Making Sense of Celery

By Lisa Mikus, RD, CNSC, CDN

The latest fad diet trend is drinking celery juice. You’ve probably seen articles online, pictures on Instagram, and the green juice stocked on the shelves of grocery stores. Celery juice is so popular that according to ThePacker.com, its demand has caused the price of a carton of celery to increase drastically, about 7x the price compared to last year.

The alleged benefits of drinking celery juice include clearing up acne, speeding up weight loss, and improving gut health. The recommended ritual includes drinking 16 ounces of celery juice every morning, on an empty stomach, and waiting to eat again for at least 30 minutes.

So, where did this fad come from? Doctors? Dietitians? Not exactly. A self-proclaimed “medical-medium” named Anthony William is the champion of the celery juice trend. According to the introductory video on his website, he claims that the sodium cluster salts in celery can destroy pathogens and alleviate symptoms related to a plethora of health issues including Epstein-Barr virus, shingles, and human herpesvirus-6. He calls out doctors and dietitians for being skeptics because we rely on evidence-based research to make recommendations and there are no peer-reviewed studies stating celery juice supports these health claims.

To be clear, Registered Dietitians adhere to a Code of Ethics which includes promoting only evidence-based health claims. So, when our clients come to us asking us if they should drink celery juice every morning, as Registered Dietitians, we have to put on our skeptic-hats and really delve into the published research and evidence behind these fad health and wellness trends, ethically speaking. The truth is, there aren’t many scholarly articles involving celery juice specifically. There are articles discussing whole celery as well as celery seeds.

Yet, it is possible that people are experiencing healing benefits from drinking celery juice daily. Celery juice is extremely hydrating, contains phytonutrients, vitamins C, K, and A, potassium, calcium, magnesium. We know that whole celery helps lower blood pressure and can help regulate fluid balance.

This drink could be providing much-needed nutrition and hydration into one’s daily intake, much like any other vegetable-based green juice. Yet, celery juice has not been researched regarding whether it heals people in the specific and profound ways Anthony William claims, including alleviating symptoms from autoimmune diseases and other serious illnesses.

The bottom line is, feel free to drink any green juice in the morning, afternoon, or evening in addition to your regular intake – or don’t! It’s not necessary to drink a green juice daily or on an
empty stomach. Celery juice is not a cure-all for one’s ailments, yet can be introduced into one’s intake. Remember that eating whole vegetables, versus drinking their juices, provides our bodies with fiber which helps keep us satiated and lowers cholesterol. Consuming a wide variety of vegetables provides an array of antioxidants that support overall health. Remember that miracle, cure-all foods simply do not exist! Moderation is key. Eat kale and cupcakes!

References:

https://www.medicalmedium.com/
https://www.eatrightpro.org/~/media/eatrightpro%20files/career/code%20of%20ethics/codeo
fethicsdieteticsresources.ashx

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5871295/

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