How does cucumber juice affect the body: benefits and harms, methods of application

Cucumbers - consumed raw, used for preservation, used as an ingredient in various dishes, processed into juice. Not everyone knows about the usefulness of cucumber juice.

Its regular use has a versatile beneficial effect on the body: it activates the intestines, improves skin condition, removes toxins and toxins, promotes weight loss, and ensures the normal functioning of the nervous system. From the article you will learn about the benefits and dangers of cucumber juice, how to prepare and store it, how to take it for weight loss and for various diseases.

Cucumber juice

There are many varieties and hybrids of cucumbers that can be juiced. The most commonly used varieties are Obyknovenny, Vyaznikovsky, Nezhinsky. To be sure of the quality and usefulness of a vegetable drink, it is better to grow cucumbers yourself without the use of nitrates.

Composition and properties

Cucumber juice completely repeats the chemical composition of the vegetable itself, it consists of 95% water. The remaining 5% are represented by such components as:

• organic acids;
• alimentary fiber;
• vitamin A;
• B vitamins: B1, B2, B5, B6, B9, B12;
• vitamin C (ascorbic acid);
• vitamin PP;
• vitamin H;
• vitamin D;
• vitamin K;
• beta carotene;
• macronutrients: calcium, potassium, silicon, sodium, magnesium, sulfur, chlorine, phosphorus;
• trace elements: iodine, boron, iron, zinc, fluorine, chromium, cobalt, copper, manganese, nickel, selenium, molybdenum.

In a small amount, the composition contains digestible carbohydrates (starch, sucrose, fructose, glucose), nonessential amino acids (aspartic, glutamic, glycine), saturated fatty acids, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

For reference. The energy value of cucumber is 14 kcal per 100 g. The amount of fat per 100 g is 0.1 g, proteins - 0.8 g, carbohydrates - 2.5 g.

Due to its unique and diverse chemical composition, cucumber has many-sided beneficial effects on the body:

• vitamin B1 - it is necessary to stabilize the processes of growth and development, the proper functioning of the heart, maintain the health of the nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract;
• vitamin B12 - important for the health of bones and teeth, takes an active part in metabolism, enhances immune defense;
• vitamin B2 - participates in the process of hematopoiesis, supports energy metabolism, protects the skin from microbes, has a calming effect on the nervous system;
• vitamin PP - improves the state of tissue metabolism and microcirculation, regulates oxidation-reduction reactions, normalizes the permeability of the vascular walls, promotes weight loss;
• vitamin C - has a general strengthening effect on the walls of blood vessels, ensures the normal functioning of connective and bone tissue, fights infections, removes toxic substances;
• silicon - reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases, improves the condition of the skin, nails, promotes the absorption of calcium, ensures the strength and elasticity of blood vessels;
• magnesium - allows you to maintain the density of bone tissue, improves vascular tone, takes part in muscle contraction, stabilizes the heart rhythm and blood pressure indicators;
• potassium - is responsible for maintaining the water-electrolyte balance, reduces the risk of heart and vascular diseases, takes part in the synthesis of proteins, neuromuscular transmission of excitation;
• vegetable fiber - cleanses the digestive tract, kidneys, blood, liver, lowers cholesterol levels, making a person lose weight.

Benefit and harm

Cucumbers have diuretic properties, remove toxic substances, toxins, excess fluid from the body. A vegetable drink is an ideal choice for those who want to lose weight, reduce puffiness, and give the body a good shape. The fiber present in cucumber contributes to the rapid saturation of the body.

Cucumber juice satisfies the body's needs for nutrients that the body needs for normal functioning. It also helps to reduce the severity of pain, reduce fever, and stabilize blood pressure.

Calcium takes part in the transmission of nerve impulses, contraction of smooth and skeletal muscles, blood coagulation. To replenish the daily calcium intake, it is enough to drink 200-250 ml of cucumber juice a day.

Retinol, responsible for the formation of new cells, prevents the development of cancer cells, normalizes metabolism, slows down the aging process, and participates in the production of steroid hormones. In addition, it protects against influenza, genitourinary infections, and neutralizes free radicals. Cucumber acts as a sorbent, therefore it helps well with various poisonings.

Cucumber juice is widely used in cosmetology. It cleanses the skin, nourishes and moisturizes, whitens, activates hair growth.

