Cold Pressed Vs At-Home: The Truth About Juicing With Rosemary Ferguson

She’s modelled for the likes of Vogue and Louis Vuitton and her three daughters were bridesmaids at bestie Kate Moss’s wedding, but nowadays Rosemary Ferguson, whose Grandmother opened one of the first health food stores in the UK, is getting back to her roots and convincing everyone around her to, well, start juicing them…

In her brand new book, Juice, Rosemary offers practical advice for first-time juicers, 100 recipes, and simple to follow juice fasts. Now a Naturopath and Nutritional Therapist, Rosemary firmly believes that what you put in your body has a massive effect on how you feel physically and mentally. At as much as £12 a pop, we asked Rosemary about the cold pressed juice hype and how it compares to at home juicing, and whether cleansing really is for everyone…

With all the hype around cold-pressed juice, how would you rate the nutritional benefits of at-home juicing by comparison?

Cold pressed juicing is a term for the way the juice is extracted, it is made using a masticating juicer rather than a centrifugal juicer. Juicing at home using a ‘normal’ (centrifugal) juicer will give you loads of benefit and so I wouldn’t worry too much about this. I guess when you are buying juices it is more important, because shop bought juices can be pasteurised which means they have been heated and therefore a lot of nutrition will have been compromised!

You make it clear that juicing isn’t about curing illnesses – so what are the real benefits?

Juicing is a great way of getting loads of nutrients into the body that you may not otherwise manage to squeeze into your diet. I also see a self-care benefit to it, many of my clients start juicing and the knock on effect is that they then start to make better choices all round! So a bit of a boost across the board!

Do you need to buy an expensive, high-end juicer to get these benefits?

The most important thing is to have a good motor on it. This means that you can juice harder veg such as beetroot without blowing the whole thing up!

What kind of advice do you give around detoxing? Is a juice cleanse suitable for everyone?

If you are in good health generally then the benefits it can bring are brilliant, obviously if you have any ongoing health issues then you should ask a Nutritionist or your GP. Start small, so try one day, there is a careful 1 day detox plan in my book, Juice, and it explains all about the benefits and the how to of doing a one day juice fast. It definitely sets me back to zero and reminds me to try to eat well when I can!

What are the most important things to know before performing a juice cleanse?

If you are embarking on any fast it is always good to cut out/down caffeine, alcohol and sugar. If you have high amounts in your system you may find you get an awful headache, which isn’t nice for anyone!

How much is too much when it comes to juicing? (including how often to drink it, how much of the same type of juice to drink, and how often to cleanse?

As with anything it is about balance. A juice a day may indeed keep the doctor away! I think using a juice for a snack or with your breakfast is a brilliant addition to anyone’s food intake. It is also great for those who struggle to get their 5 a day, teenagers and the elderly sometimes find this hard so a juice or smoothie can mean they are getting lots more nutrition than they otherwise would. As for cleansing, I like to do one day a week, longer fasts for 3 days could be done once every 6 months. The idea is for your digestive system to rest while other systems in your body have a bit of extra energy to heal.

How important is it that juicing produce is organic?

Juicing organic is preferred, but I am very aware that this may not always be possible . If you can’t get organic produce peel what you can and anything else wash really well!

Amidst the great sugar-debate, do you recommend lower fruit levels?

It is better to make more vegetable based juices, if you are just starting our juices higher in fruit may be easier on your palette, but this will soon change as your taste buds renew and get used to a less sweet taste. With any juice I do advise having a handful of seeds or nuts to slow absorption of sugars into the blood stream, by dong that you will avoid a blood sugar spike.

Is cold-pressing really better?

Cold pressing breaks the cell walls of the vegetables, and this is important for green leaves. However other juicers are much faster and a lot of us are time poor, the juice you get from a normal juicer versus a cold pressing masticating juicer is great too. I think it is down to personal preference. I like both but if I am in a rush then I use my sage juicer.

Juice by Rosemary Ferguson is out now, and includes 100 nourishing juice recipes and simple, easy to follow juice fasts. (Ebury Press, £16.99)

Let us know what you think about the new juicing craze in the comments below. Do you juice?