The Digestive Dressing

One morning, a patient told me: “Spinach, I can’t do it, it’s too green, too strong.” I prepared this juice for her right there. The carrot softens everything, the lemon masks the herbaceous taste. She drank the glass in one go and looked at me with wide eyes: “But it’s good!” Since then, it’s her Tuesday juice. Raw spinach pressed through an extractor is nothing like canned cooked spinach. The juice is mild, slightly sweet thanks to the carrot, with a hint of lemony acidity.

Digestive problems? Read my article on the 4R protocol to restore the intestines and assess your tissue acidosis.

The bioactive molecules

Raw spinach is the most concentrated source of lutein and zeaxanthin (12,198 mcg/100 g), two carotenoids that accumulate in the macula and protect against AMD¹. Folates (194 mcg/100 g, or 49% of RDA) are essential for cell division². The non-heme iron in spinach (2.7 mg/100 g) is better absorbed thanks to the vitamin C in lemon, which reduces ferric iron to ferrous iron³. Vitamin K1 (483 mcg/100 g) fixes calcium onto the bone matrix⁴.

Raw spinach is an exceptional source of lutein and zeaxanthin (12,198 µg/100 g), two carotenoids that concentrate in the eye’s macula and protect against age-related macular degeneration. Folates (194 µg/100 g, or 49% of RDA) are essential for DNA synthesis and cell division. Non-heme iron (2.7 mg/100 g) is better absorbed thanks to the lemon’s vitamin C: ascorbic acid reduces ferric iron (Fe³⁺) to ferrous iron (Fe²⁺), the form directly absorbed by the enterocyte via the DMT1 transporter. Spinach also provides magnesium (79 mg/100 g), a cofactor for over 300 enzymatic reactions, and vitamin K1 (483 µg/100 g), essential for coagulation and calcium fixation onto the bone matrix via osteocalcin. The carrot completes the picture with its beta-carotene, and the lemon provides bioflavonoids (hesperidin, diosmin) that strengthen capillary walls.

This carrot-lemon-spinach trio is a concentrate of minerals and fat-soluble vitamins. It remineralizes deeply, supports vision, and the lemon transforms plant-based iron into absorbable iron. A spring juice par excellence, when the body needs to rebuild its reserves after winter.

Table of key micronutrients

Micronutrient	Main role
Lutein + Zeaxanthin (spinach)	Macular protection, eye health
Folate B9 (spinach)	DNA synthesis, cell division
Non-heme iron (spinach)	Oxygen transport, cellular energy
Vitamin C (lemon)	Iron absorption, immunity
Vitamin K1 (spinach)	Coagulation, bone calcium fixation
Magnesium (spinach)	Enzymatic cofactor, nervous system

Extractor preparation

Ingredients:

• 1/4 white or green cabbage
• 3 organic carrots
• 1 green apple

Roll the spinach leaves into a tight ball before passing them through the extractor: you’ll get much more juice. Alternate with carrot pieces to push the leaves into the screw.

My recommended extractor

For this recipe, I use the Hurom H400. Cold pressing preserves all the enzymes, vitamins and phytonutrients that the heat from a centrifuge would destroy.

Promo code: francoisbenavente20 for -20% off everything on the Hurom site.

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To go further

Related articles

• 4R protocol for the intestines
• Bloating and gas

Test yourself

• Questionnaire: Tissue acidosis
• Questionnaire: Acid toxemia

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• The Stone-breaker
• The Green Calcium
• The Charentais
• The Anti-aging
• The Anise

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