Over the past 2 years, celery juice has really exploded in popularity. It's like how kale was circa 2014/2015. I've even noticed the cost of celery has gone up at Whole Foods (supply and demand exemplified at it's best). But if you're using Intermittent Fasting, how do you fit celery juice into your routine? Should you use celery juice at all? Today, we're breaking down the science-y deets of celery juice and whether or not it breaks your fast.
What's In Celery Juice?
Celery juice is literally just celery... juiced. Because celery juice is so low in sugars and starches, it also is fairly low in carbohydrates, calories, fat and protein. 16 oz. of celery juice (which is typically the amount suggested to drink by Celery Juice advocates) contains roughly 2g protein, 4g net carbohydrates, less than 1g fat and 40 calories.
Does Celery Juice Break Your Fast?
If you're following Intermittent Fasting for the purposes of tapping into fat burning mechanisms and achieving a weight loss goal (like in the Complete Intermittent Fasting Bundle protocols), then the aim is to keep carbs and protein to near 0g during your fasted period. Carbohydrates and protein both stimulate an insulin response and therefore will break a fast and shift the body out of lipolysis (aka fat burning).
Due to the presence of protein and carbohydrates (although fairly low, still present), Celery Juice may impact your insulin levels and therefore may break your fast.
If you are using Intermittent Fasting for religious purposes or if you are following water fasting, then anything that is not water will break your fast.
Pssst - wondering what type of fasting is best for your goals? Click below for my free Intermittent Fasting Schedule quiz to find out!
Is Celery Juice Bad For You?
No. I mean... it's celery. Celery is very low in sugar/carbohydrates and does contain some beneficial vitamins and minerals, but it also isn't the cure-all that it has been touted as. Could you include it in your daily routine? Sure. It'll likely help to boost your hydration if you aren't a fan of drinking water on it's own.
BUT here are my concerns. As when any food becomes trendy, many companies will take advantage of this and create a product that is very low quality and profit on the "health buzz" it. If you choose to incorporate celery juice, make sure that it is ALWAYS organic and preferably homemade. Vegetable and fruit juices are highly concentrated forms of the original product. That means if you drink a non-organic celery juice, you're getting WAY more pesticide exposure than you would have from simply eating a single non organic stem of celery. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics came out with an alarming review of pesticide exposure in children being linked to brain tumors, attention disorders, lymphocytic leukemia and pre-term birth.(1) If you decide to sip on some celery juice, make sure it is organic and juiced right in front of you for maximum benefits.
Last year, I covered Celery Juice on it's own and whether or not it really is worth the money and hype. You can check out the video breakdown below.
Final thoughts: Being informed on new health strategies is amazing and that's one of the reasons I love the internet so much because everyone can do their own research. A major problem can arise if (and when) we start combining different protocols without understanding how they will effect one other. The body is a complex system that we're constantly learning more about everyday (take the Migrating Motor Complex as an example!).
Some tools when used properly with your own health history can be life changing. But when we combine them without considering why we're using these strategies, best case can blunt or remove the benefits of each strategy on it's own and worst case can cause some serious damage. Food is a powerful tool, but power can swing for good or for bad. If you have a health concern, always discuss the use of different strategies with your Nutritionist and Doctor to make sure it's right for you and how it can be used properly.
Your Nutritionist,
Autumn
Autumn Elle Nutrition