Nothing. Nothing happened. I expected something to happen, at least clearer skin from all the juice I drank first thing in the morning. But after drinking celery juice for two weeks and having high hopes, to be honest, I noticed no benefit.
SO HERE’S WHAT HAPPENED.
I asked for a juice for Christmas for this reason in particular: I was hopping on the celery juice train.
I’d heard so many stories about it, how it cured everything from anxiety to eczema to psoriasis (to Epstein Barr and Strep??). I had so many people asking me about it – I decided I needed to give it a solid go for myself.
So January came, and I did what I do every January. I gave up booze, sugar, dairy, processed food and now – I was adding in the miracle celery juice.
And you guys, I WANTED it to work. I wanted so badly to notice clearer skin, more alertness, brighter energy, less anxiety.
And none of that happened.
I wrote on my Instagram about how giving up all the fun stuff in January actually made my mood worse. If I really wanted a glass of wine, I wouldn’t let myself (for no reason really). If I was seriously lusting after a meal at a restaurant with some cheese, I wouldn’t order it.
And that was not fun. It was deprivation for no real reason. Just to see if I could do it I guess?
I was hoping for the bright, happy feelings everyone boasts about with celery juice.
I woke up each morning with a big bunch of celery, which isn’t exactly cheap (it added an additional $20-$30 to my grocery bill each week). I juiced it first thing and chugged it down. And the taste is mild, but not pleasant.
My goal was to do 30 days. After three days, I noticed nothing. I decided to wait five days.
After a week, I thought to myself,
Okay by the second week I’ll definitely notice something.
But I didn’t. My skin was the same, my mood was the same, my transit time was the same.
I. Noticed. Nothing.
After the second week, I decided to discontinue my little experiment. I know that so many people say it has to be done for 30+ days, but the reality is that if you truly notice no benefit after 14 consecutive days, you’re likely not going to.
WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE SUCH POSITIVE RESULTS?
Part of me thinks a lot of the hype surrounding celery and people noticing such stark improvements is due to two factors:
1 – Placebo.
2 – People have overhauled their diets and gone from consuming refined carbohydrates and processed foods to fresh fruit and produce and hydration every morning.
We have to understand the mechanism of action. Placebos are incredibly powerful. If you think you’re going to benefit, you will benefit.
And if you go from eating a highly processed, nutrient depleted, hard to digest diet, to fresh produce and 16oz of fresh pressed juice in the morning, you will benefit.
But for those of us that already eat well and hydrate with lemon water first thing in the morning, I don’t know that you will notice any discernible improvements in health.
WHAT’S THE SCIENCE BEHIND CELERY JUICE?
Well, there’s not much. Most of the information regarding celery juice comes from The Medical Medium. This post is in no way an affront to him or his work. I’m not entirely familiar with his books (aka I haven’t read them) but he is the author who popularized celery juice.
There are animal studies that link celery juice to healthier gut lining and improved markers of fertility, but overall, there’s very little scientific information to support the benefits of celery juice. Which isn’t to say there isn’t a benefit, but there just aren’t many people who are going to study celery juice honestly. It’s not exactly a commodity crop.
I feel like there’s more evidence for a healing liquid like bone broth, which contains more vitamins, minerals and healthy fats to heal gut lining. In fact, I would rather drink bone broth every morning than celery juice because in my opinion, it’s not only more nutrient dense, it’s more healing.
