(NaturalHealth365)  Generally speaking, most people don’t think of celery as a “nutritional powerhouse.”  Of course, on the other extreme – this past year, celery juice has been trending as the “cure-all” for a wide variety of health conditions.  Today, we’ll focus on some undebatable facts about this vegetable.

Celery contains many essential vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin A, phosphorus, iron, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. It’s also full of flavonoids and antioxidants.

One of the main flavonoids studied is apigenin, and studies show that this flavonoid is responsible for the anti-inflammatory effects of celery. Whether you eat it as a snack or you juice it and drink celery juice, there are many benefits to adding celery to your diet.

Can celery and celery juice help to destroy cancer cells?

The short answer is yes.  But, it’s important to understand why – and do not think of this vegetable as the “only way” to effectively overcome a cancer diagnosis.  It ought to be thought of as part of a comprehensive approach.

Back to why consuming celery has an anticancer effect: it’s the flavonoid apigenin – found inside celery – that shows such promise in fighting and destroying cancer cells.  In fact, many studies show the ability of apigenin to not only inhibit the initiation of tumors but to completely stop their progression, as well.

This flavonoid can fight cancer at every stage, preventing cancer, suppressing cancer, and even part of a cancer-reversing program.  From ovarian cancer to prostate cancer to one of the biggest killers, pancreatic cancer, the use of this flavonoid in celery has been credited with powerful anticancer effects.

Even more health benefits of consuming celery and celery juice

Beyond destroying cancer cells, drinking celery juice or eating the vegetable offers many other significant health benefits, including:

• Fights inflammation: Inflammation is the main cause of many diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and arthritis. The powerful flavonoids found in celery help to reduce the risk of chronic inflammation – protecting the body from dis-ease.

• Heals the digestive tract: Drinking celery juice also benefits the digestive tract, can prevent ulcers, and can even help heal the gut due to issues like, leaky gut syndrome.

• Offers liver protection: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is a problem that continues to grow as people keep eating too much sugar.  It’s a serious problem that can lead to cirrhosis of the liver. However, studies have found that celery helps to improve liver function and reduce the buildup of fat within the liver.

• Prevents UTIs: Celery can lower uric acid production – which can help prevent gout and stimulate the production of urine. It also has compounds that help fight microbes and pathogens, which makes it excellent for fighting off urinary tract infections and kidney problems.

• Lowers blood pressure: Celery has some excellent blood pressure lowering properties as well. The phytochemicals included in celery, as well as the minerals like magnesium and potassium, help relax the blood vessel walls, improving blood flow and lowering blood pressure.

• Fights thirst and dehydration: Not only does celery have a lot of fiber, but it has a high water content that includes lots of great antioxidants and electrolytes. A glass of celery juice can be an excellent way to quench thirst and fight dehydration.

So, as you can see, celery is much more than just a yummy crudité item.  It’s packed with nutrients that provide valuable health benefits.

Just make sure you go with organic celery since it’s been added to the “Dirty Dozen” list because of the number of unwanted chemicals found inside conventionally grown celery.

Sources for this article include:

Wiley.com
MedicalNewsToday.com
NaturalHealth365.com
NIH.gov
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