The humble vegetable usually left behind on the veggie tray or ignored on a plate of wings has suddenly become a celebrity. People everywhere are now drinking celery juice every morning – 16 oz. of it on an empty stomach.

Many people love plain celery juice. Others find it intolerable, reporting nausea and other discomforts. (Yet they chug it down every morning while holding their nose. Or feel bad that they can’t drink it straight.)

I love green juices. I often include celery in my juice blends. The research on celery reveals it to be a fantastic vegetable. It is highly anti-inflammatory and protects against inflammation in the digestive tract and cardiovascular system.

But I have never felt the need to drink it straight in large quantities. Am I missing something?

You might be wondering the same.

In this article I am going to share with you where this notion of drinking a glass of plain celery juice every morning came from. I will also share with you what a real physician that understands juicing and plant-based nutrition advises. Armed with the facts, you can make an informed decision.

Medical Medium vs. a Real Doctor

The current celery juice craze is the result of recommendations from Anthony William, a.k.a, the Medical Medium. Anthony claims to receive advanced medical information from the “Spirit of Compassion.”

He claims that celery contains “undiscovered cluster salts the body really needs. These cluster salts bond together as one and are infused with celery’s other critical chemical compounds and information that’s highly active in healing the body. Science has not yet deconstructed or studied these cluster salts.”

According to Anthony, these salts work best when celery juice is consumed plain, with no other ingredients.

I find that hard to digest.

Celery is actually well-studied. We know it contains vitamins, natural electrolytes, phenolic compounds and other nutrients. Celery extracts possess various medicinal properties, such as antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and it can lower blood glucose and serum lipid levels. Celery contains apigenin and luteolin, which have been studied for their cancer fighting properties.

But there is no scientifically sound reason that you would have to drink celery juice plain in order to reap the benefits of consuming this vegetable.

There are also valid reasons to combine celery juice with other vegetables.

Free Download: Tasty Green Juice Recipes

Celery Juice Advice You Can Trust

I prefer to base my own diet and any recommendations to my clients on proven, evidence-based nutrition. One of the experienced and well-informed experts I look to is Dr. Joel Fuhrman. He is a practicing physician and author of the book Eat to Live. He is also the primary medical adviser at Juice Guru, where I received my Juice Therapist training.

Here is what Dr. Fuhrman has to say about the celery juice trend:

“I would prefer some cruciferous greens like organic bok choy be added and certainly some lettuce too, if wanting to start your day with a green juice. Overall, the message here is that if you want to use celery in our juice, that is great, but only if you can be sure you are getting organic celery. And then if you want to make it even healthier, add some other vegetables too. And, eat and chew very well – a big salad at least once a day too. Celery is one of the dirty dozen and if not organic should not be used in a juice. Organic celery is great, and it is terrific that people are NOT drinking apple heavy juices with all the extra sugar, but there is not only one superfood and exposure to variety of vegetables each day is the best for your long-term health.”

So, what’s the take-away?

If you enjoy drinking plain organic celery juice, juice on. But you won’t reduce the benefits if you add other vegetables to your juice. You’ll actually increase the nutritional value of the juice.

If you gag on plain celery juice, you can stop the self-torture! Add some other delicious veggies to your juice. Add some lemon. Add an apple. Make it taste good! 😋

Juicing should be an enjoyable and delicious part of your whole food plant-based lifestyle.

The self-proclaimed experts out there often make unnecessary rules, which makes following a plant-based diet harder instead of easier.

I love that more people are exploring juicing. Juicing done the right way, especially in combination with a diet high in plant foods, is indeed very healing. (If you want to learn more, check out the 6-week Juicy Plant-Based KickStart program.)

Don’t forget to download your free Tasty Green Juice Recipes.

What is your favorite green juice blend?