eating a large dose of spinach daily won’t give you absurdly disproportionate forearms. What it will do is give you a megadose of important nutrients including beta carotene, a potent antioxidant, and vitamin K, which helps to maintain strong bones as well as vitamin C, calcium, folate and lutein. It’s not just spinach mind you, it’s all your leafy greens. Spinach, wheatgrass, chard, kale, beet greens, arugula and broccoli rabe are all excellent sources of essential vitamins and nutrients. Just half a cup of cooked kale provides four times your recommended daily dose for vitamin K. Steam them, juice them or eat them fresh you can’t afford to leave this stuff out of your diet.  Use the Healthy Juicer Electric for best results – and its CHEAP!  There are a bunch of other wheatgrass juicer choices too.

Now I know we were all a little shaken last year when the E coli bacteria was found in bagged spinach but there are many ways to protect yourself. For instance, cooking greens at 160 degrees for just 15 seconds will kill any and all E coli that might be there. You can also purchase a fruit and vegetable sanitizer like the Cuisine Clean which removes harmful pesticides and kills E-coli, salmonella, listeria giardia and cryptosporidium in addition to increasing the shelf life of your produce.

The truth is that everyone should consider leafy greens essential. They strengthen blood and immune systems, prevent cancer and fight depression naturally. The fiber in raw greens will keep your digestive tract moving, and they increase mental clarity and sustain energy. How else are you going to ward off a Bluto from your Olive Oil (extra virgin please ;o)…)?

Be well,

Juicy Josh

877MyJuicer.com