A vegetable drink can also be harmful to the body. It increases the acidity of the stomach, so its use for gastritis, gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer can cause an exacerbation of the disease, worsen the general health. An allergic reaction manifests itself in the form of a rash, redness and peeling on the skin, itching.

Cucumber juice for various diseases

Cucumber juice is a universal remedy that is used to treat and prevent a wide range of diseases:

• flu, colds, pneumonia, other infectious diseases - together with honey, it reduces the frequency and intensity of cough, dilutes phlegm, facilitates its excretion, and has an antimicrobial effect;
• hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, other pathologies of the thyroid gland - regulates the synthesis of hormones, maintains hormonal activity at the physiological level;
• mental disorders, psychoemotional overwork, stress - soothes the nervous system, improves night sleep, relieves depression, increases efficiency and endurance;
• cardiovascular pathology - improves the condition of the vascular walls, increases their elasticity, helps prevent atherosclerosis, ischemic heart disease;
• slow metabolism, obesity - activates metabolism, improves digestion, provides fast saturation due to fiber, removes toxins, toxins, excess fluid from the body, lowers cholesterol;
• rheumatism, gout - reduces the content of uric acid, to a lesser extent has an anti-inflammatory effect;
• osteoporosis, bone fractures - increases bone density, accelerates the formation of new tissue, replenishes the body's needs for calcium;
• hypertension, hypotension - stabilizes blood pressure, reduces the heart rate;
• diseases of the gastrointestinal tract - normalizes acid-base balance, neutralizes hydrochloric acid in the stomach, has an enveloping and absorbent effect, eliminates heartburn;
• constipation - restores the natural consistency of feces, facilitates bowel movement;
• wounds, cuts, thermal, chemical tissue damage - accelerates skin regeneration, prevents the penetration of infections through an open wound surface, reduces the severity of pain;
• dermatitis, acne, post-acne - restores the protective functions of weakened immunity, improves skin condition, suppresses the activity of the inflammatory process, makes the skin more elastic and healthy.

Slimming

Cucumber juice is recommended for overweight people. There are several ways to use a vegetable drink for weight loss: diet and fasting days.

A fasting day allows you to get rid of 400-600 g per day. To do this, you need to eat 1-1.5 kg of fruit during the day, and drink at least 1 liter of water. Half of the norm of cucumbers can be eaten fresh, unpeeled, the second part can be processed into juice. To improve the taste, parsley, celery and lemon are added to the drink.

The diet itself is designed for 7-10 days, during which time you can lose weight by 7 kg. A day you need to eat 1-2 kg of cucumbers raw and in the form of juice, smoothies, drink an average of 2-2.5 liters. water. The menu is structured in such a way as to avoid disruptions, so you can eat vegetables, cereals, lean meats, and drink various vegetable juices.

Council. So that the weight does not return, it is important to revise the diet, properly organize nutrition, limit or completely eliminate fatty, fried foods, spices, and flour products. And the most important thing is to consume at least 200-250 ml of cucumber juice daily.

There is another mono diet based on cucumber juice. For two days, it is allowed to drink an unlimited amount of vegetable drink, excluding other products, water. Due to the presence in the composition of a variety of micro- and macroelements, vitamins, minerals, the body does not feel an acute deficiency in nutrients.

Cucumber juice is allowed even during complete starvation to maintain water and electrolyte balance.

In cosmetology

Cucumber juice is used for skin care of the face, neck, hands, treatment of acne, dermatitis, skin inflammation. It is added to the composition creams, ointments, masks, scrubs, cleansers, mousses, lotions, or simply wipe your face with it. The juice well nourishes and moisturizes the skin, protects against aging, gives elasticity and a healthy look, evens out skin color.

Due to antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory action helps to solve the problem of acne, prevents new rashes, accelerates the healing process of pustules, scars.

How to juice a cucumber

There are several ways to make cucumber juice. The easiest one is with a juicer. Rinse the cucumbers well, cut off the edges, do not remove the peel, because it contains many useful substances. Cut the fruits into even pieces, transfer to a container, process into juice.

If there is no juicer in the house, you can grate the unpeeled vegetable, scroll through a meat grinder or interrupt in a blender. Transfer the gruel to cheesecloth folded in several layers, squeeze out the juice.

Council. For juicing, it is better to choose green cucumbers without yellowness, dense to the touch, with a whole peel and preferably medium in size (such fruits contain fewer seeds).

