Juice Fasting

Preparing the avocado as a juice drink may seem odd at first glance, but this large berry can actually be used for juice fast recipes, to make a variety of milk shakes, smoothies, or other juice beverages.  The rich taste and smooth texture of the ripe avocado actually lends itself to delicious juice recipes, although because of the thickness of the pureed avocado, you will have to add milk or other fruit juices to the mixture.  Unlike other fruits that are generally prepared with a juicer, it is easier to use a blender to prepare your avocado juice recipe.  Make sure that you use ripe avocados, as unripe ones will not have a complete nutritional content or the right taste.  To test for an avocado’s ripeness, squeeze it gently in your hand – a ripe avocado will have some ‘give’ to it, whereas an unripe one will be hard.

High blood pressure can lead to many unpleasant medical conditions including stroke, heart attack, and kidney failure.  While there are medicines available to treat high blood pressure to one extent or another, the side effects make these difficult to take over a long period of time.  However, avocado juice contains a high amount of potassium, which has been shown to be instrumental in keeping blood pressure normal.  A milk shake made with avocado, or an avocado and strawberry juice smoothie is a great way to get a healthy dose of potassium as well as other nutrients.

Macular degeneration is a condition that causes blindness as it progresses, and at present there is no medical treatment for it.  The retina is the area at the back of the eye where light strikes after passing through the cornea (which focuses it), and the center of the retina is the macula.  Blue light damages the cells in the macula, and as a person ages, eyesight can be affected.  Fortunately, it has been found that the carotenoid lutein can help not only to prevent macular degeneration, but also to reverse it in some people.  Avocado juice is an excellent source of lutein, and can also be instrumental in keeping the eyes free of cataracts.

Unlike nearly every other fruit, avocados do contain significant amounts of fats, which helps to explain the creamy texture.  These fats, however, while adding calories to a glass of avocado juice also have a wide range of benefits to the body.  Some of these fats have anti-inflammatory qualities that assist with such diseases as arthritis, and perhaps some auto-immune diseases, other fats have shown their worth in promoting the health of the heart and preventing the development of cardiovascular disease.  Avocado juice can help to lower the amount of ‘bad cholesterol’ in the body and raise the level of HDL (good cholesterol).

Folic acid is a necessary nutrient for everyone, it helps to keep the DNA in our cells normalized, and also plays a pivotal role in cell division and replacement.  One of the most important function of folic acid pertains to the development of the fetus.  Without adequate folic acid, the baby can suffer from spina bifida, cleft palate, and abnormalities in the heart and limbs.  Avocado juice is an excellent source of folic acid, and an expectant mother can benefit not only for this, but from the other nutrients available.

Besides the benefits you will receive from drinking avocado juice, it can also be used on the skin.  After putting the avocado through the blender, applying it to dry skin anywhere on the body can help to restore lost moisture.  It absorbs quickly and is unlikely to cause skin irritation.  Avocado juice is even useful as a sunscreen when exposure will not be prolonged.

References

The Truth About Avocados
PennWellness: Five Stress-Fighting Foods
5 Avocado Health Benefits
Why apples, avocados and a glass of red wine could ease your arthritis
Best Foods to Eat While Pregnant