< previous post             return to index            next post >

Smoothies verses Juicing

Both juicing and smoothies will result in getting more fruits and vegetables into your diet but smoothies are usually the better choice.  While juicing is significantly better than not eating fruits and vegetables at all smoothies are the superior option for the following reasons:

  • The pulp left behind when juicing contains valuable fiber and nutrients, which means you don’t get all the valuable benefits of the fruits and vegetables.  Smoothies preserve all the fiber and nutrients when they use the whole fruits and vegetables.  When juicing, you can add the pulp to other foods (soups, stews, veggie burgers meatloaf), rather than throw it away but that is an unnecessary extra step you can avoid by making smoothies instead of juicing.
  • If you include yogurt, kefir or milk in your smoothie (juicing doesn’t generally include these ingredients) you also get calcium and protein.

Both smoothies and juices can add up quickly in calories so keep this in mind when drinking them and don’t overdo it if you need to control your weight.   However, if you suffer from a poor appetite or find it hard to eat anything smoothies are an excellent way to get lots of nutrition with minimal prep time.  Homemade smoothies are generally best because you can control the ingredients.  Avoid smoothies with sweetened, instead of plain, yogurt or fruit, frozen sorbets, sherbets, ice creams or frozen yogurt.  Don’t limit your smoothies or juices to just fruits, always include some vegetables, like beets, greens or carrots.

Photo used with permission from the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Photo by Annette van Lengerich, MS, RD.

posted on 2/15/2016