How many calories are in green spinach juice?

Introduction

Green spinach juice is a nutritious and low-calorie beverage that offers many health benefits. Spinach is packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that can boost your immune system, improve heart health, and protect against disease. Juicing spinach maintains these nutrients while removing the insoluble fiber, making the nutrients and antioxidants more bioavailable to your body. But how many calories are actually in green spinach juice? Let’s take a closer look.

Calories in Spinach

Before determining the calories in spinach juice, it’s helpful to know the calorie count of raw spinach itself. Here is the nutrition information for 1 cup of raw spinach (30 grams):

Nutrient	Amount
Calories	7
Protein	0.9 g
Carbohydrates	1 g
Fiber	0.7 g
Sugar	0.1 g
Fat	0.1 g
Vitamin A	56% DV
Vitamin C	14% DV
Calcium	3% DV
Iron	5% DV

As you can see, raw spinach is very low in calories, with only 7 calories per cup. It also provides protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

Calorie Density of Spinach

In addition to the calorie count, it’s also helpful to look at the calorie density of spinach. Calorie density is the number of calories per gram of food. Foods low in calorie density provide fewer calories relative to their serving size.

Spinach has a very low calorie density. There are only 0.23 calories per gram of spinach. This means that you can eat a large volume of spinach while consuming very few calories. Foods with low calorie densities like spinach are beneficial for weight management, since they provide satisfaction and fullness with minimal caloric intake.

Compare spinach’s 0.23 calories per gram to other common foods:

Food	Calories per Gram
Spinach	0.23
Broccoli	0.32
Carrots	0.41
Apple	0.52
Banana	0.89
Bread	2.52
Cheese	3.88
Chocolate	5.3

As shown, most other common foods have a higher calorie density than spinach. Spinach provides the most bulk and volume with the fewest calories.

Calories in Spinach Juice

Now that we know spinach itself is low in calories, how many calories are in spinach juice?

When spinach is juiced, the insoluble fiber is removed, leaving behind the nutrients in a liquid form. Since fiber accounts for a small amount of calories in spinach, the overall calorie count doesn’t change during juicing.

Here is the nutrition data for an 8 ounce (240 ml) serving of spinach juice made from approximately 2 cups of raw spinach:

Nutrient	Amount
Calories	14
Protein	1.8 g
Carbohydrates	2 g
Sugar	0.2 g
Fiber	0 g
Fat	0.2 g
Vitamin A	112% DV
Vitamin C	28% DV
Calcium	6% DV
Iron	10% DV

As you can see, an 8 ounce serving of spinach juice made from approximately 2 cups of spinach contains just 14 calories. It also provides a significant amount of vitamins A, C, calcium and iron. The calorie count remains low despite the removal of fiber because spinach is naturally low in calories and the nutrients themselves contribute minimal calories.

Benefits of Low Calorie Spinach Juice

The low calorie count of spinach juice provides several health benefits:

• Aids weight loss and maintenance – You can drink a large volume of spinach juice without worrying about excess calorie consumption.
• Helps reduce calorie intake – Spinach juice can be used as a low-calorie substitute for higher calorie beverages or foods.
• Provides nutrients without calories – The vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in spinach juice provide nutrition and health benefits for minimal calories.
• Keeps you full – The liquid volume can help keep you hydrated and feeling full between meals.

Spinach juice makes an excellent addition to a low calorie or weight loss diet. It provides bulk and nutrients that increase satiety while keeping calories low. Replace a meal with spinach juice or add it as a snack during the day to reduce overall caloric intake.

Maximizing Nutrition Without Increasing Calories

There are a few simple tips to maximize the nutritional value you get from spinach juice without increasing calorie content:

• Use fresh spinach – Fresh spinach has higher nutrient levels than frozen or canned varieties.
• Juice the leaves and stems – The stems provide additional nutrients compared to just juicing the leaves.
• Drink immediately – Nutrient content starts to decrease after juice is exposed to air and light.
• Add other veggies – Combine spinach with low calorie vegetables like kale, cucumber, celery or parsley.
• Don’t add extras – Avoid adding high calorie ingredients like fruit, milk, or sweeteners.

