Vegetable juice: what reaches the blood and what nobody has tested

An umbrella review of 15 systematic reviews on 100 percent juice looked for meta-analyses of vegetable juice and found none eligible, and the evidence it did find was dominated by fruit juice. The closest strong evidence is a meta-analysis of 28 randomized trials with 1,089 people, mixing fruit and vegetable juices over an average of 3.6 weeks. Juice raised plasma vitamin C and lowered MDA, a lab marker of oxidation, and did not change measured antioxidant capacity in the blood against placebo. The clearest effect is on carotenoid levels. In a randomized trial of 60 adults over 40, V8 juice giving about 25 mg of lycopene a day raised plasma lycopene 112 percent in 15 days, in a short trial with no raw tomato arm. In 33 men awaiting prostate surgery, juice raised plasma lycopene 59 percent, while the 2.2-fold rise in prostate tissue was not significant and smaller than with tomato soup or sauce. A cup of mixed vegetable juice gives about 69 calories, 6.4 g of sugars and 684 mg of potassium in US survey data.

How much is actually in it

• In a 4-week pilot RCT of 16 men, those drinking a commercial fruit and vegetable juice twice a day gained weight against their own baseline, while a fresh komatsuna juice lowered cholesterol against baseline. — 16 middle-aged Japanese men, juice twice a day on weekdays, 4 weeks (n = 16) Evidence B source
  Control (commercial juice): weight and BMI up vs baseline; fresh juice: total and LDL cholesterol down vs baseline
• A cup of mixed vegetable juice (246 g) has about 69 calories, 6.4 g sugars and 684 mg potassium in US survey data. — US household measures, FNDDS (n = 2 food codes) Evidence E source
  Mixed vegetable juice per cup: 68.9 calories, 6.4 g sugars, 683.9 mg potassium, 14.3 mg vitamin C; tomato and vegetable juice 100%: vitamin C 54.3 mg/100 g

What a real portion looks like

• A 8.7 oz (248 g) serving of tomato and vegetable juice carries about 419 mg sodium in US survey data, roughly double a cup of mixed vegetable juice. — US household measures, FNDDS (n = 2 food codes) Evidence E source
  Tomato and vegetable juice 100%: 169 mg/100 g, 419.1 mg per 248 g; mixed vegetable juice: 82 mg/100 g, 201.7 mg per cup 246 g

What your body absorbs

• In 33 men before prostatectomy, 11-17 fl oz (325-488 mL) vegetable juice a day raised plasma lycopene 59%, but prostate lycopene rose less than with tomato soup or sauce. — 33 men scheduled for prostatectomy, 25-35 mg lycopene/d from soup, sauce or juice (n = 33) Evidence B source
  Plasma lycopene +59% with juice; prostate lycopene 2.2-fold vs control with juice (P = 0.165) vs 3.5-3.6-fold with soup and sauce

What cooking and storage change

• In a crossover RCT of 12 adults, about 100 mg vitamin C from a 6.8 fl oz (200 mL) vegetable and fruit juice gave the highest plasma exposure, above raw produce and powder. — 12 healthy adults, three 1-day crossover periods, 101.7 mg vitamin C as powder, raw produce (186.8 g) or juice (6.8 fl oz / 200 mL) (n = 12) Evidence B source
  Juice AUC 25.3 +/- 3.2 mg/dL h, the highest of the three forms
• In an RCT of 60 adults, V8 vegetable juice giving about 25 mg lycopene a day raised plasma lycopene 112% in 15 days after a lycopene-free week. — 60 healthy adults over 40, 15 days of condensed soup, ready-to-serve soup or V8 vegetable juice (n = 60) Evidence B source
  Plasma lycopene with V8: 0.569 umol/L, +112% vs washout (P < 0.0001)
• Women with breast cancer who drank vegetable juice had higher blood alpha-carotene and lutein than matched women eating raw or cooked vegetables. — female breast cancer patients after surgery in a diet feasibility study, 12 months Evidence C source
  Alpha-carotene higher (P < 0.05), lutein higher (P = 0.05); beta-carotene and lycopene not different

