Juice Plus? - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

MadCowOnTheMend · 03-29-2013, 11:18 PM

So, wondering if I can get some opinions on Juice Plus from any whole foodies on here.

I have to take vitamins. I can not consume enough of them through food (gastric bypass surgery) but I am wanting to eat a whole foods diet. Juice plus has been suggested several times.

Thought?

Misti in Seattle · 03-30-2013, 03:29 AM

I used to use it a lot and loved it. I also took the ingredients list to my doctor, and she approved of it. I would probably still take it if I could just go into a health food store and buy it but I ended up having to get way too much of it with their automatic shipments. That was before I went organic, etc., so have not looked at the ingredients list recently so don't know if I would do it again or not... I'm now using Tonic Alchemy.

I am NOT one for extra supplements and "magic pills" -- but my experience with Juice Plus was very positive.

MadCowOnTheMend · 03-30-2013, 11:52 AM

Juice plus is not an MLM, it is direct sales. Which is different and I'm not going to judge it. I know choropractors who sell it, my surgeon sells it and suggests it and I know others who love it.

BUT, it says clearly on their website that it is NOT a replacement for a muli-vitamil?

Just googled the Tonic Alchemy and read some reviews. It looks really good! I may try that at some point. I'm just so unsure. It does not provide nutritional content for vitamins and I have to be sure of what I'm getting.

I love juicing, and I'm pretty good at keeping the vegetable and fruit ratio to 65/35 and that's just because of my kids wanting it sweeter. Juicing is not going to work long term for the rest of my life. I have 4 kids with food allergies and already have to make almost everything in our home from scratch. I LOVE juicing, but I can't trust myself to have the time to remain consistent with it. And with the mal-absorption component from surgery, I have to have a solid plan.

Suzanne 3FC · 03-31-2013, 03:13 PM

The Juice Plus business model is very similar to an MLM, according to their website.

Wiki has some helpful information on Juice Plus at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juice_Plus

Personally, I don't take it and I don't recommend it.

Misti in Seattle · 03-31-2013, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MadCowOnTheMend

Just googled the Tonic Alchemy and read some reviews. It looks really good! I may try that at some point. I'm just so unsure. It does not provide nutritional content for vitamins and I have to be sure of what I'm getting.

True! But speaking personally, I would add that I eat mostly organic, and with very heavy emphasis on fresh fruits and veggies, so I get a lot my vitamins the natural way. I use Tonic Alchemy to supplement that; not replace it.

But yes to what Suzanne said... my impression of it was that it was MLM. And actually I just googled it and read the ingredients... no way would I take it now that I am a bit more educated about food additives.

So I have to change my earlier comments... I also no longer would recommend it.

MadCowOnTheMend · 04-01-2013, 09:28 PM

Thanks for all of the advice. After checking it out, it has oat bran which I don't tolerate anyway.

I need a multivitamin that I can be sure of the percentages that I'm getting for the first year after surgery (I'm 2 weeks out right now). I love the idea of the Tonic Alchemy but I need to know those amounts for the first year to be safe and then I think I can experiment a little more nutritionally.

I tried an organic liquid vitamin and it made me throw up. So I need to figure something out, quickly!

I'm determined to eat a whole foods diet and I want a vitamin that complies with that. If you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear them! I have to take double the standard recommendation every day.

Suzanne 3FC · 04-01-2013, 10:57 PM

Realistically, you are not getting fruits and vegetables from those capsules filled with a tiny amount of dehydrated juice. Multi-vitamins are much cheaper and easier to get, if you think you need to supplement your diet with extra vitamins.

If you want the benefits of fruits and vegetables, just eat fruits and vegetables

You'll gain important fiber and many more nutrients from real food.

I don't even take vitamins anymore because I eat a lot of real fruits and vegetables and I verified that my menu meets or exceeds the RDA of a ton of vitamins and minerals. The USDA has a new food tracker that lets you input your menu, similar to FitDay. It's more advanced because they let you track a long list of nutrients and it generates reports to let you know how you are doing. I used it to tweak my plan to make sure I was meeting my goals. https://www.supertracker.usda.gov/

MadCowOnTheMend · 04-02-2013, 08:46 AM

Did you read the original question? I'm not trying to get fruits an vegetables, but a whole food multivitamin. I HAVE to take a vitamin.

nelie · 04-02-2013, 09:30 AM

If you have a whole foods near you, they usually have 1 or 2 people dedicated to their supplements section and they aren't out to sell you a specific product. You might want to try looking there and asking. You can even easily return it.

Once you find a multivitamin you like you can use one of the online stores to purchase in the future.

Suzanne 3FC · 04-02-2013, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MadCowOnTheMend

Did you read the original question? I'm not trying to get fruits an vegetables, but a whole food multivitamin. I HAVE to take a vitamin.

I'm sorry for the confusion. I was responding to other posts in the thread which related to my response, although some of the posts have since been deleted since they were by a juice plus distributor

I understand the need for a vitamin supplement, my sister had gastric bypass surgery. She ended up going with a liquid vitamin supplement her doctor recommended.

I still recommend choosing a traditional vitamin supplement over juice plus products. You'll get everything you need for a fraction of the cost. Based on a lot of info out there, they are probably a more reliable source of vitamins.