Making your juice with fresh spinach leaves and stems and consuming it immediately will provide the most nutrition per calorie. Combining spinach with other leafy greens and low calorie vegetables boosts nutrients without upping the calories.

Spinach Juice Recipe Ideas

Spinach can be juiced along with many different ingredients to create delicious and nutritious juice recipes. Here are a few low calorie spinach juice ideas:

Simple Spinach Juice

• 2 cups spinach
• 1 cucumber
• 1 lemon, peeled
• 1 inch ginger root
• Ice cubes (optional)

This basic recipe highlights the mild flavor of spinach along with cucumber for hydration. Lemon and ginger add a refreshing zing. Add ice to make a chilled green juice.

Apple Spinach Juice

• 2 cups spinach
• 1 green apple
• 1 celery stalk
• 1/2 lemon
• 1 inch ginger

Apple brings natural sweetness that balances the earthy spinach. This is an easy introduction to green juices for those who don’t immediately love spinach.

Tropical Green Juice

• 2 cups spinach
• 1 cucumber
• 1 cup pineapple chunks
• 1/2 lime
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 1 inch ginger

Pineapple and lime provide tropical flavors, while cilantro boosts phytonutrients. This is a more exciting juice to help you drink your greens.

Is Spinach Juice Healthy?

Packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, spinach juice provides many benefits:

• High in Vitamin A – Spinach juice is an excellent source of vitamin A, which supports immune function and eye health.
• Provides Vitamin C – Important for immune health, vitamin C content stays high in spinach juice.
• Contains Iron – Spinach offers non-heme iron, and vitamin C aids iron absorption.
• Rich in Vitamin K – Necessary for proper blood clotting.
• High in Lutein – Lutein protects eye health and may reduce risk of age-related vision loss.
• Contains Antioxidants – Spinach provides kaempferol and quercetin antioxidants to fight inflammation.

The combination of key vitamins, minerals and antioxidants make spinach juice an incredibly healthy beverage. These nutrients protect your body from cell damage and can reduce risk of chronic diseases.

Potential Downsides of Spinach Juice

While spinach juice has many benefits, there are a couple potential downsides:

• Lower fiber content – Juicing removes the insoluble fiber content of spinach that provides bulk and promotes digestive regularity.
• Nutrient loss over time – Some nutrients like vitamin C degrade rapidly when exposed to air, light, and heat.
• Possible contaminants – If raw spinach is not washed properly, it can contain contaminants like E. coli.
• Higher oxalate content – Oxalic acid can bind to calcium and may contribute to kidney stones in sensitive people.
• Thick texture – Some people dislike spinach’s thick, green juice consistency.

Despite these drawbacks, for most people spinach juice remains a very healthy beverage choice. Just be sure to consume it immediately after juicing and combine it with lower oxalate foods to get the most benefits.

Safe Spinach Juicing

You can make your spinach juicing safe and prevent potential contaminants by:

• Washing spinach thoroughly under cold water before juicing.
• Avoiding wilted or slimy spinach leaves.
• Cleaning your juicer properly before and after juicing.
• Drinking the juice immediately after making it.
• Storing juice in a sealed container for no longer than 24 hours.

Proper washing of both the spinach and juicing equipment is crucial to avoid any bacteria. Consuming the juice right after making it will provide the most nutrients and limit bacterial growth.

Conclusion

In summary, spinach juice is very low in calories, providing just 14 calories per 8 ounce serving. It retains the high vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant content of raw spinach while removing fiber. The resulting beverage is packed with nutrition to boost immunity, eye health, and overall well-being with minimal calorie impact. Adding spinach juice to your routine is an easy way to increase vegetable intake and reduce calories without sacrificing fullness.