Look for thick skins with good color and good weight.

Citrus fruits, when taken in excess, are known to leech calcium from the body. All citrus fruits add citric acid to the body and so it's a good idea to get some exercise after having a citrus fruit drink.

You should always remove the rind of grapefruits, oranges and tangerines. Remove the rind, but leave the white membrane as the white membrane contains bioflavonoids. The bioflavonoids help the body absorb and use Vitamin C.

The rind of oranges, grapefruits and tangerines must be removed as the rind is difficult for the human body to digest. The rind can subsequently cause rectal problems.

Drink immediately after juicing to ensure you get all of the Vitamin C.

Properties:

Energy: cool
5 Elements: wood
5 Flavors: sour

General Information:

Traditionally, in Chinese herbal medicine, the skin and the inner white membrane are used for their herbal benefits more so than the fruit itself.

Cautions & Suggestions:

In traditional Chinese herbal medicine, it is said that you should avoid eating oranges when you have the flu. As a result, orange juice should therefore be avoided while sick too. Chinese herbalists also suggest you avoid seafood while sick. This thought process goes against what most westerners have been led to believe or think. But Chinese herbal medicine has been used for thousands of years and so there is a lot of experience to backup why they make these suggestions.

From what I understand, the reason to avoid seafood and oranges while sick is because they work to enforce your current state of health. So if you are sick, the oranges and seafood work to keep you sick rather than working to get you healthier.

In traditional Chinese herbal medicine, orange peel is used more so than the actual fruit.

Although oranges and orange juice should be avoided while sick, orange peel is excellent when sick. The Chinese usually let the orange peels dry before using it. But when used, the orange peel is an excellent kidney tonic. Orange peels are widely used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine.

In addition to aiding the kidneys, orange peel has been used for nasal congestion, diabetes, as a sedative and so much more. It's a versatile and cheap remedy. But the Chinese herbalists never use orange peel alone. The orange peel is always used in combination with other herbs.

Benefits:

Nothing to report as the fruit is not used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine but rather the peel instead.

Photo by Scott Bauer.

Jesse's fingers are currently on holiday and taking a break. He will be accepting new questions after a rest.

You can read and view questions that have been asked in my juicing questions and answers section.

1. What's the difference between eating fruits and juicing fruits?
2. Juicing and Weight Loss
3. Juicing strategy for overall health and wellness.
4. What is your take on juice fasting?
5. Is a pint of juice too much?
6. How long to wait after juicing before eating?
7. Do you have some tips for IBS, constipation and gallstones?
8. My apple juice turns brown, is it okay?
9. Can juicing cause constipation and hemorrhoids?
10. How Much Nutrition Is In Pulp?