Who knows why it took me so long to realize I could make V8 juice myself. The original recipe calls for eight vegetables: tomatoes, carrots, spinach, lettuce, watercress, parsley, celery, and beet. Yes, please. This homemade version is delicious, wholesome, and surprisingly versatile.

V8 recipes (117)

• V8 Goulash. 1 64oz bottle V8 veggie juice.(regular or spicy)•macaroni noodles•hamburger meat ( I use lean)
• Tacos De Pollo.
• Creole Black Bean Vegetable Soup.
• V8 Poached Pike.
• v8 chili.
• Layered Cabbage Roll Casserole.
• Enchiladas.
• Frosted Citrus Green Tea.

While V8 contains purees of all sorts of vegetables, drinking V8 should not take the place of eating vegetables. Nutrients are lost in the pasteurizing process, and most of the fiber is removed in the form of pulp. V8 also contains some additives of questionable nutritional value.

Vitamins and Minerals The V8 juice is a better source of vitamins A and C, while the tomato juice is a better source of potassium and iron. A 1-cup serving of tomato juice contains 45 mg of vitamin C, 1,094 IU of vitamin A, 1.04 mg of iron and 556 mg of potassium.

It turns out that V8 is particularly high in sodium because they use salt as a flavor enhancer and a preservative. Adding more sodium to your diet than your body is used to can cause water retention, so I assume this is the reason why I had felt super bloated and gained a bit of weight.

Here, the best juices:

• Best Overall: Suja Uber Greens.
• Best Budget: V8 Low Sodium 100% Vegetable Juice.
• Best Orange Juice: Natalie’s Orange Juice.
• Best Green Juice: Evolution Fresh Organic Essential Greens.
• Best Juicer: Breville Juice Fountain Compact.

Here are the 12 best vegetables to juice to improve your overall health.

• Spinach.
• Broccoli.
• Parsley.
• Cucumbers.
• Swiss chard.
• Wheatgrass.
• Celery. Celery juice has started to gain traction in the health world — and for good reason.
• Tomatoes. Share on Pinterest.