Green Juice Benefits, Cautions & RD-Approved Recipes

Green juice has become a symbol of a healthy lifestyle, yet juicing is still a hotly debated topic among health and nutrition experts. Some are all about it, and others say you should be eating your fruits and vegetables, not drinking them, full stop. We're not here to dissect each argument, but when done thoughtfully, green juice can have some serious health benefits.

Manisha Mittal, M.D., a board-certified integrative medicine doctor, calls out herbs as a great addition, too. Her favorites are parsley, mint, and cilantro.

The specific benefits you'll get from your green juice depend on what's in it, but here are some general health perks that apply across the board:

Green juice is a concentrated source of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals—and because they're already in liquid form (instead of in a whole food matrix), those beneficial nutrients are generally easier to digest and absorb, according to Mittal. Plus you take in more at once. Any celery juice devotee knows that it takes a whole bunch of celery stalks to make about 16 ounces of green juice. And drinking 16 ounces of juice is easy, but eating 12 celery stalks? Not so much.

Green juices also contain prebiotics, aka fibers that feed the good bacteria in your gut, says Mittel.*

Green juice can help keep you hydrated, especially if it contains high-water content veggies like cucumbers. Cucumbers are 90% water2 and loaded with electrolytes like magnesium and potassium, which help maintain optimal fluid balance in your cells. (But make sure you're drinking plenty of water, too.)

Godoi adds that green juice isn't a cure-all. While you can reap a number of benefits from sipping juice, she explains that many of these perks also come from a combo of lifestyle choices, like ditching less nutritious foods. "Swapping those culprit ingredients for whole food sources such as leafy greens helps support natural elimination pathways,"* she says.

 Zesty Ginger Green Juice

Brain-Boosting Morning Tonic (recommended by board-certified neurologist Ilene Ruhoy, M.D., Ph.D.)

Thyroid Balance Daily Green Juice

Green Lemonade

Don't have a juicer? Consider making an alternative to juice that's just as nutritious with mindbodygreen's organic veggies+. All you need for this two-ingredient green juice is a scoop of the organic greens powder and a glass of water. Bonus points: organic veggies+ powder contains vegan digestive enzymes, prebiotic fiber, and probiotic bacteria, which help support healthy digestion.*

The TL;DR? Green juices are an excellent way to maximize your intake and absorption of nutrients. They're not meant to replace meals, but they can serve as an important adjunct to a healthy diet. The key is to keep the juice low in sugar (to maintain blood sugar balance) by focusing on leafy greens and other green vegetables, like celery, and limiting fruit.