Too much iron?

by Jenny
(Arlington, TN, USA)

I drink 3 cups of freshly juiced vegetables per day - alternating greens, etc. Will I damage my liver or kidneys by taking in too much iron?

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From Sara:

Hi Jenny,

I don't know about the current condition of your liver or kidneys, but drinking much vegetable juices on its own does not damage liver or kidneys.

I personally drink up to 2 liters of green juices a day when juice feasting and am not afraid of iron overdose. Reason being that the iron in fresh fruits and vegetables are different from the iron supplements that you may purchase over the counter.

Nature has packaged fruits and vegetables with other co-factors such as vitamin C that helps with the absorption of iron for the body's use. This is very unlike iron tablets that you take that may sit around in your body unabsorbed and slowly "rust" (oxidize) away.

As a woman, I am not afraid of iron overdose on myself as I think that would be rather rare; we're menstruating and need iron to be replenished every month. But what I am afraid of, however, is oxidized iron in my blood. It is oxidation that I'm afraid of, such as can happen when drinking oxidized juices extracted using a centrifugal juicer. But this doesn't happen when you drink plenty of fresh juices extracted using the right method--by masticating.

To better understand what is oxidation, please read this page on anti-oxidants that are abundant in fruits and vegetables.

Also see how juices can oxidize when using a centrifugal juicer. The reason why Juicing-for-Health.com recommends using a gear juicer.

And how to further reduce free radicals in your body by using a good gear juicer.

Hope this helps!