What it does to your health

• In a 1-week crossover RCT of 18 adults, 8.5 fl oz (250 mL) green leafy vegetable juice with about 340 mg nitrate did not lower blood pressure differently from beetroot juice. — 18 healthy non-smoking adults aged 30-65, 3.9 fl oz (115 mL) beetroot or 8.5 fl oz (250 mL) green leafy vegetable juice daily for 7 days (n = 18) Evidence B source
  No significant between-juice difference in clinic or home BP; home diastolic fell within the green juice period (P 0.03)
• In an 8-week RCT of adults with overweight in Mongolia, daily vegetable juice plus biomarker monitoring cut waist by 1 in (2.63 cm) versus a 0.09 in (0.22 cm) gain in controls. — 94 Mongolian adults with BMI 25 or more, Ulaanbaatar, 8 weeks (n = 94) Evidence B source
  Waist -1 in (-2.63 cm) vs +0.09 in (0.22 cm); urinary Na/K -0.80 vs +0.45 mol/mol
• In 198,285 UK Biobank adults, the lower mortality seen with fruit and vegetable juice disappeared after adjusting for overall diet quality. — 198,285 UK adults aged 40-69, mean 7 years follow-up (n = 198285) Evidence C source
  Inverse association not persistent after diet quality adjustment; sugar-sweetened drinks >2/day HR 1.84

Safety, limits and interactions

• FDA says children, older adults, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems risk serious illness or even death from drinking untreated juice. Packaged untreated juice must carry a warning label, but juice sold by the glass, as at juice bars and roadside stands, does not need one. — children, older adults, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems Evidence E source
  Untreated juice can cause serious illness or death in these groups; packaged untreated juice must carry a warning label, juice sold by the glass need not
• NIH ODS states that in people who cannot excrete potassium normally, because of chronic kidney disease or drugs such as ACE inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics, even dietary potassium intakes below the Adequate Intake can cause hyperkalemia. This includes potassium from vegetable juice. — people with chronic kidney disease or taking ACE inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics Evidence E source
  Hyperkalemia possible even below the Adequate Intake, no threshold given
• NIH lists vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables, as a main food source of vitamin K and advises people on warfarin to keep their vitamin K intake consistent, since sudden changes can raise or lower the drug's effect. — people taking warfarin and similar vitamin K antagonist anticoagulants Evidence E source
  Sudden changes in vitamin K intake can raise or lower the anticoagulant effect
• A 68-year-old man on a daily spinach-rich juice regimen with about 1500 mg oxalate a day developed oxalate nephropathy and remained on dialysis a year later. — one 68-year-old man with normal baseline kidney function, 6 months of juicing (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Oxalate intake about 10 times a typical diet; end-stage renal disease
• Among 65 Mayo Clinic patients with kidney biopsy oxalate crystals, 3 had presumed diet-induced cases in the setting of chronic kidney disease, one from juicing. — 65 patients with renal failure and calcium oxalate crystals, Mayo Clinic 1985-2010 (n = 65) Evidence D source
  3 of 65 presumed diet-induced, all with chronic kidney disease

What people believe that the data does not support

• A meta-analysis of juice RCTs (28 trials, 1089 people) found juices raised vitamin C but did not change plasma antioxidant capacity versus placebo. — 28 RCTs of fruit or vegetable juices, 1089 participants, 16 in meta-analysis (n = 1089) Evidence A source
  No difference in TEAC, SOD, CAT; higher plasma vitamin C and lower MDA with juice
• The EU did not authorize the claim that a diet rich in vegetables, including juiced vegetables, promotes heart health. — EU health claim applications Evidence E source
  Claim non-authorized
• The EU did not authorize the claim that antioxidants from processed fruit and vegetable juices protect the body. — EU health claim applications Evidence E source
  Claim non-authorized

Who this works differently for

• A woman with hereditary pyruvate kinase deficiency developed hemolytic jaundice after a vegetable juicing diet, resolving on a normal diet. — one middle-aged woman with pyruvate kinase deficiency (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Hemolytic anemia with jaundice; full resolution after diet change

What is still unknown

• An umbrella review of 15 systematic reviews on 100% juice found no eligible meta-analysis for vegetable juice at all. — 15 systematic reviews with 51 primary meta-analyses of 100% juice, 50-1200 mL/day (n = 15 reviews) Evidence A source
  Vegetable juice: no eligible studies; 100% juice overall: 74.5% of meta-analyses reported no effect

