Health Benefits of Raw Apple Juice

Freshly made raw apple juice is not only a refreshing, natural beverage, it is also rich in many nutrients, and provides you with an easy way of consuming the nutrients that raw apples have. Raw apple juice is also a good source of quercetin, which is a natural antioxidant. It takes 4 cups of chopped raw apples, peel on, to make 1 cup of raw apple juice.

Raw apple juice is rich in vitamin C. Photo Credit Anton Snarikov/iStock/Getty Images

Raw Apple Juice and Vitamin C

You need vitamin C, which is also known as ascorbic acid, to keep your blood vessels, ligaments, tendons and skin healthy, as it helps produce collagen. It also helps with repairing wounds and provides a necessary boost to your immune system. As a natural antioxidant, vitamin C slows down the aging process and protects your body’s cells from damage from toxins such as cigarette smoke and exhaust fumes. A 1-cup serving of raw apple juice has 23 milligrams of vitamin C per serving. The daily recommended intake of vitamin C is between 75 and 120 milligrams for all adults, although those who smoke or who are regularly exposed to second-hand cigarette smoke will need to increase their daily intake by 35 milligrams. This means that a 1-cup serving of raw apple juice has 19 percent to 31 percent of your recommended intake of vitamin C.

Raw Apple Juice Is a Potassium Source

As an electrolyte, potassium controls your heart’s electrical activity and also manages your body’s acid-base balance. Potassium also helps with the production of protein and muscle and you need it to break down the carbohydrates so that you can use them as a source of energy. With 535 milligrams of potassium per serving, 1 cup of raw apple juice provides more than 11 percent of the recommended dietary intake of potassium for adult men and women, whose recommended dietary intake for potassium is 4,700 milligrams. For pregnant and breast-feeding women, a 1-cup serving of raw apple juice has 10.5 percent of their RDI.

Raw Apple Juice and Vitamin K

Vitamin K is essential for creating blood clots, as it helps your blood coagulate. Because of this, vitamin K is vital for repairing wounds, cuts and bruises to your body. Insufficient amounts of vitamin K will lead to abnormal bleeding. You also need it for your body to process calcium to help keep your bones and teeth strong. A 1-cup serving of raw apple juice has 11 micrograms of vitamin K, which provides between 9.1 and 12 percent of the recommended daily adequate intake for all adults.

Raw Apple Juice Offers Potential Cancer Benefits

Raw apple juice made from skin-on apples is rich in quercetin, which is a natural polyphenol in apples. A 2008 study published in “Planta Medica” showed that unfiltered apple juice was richer in polyphenols than clear apple juice. The majority of an apple’s quercetin content can be found in the peel, which is then transferred to raw apple juice made with peel-on apples, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research. In addition, animal studies that used quercetin, helped fight the effects of colon cancer, notes the American Cancer Society.

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