How to take it correctly

It is recommended to drink freshly squeezed cucumber juice within 30 minutes from the moment of preparation. Subsequently, its usefulness and the amount of macro- and microelements, vitamins decreases.

To improve the taste, enhance the healing effect, the drink is combined with other vegetable juices, add honey, kefir, parsley, celery, garlic, lemon.

For the general improvement of the body, ensuring the normal functioning of internal organs and systems, nutritionists advise drinking cucumber juice on an empty stomach in an amount of 200-250 ml. To treat cough, a vegetable drink with the addition of honey is consumed in small portions throughout the day.

In order to start the metabolism, normalize weight, it is necessary to take one glass of juice every morning or replace it with breakfast or a snack. To improve complexion, skin condition, cure skin diseases, the juice is consumed regularly.

For reference. Tomato juice goes well with cucumber juice, but at the same time reduces its diuretic effect.

Terms and conditions of storage

Freshly squeezed cucumber juice is stored for no more than 24 hours in the refrigerator. It is best to drink it immediately after preparation. The juice can be frozen or canned, in which case the shelf life is increased to 12 months.

Preparation for the winter

Ingredients:

• cucumbers - 15 kg;
• salt - 180-200 g;
• caraway seeds - 50 g;
• Dill seeds;
• black pepper - 2 g;
• allspice peas - 5-6 pcs.;
• Bay leaf;
• ½ red hot pepper;
• caraway.

Recipe:

1. Rinse the unpeeled cucumbers, remove the tips from both sides, cut into cubes.
2. Prepare brine at the rate of 1 liter of water 1 tbsp. l. salt. Soak the cucumbers.
3. Drain the brine, rinse the cucumbers again, process for juice. Add salt to the drink, mix well until the crystals are completely dissolved.
4. Prepare jars: rinse with soda, sterilize in any convenient way.
5. Chop the peeled horseradish and pepper, put all the spices in jars, pour over the juice. Leave the jars warm for 3 days.
6. When the drink is fermented, preserve with pre-sterilized lids. Store in a cool place.

Contraindications

Absolute contraindications for drinking cucumber juice - individual intolerance to one or more components of the composition, gastritis with high acidity, gastric ulcer during exacerbation.

Due to the diuretic effect, the vegetable drink is used with caution in the presence of stones in the gallbladder, bladder, liver, bronchi, lungs, and other organs.

Reviews

We advise you to familiarize yourself with the opinions of other people before drinking the drink, who have already appreciated its effect on themselves.

Natalia, 25 years old: “Cucumber juice is a godsend for girls with oily skin. I have tried many expensive cosmetics - unfortunately, they did not solve my problem. On the advice of my grandmother, I began to wipe my face with the juice of half a cucumber every morning. Oh, miracle! The makeup lasts all day long, does not flow, the skin does not shine. In addition, the skin looks healthier, firmer, and the number of rashes has decreased. I recommend cucumber juice to anyone looking for a good and inexpensive treatment for oily skin. "

Veronica, 43 years old: “I have atherosclerosis in the ischemic stage. According to the doctor's recommendations, I take a glass of freshly squeezed cucumber juice on an empty stomach every morning. In winter I use a canned drink. During these two years there was not a single attack, the dynamics are positive, the disease does not progress. The effectiveness of cucumber juice is difficult to objectively assess, since the basis of therapy is drugs. An obvious plus is the absence of side effects, the cheapness of the drink, and availability. "

Milana, 36 years old: “I kept a diet for a week: a day I drank 1 liter of cucumber juice, 1.5 liters of water, and ate about 1 kg of unpeeled cucumbers. My result is minus 4 kg out of the stated 7 kg. The diet is quite strict, it is hard to tolerate, the stomach seems to be full, but the feeling of hunger does not disappear. Perhaps the result depends on the metabolism, the state of the digestive system, but next time I will choose a different diet. "

Conclusion

Cucumber juice is a valuable food product that has many-sided beneficial effects on the body. The drink is saturated with organic substances that normalize metabolism, improve intestinal motility and digestion, and promote the absorption of other food products. Regular consumption of juice helps to normalize weight, strengthens the heart, protects against atherosclerosis, ischemia, and calms the nervous system.

It is important to understand that this is not a panacea for all diseases. The feasibility of using cucumber juice for medicinal purposes should be discussed with the attending physician in order to assess the feasibility of using it and exclude possible contraindications.