The bottom line

The outcome trials are small. In 94 Mongolian adults with overweight, daily vegetable juice plus biomarker monitoring cut waist size by 1 in (2.63 cm) in 8 weeks against a 0.09 in (0.22 cm) gain in controls, with the juice bundled with monitoring and the study also approved by the juice maker's ethics board. In 18 healthy adults, a week of green leafy vegetable juice with about 340 mg of nitrate changed blood pressure no differently from beetroot juice, in a pilot with no placebo arm, so neither juice was compared with no juice. In a 4-week pilot of 16 Japanese men, those on a commercial fruit and vegetable blend gained weight against their own baseline, and a fresh komatsuna juice lowered total and LDL cholesterol, both only within groups. Across 198,285 UK Biobank adults, the lower death rate seen with fruit and vegetable juice disappeared once overall diet quality was taken into account. The EU has not authorized a heart health claim for vegetables that covers juiced ones, nor an antioxidant claim for fruit and vegetable juices. Salt depends on the bottle. A 8.7 oz (248 g) serving of tomato and vegetable juice carries about 419 mg of sodium, around double the 202 mg in a cup of mixed vegetable juice, and US survey data also lists a low sodium version. Heavy juicing of greens is where real harm has been reported. A 68-year-old man with normal kidneys drank a spinach-rich juice daily for six months, taking in about 1,500 mg of oxalate a day, some 10 times a typical diet, and was still on dialysis a year later. That is a single case, and he was also volume depleted. In a Mayo Clinic series of 65 people with oxalate crystals in failing kidneys, 3 cases were presumed diet induced, one from juicing, and all 3 already had chronic kidney disease. A woman with hereditary pyruvate kinase deficiency developed hemolytic jaundice on a vegetable juicing diet, which cleared on a normal diet.

