How Juicing One Meal a Day Boosts Your Immune System and Aids Weight Loss

Juicing has been proven to be a quick, effective way to deliver nutrients to your body without requiring you to eat an entire bushel of kale or basket of apples, you get all the nutrients of these antioxidant-packed fruits and vegetables in one quick and easy drink. Depending on what you put into your juicer, you can target a range of health benefits, from boosting your energy before a workout to building your immune system (critical right now), or jumpstarting your metabolism, and promoting clear, glowing skin.

Below are six recipes for different juice elixirs that target specific health benefits. Add these to your weekly rotation and treat these fruit and vegetable juices as medicine. If you don't have a juicer, you can always use a blender for these recipes and strain the juice through a cheesecloth. Check out this article on creative ways to use the pulp in recipes instead of just throwing it away or composting it.

This next juice is the perfect way to start your day. Beets have been shown to increase athletic performance, in a study by Professor Andrew Jones at the University of Exeter. Drinking radish juice has been shown to boost your metabolic rate. Other produce like celery and cucumber has high water content and helps to flush your body of toxins.

Nutrition Info: Nutrition information is a rough estimate.

Calories 217 Total Fat 1.2 g Sat. Fat .2 g Sodium 95 mg Total Carbs 55 g Fiber 10.3 g Sugars 35.8 g Protein 4.3 g

The ginger and turmeric in this first juice are both powerful anti-inflammatories used for hundreds of years in ancient medicine. The Gingerol in ginger is "a substance with powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties." Likewise, Curcumin, a compound found in turmeric, has shown to "help to reduce inflammation. Several studies suggest that it might ease symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, like pain and inflammation." Spinach is packed with beta-carotene, which increases our immune defense, and lemons boast high Vitamin C and folate content.

Begin your day with ingredients like carrots, which are packed with beta-carotene, an antioxidant that boosts energy. Spinach has a high folate content, which helps you turn food into energy your body can use. This is a great juice to drink before you work out for an extra push from plants.

Drink this juice every day and you will see glowier, more radiant skin, naturally. Both tomatoes and carrots are rich in carotenoids, especially lycopene, which can help you achieve healthy skin and prevent wrinkles. Yellow or red bell peppers are a great source of Vitamin C, which helps to build collagen. Cucumber peels contain silica, which has a firming effect on the skin.

When the weather is hot, sip on this hydrating juice to cool off. It features fruits and vegetables with high water content, such as watermelon and cucumber to keep your body feeling great in the heat. The citrus adds a tangy note to the otherwise sweet juice and makes it the perfect thing to quench your thirst this summer.