Sources

1. vjui-daily-r4-09 · RCT
   Weight and body mass index (BMI) of the control group after 4 weeks were significantly increased compared with baseline values. Serum total cholesterol (T-Chol) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-Chol) of the intervention group after 4 weeks were significantly reduced compared with baseline values.
   Lipids Health Dis, 2014 · checked 2026-09-30
2. vjui-daily-r4-15 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 75132000 (fdc 2709810) Mixed vegetable juice, 1 cup 246 g: Energy 28 kcal/100 g, 68.9 kcal · Total Sugars 2.62 g/100 g, 6.4 g · Potassium 278 mg/100 g, 683.9 mg · Vitamin C 5.8 mg/100 g, 14.3 mg · FNDDS 74303000 (fdc 2709731): Vitamin C 54.3 mg/100 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-30
3. vjui-daily-r4-14 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 74303000 (fdc 2709731) Tomato and vegetable juice, 100%: Sodium 169 mg/100 g, 248 g 419.1 mg · FNDDS 75132000 (fdc 2709810) Mixed vegetable juice: Sodium 82 mg/100 g, 1 cup 246 g 201.7 mg
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023 · checked 2026-09-30
4. vjui-daily-r4-05 · RCT
   Tomato soup, sauce and juice consumption significantly increased plasma lycopene concentration from 0·68 (sem 0·1) to 1·13 (sem 0·09) μmol/l (66 %), 0·48 (sem 0·09) to 0·82 (sem 0·12) μmol/l (71 %) and 0·49 (sem 0·12) to 0·78 (sem 0·1) μmol/l (59 %), respectively
   Br J Nutr, 2015 · checked 2026-09-30
5. vjui-daily-r4-03 · RCT
   All interventions elevated plasma vitamin C levels, with juice yielding the highest AUC (25.3 ± 3.2 mg/dL·h).
   Nutrients, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
6. vjui-daily-r4-04 · RCT
   randomized to receive 35 +/- 1, 23 +/- 1 or 25 +/- 1 mg lycopene/d from Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup (CS), Campbell's Ready To Serve Tomato Soup (RTS) or V8 Vegetable Juice (V8), respectively, for 15 d...After intervention, total lycopene concentrations increased for those consuming CS, RTS and V8 (compared with the washout period for each group) to 0.784 +/- 0.083 (123%, P < 0.0001), 0.545 +/- 0.061 (57%, P < 0.01) and 0.569 +/- 0.061 (112%, P < 0.0001) micro mol/L, respectively.
   J Nutr, 2003 · checked 2026-09-30
7. vjui-daily-r4-06 · matched comparison
   Serum concentrations of alpha-carotene and lutein were significantly higher in the vegetable juice group than in the raw or cooked vegetable group (P < 0.05 and P = 0.05, respectively).
   Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 1999 · checked 2026-09-30
8. vjui-daily-r4-07 · RCT
   there was no statistically significant difference in change in the clinic or home BP between BRJ and GLVJ during the formal crossover analysis adjusted for period effects
   J Nutr Sci, 2022 · checked 2026-09-30
9. vjui-daily-r4-08 · RCT
   the monitoring + vegetable juice group showed significant increase in skin carotenoid level (+ 1.72), decrease in urinary Na/K ratio (- 0.80 mol/mol), and decrease in waist circumference (- 2.63 cm) compared to the control group (+ 0.28, + 0.45, and + 0.22, respectively).
   Trials, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
10. vjui-daily-r4-10 · cohort
    Furthermore, the inverse association between fruit/vegetable juice intake and mortality did not persist after additional adjustment for a diet quality score.
    BMC Med, 2020 · checked 2026-09-30
11. sf-juice-r6-5 · agency advice
    While most people’s immune systems can usually fight off the effects of foodborne illness, children, older adults, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems (such as transplant patients and individuals with HIV/AIDS, cancer, or diabetes) risk serious illnesses or even death from drinking untreated juices. ... These untreated products should be kept under refrigeration and are required to carry the following warning on the label: WARNING: This product has not been pasteurized and therefore may contain harmful bacteria that can cause serious illness in children, the elderly, and persons with weakened immune systems. However, FDA does not require warning labels for juice or cider that is sold by the glass – for example, at apple orchards, farmers’ markets, roadside stands, juice bars, and some restaurants.
    U.S. FDA, What You Need to Know About Juice Safety, content current as of 03/05/2024 · checked 2026-10-08
12. sf-khyp-r1-vegjuice-1 · agency advice
    However, in people with impaired urinary potassium excretion due to chronic kidney disease or the use of certain medications, such as angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics, even dietary potassium intakes below the AI can cause hyperkalemia.
    NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Potassium Fact Sheet for Health Professionals · checked 2026-10-08
13. sf-vkw-r1-17 · agency advice
    Food sources of phylloquinone include vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables, vegetable oils, and some fruits. ...These drugs antagonize the activity of vitamin K, leading to the depletion of vitamin K-dependent clotting factors. People taking warfarin and similar anticoagulants need to maintain a consistent intake of vitamin K from food and supplements because sudden changes in vitamin K intakes can increase or decrease the anticoagulant effect [45].
    NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Vitamin K Fact Sheet for Health Professionals · checked 2026-10-08
14. vjui-daily-r4-11 · case report
    Six months earlier, he started a daily oxalate-rich fruit and vegetable juice diet high in spinach, with a calculated daily oxalate dietary intake of 1500 mg, about 10 times a typical diet.
    Case Rep Nephrol, 2022 · checked 2026-09-30
15. vjui-daily-r4-12 · case series
    Three patients, including our index patient, had presumed diet-induced oxalate nephropathy in the context of chronic kidney disease.
    Am J Med, 2013 · checked 2026-09-30
16. vjui-daily-r4-02 · meta-analysis of RCTs
    Twenty-eight trials were identified (n = 1089), of which 16 were used for meta-analysis. No significant differences were observed between juices and placebo with regard to TEAC, SOD, and CAT. However, juices were superior to control in enhancing vitamin C and reducing MDA.
    Molecules, 2015 · checked 2026-09-30
17. vjui-daily-r4-16 · regulatory decision
    POL-HC-8056 Vegetables (fresh, frozen, canned, bottled, dried, juiced) A diet rich in vegetables promotes heart health. Non-authorised
    EU Register on nutrition and health claims, claim POL-HC-8056, snapshot 2026-09-21 · checked 2026-09-30
18. vjui-daily-r4-17 · regulatory decision
    POL-HC-6611 Antioxidant from processed fruits and vegetables and juices Antioxidant contained in this product contribute to the anti-oxidative functions of the body/ensure protective effect on the organism Non-authorised
    EU Register on nutrition and health claims, claim POL-HC-6611, snapshot 2026-09-21 · checked 2026-09-30
19. vjui-daily-r4-13 · case report
    The patient changed to a "fad" diet of "vegetable juicing", causing hemolytic anemia secondary to exacerbation of hereditary PK deficiency.
    Cureus, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30
20. vjui-daily-r4-01 · umbrella review
    No eligible studies for vegetable juice were found. Fifteen systematic literature reviews (51 primary MAs, 6 dose-response, and 87 subanalyses; 50-1200 mL/day; hours to years of duration) were included.
    Nutr Rev, 2025 · checked 2026-09-30