Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice, and is just the opinion of the writer(s) and published for informational purposes only. We recommend that consumers follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to juice cleanses.
Squeezed juice cleanse is a nutritional program that the brand suggests can cause weight loss, boost energy and provide a “deep tissue cleanse and nourishment allowing for healthier hair and skin.”
In this article we’ll review the ingredients in Squeezed juices to provide our determination about whether this program is healthy overall, and whether it’s likely to cause any specific health outcomes like weight loss.
We’ll also discuss whether “cleanses” can improve health or whether we consider them to be unscientific.
Ingredient Review
The good news about Squeezed juice cleanses is that they are formulated with entirely whole foods ingredients. The ingredient list above comes from the “Squeezed Cleanse,” but we reviewed all of the ingredients in the four packages that the brand offers and they all contain whole foods ingredients and no questionable additives.
Squeezed juices contain a wide variety of fruits and vegetables that the average American consumer may not be exposed to regularly. One of the drinks contains jicama, which is a root vegetable native to Mexico that’s been found in medical research to have potential benefits to weight and blood sugar levels.
Beet is included in several of the juices, and this vegetable is proven to reduce blood pressure in patients with high blood pressure. A medical review published in the Biomolecules journal found that beet juice reduces blood pressure and also reduces mortality rate for certain diseases.
We generally consider it to be a healthy practice to consume a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, because different plant compounds have unique phytonutrients and health benefits. Consuming a wide variety of fruits and vegetables can help optimize gut health beyond eating the same fruits and vegetables daily.
Overall we consider the ingredients in Squeezed juice cleanses to be nutritious and healthy, and we’re glad to note that they’re free of additive ingredients like added sugar or flavoring compounds.
Are Juice Cleanses Effective for Weight Loss?
As referenced in the intro section to this article, Squeezed implies that their program can cause weight loss.
While any dietary intervention that reduces calorie intake below baseline can cause short-term weight loss, we don’t consider juice diets to be an effective long-term weight loss strategy because they reduce calories significantly below baseline and tend to cause a “rebound” effect where weight is regained.
An extensive medical review published in 2017 reviewed results from clinical trials on four popular weight loss strategies, one of them being juice diets.
The study authors found that juicing diets can be effective short-term because they restrict calories so significantly, but that they “tend to lead to weight gain once a normal diet is resumed.”
Our takeaway is that any diet, including fasting, that restricts calories below maintenance level will cause weight loss short-term. This is not unique to “juice cleansing.” However we don't believe this is sustainable long-term nor does Squeezed publish any medical evidence suggesting or proving it is.
We would not recommend using Squeezed juice cleanse as a weight loss strategy. We recommend a healthy, whole-food diet rich in dietary fiber for weight loss.
Is Juice as Healthy as Whole Fruits or Vegetables?
While we consider any juice derived entirely from fruits or vegetables to be healthy, we would consider eating whole fruits or vegetables to be a healthier option than juicing, because whole produce has dietary fiber which blunts the blood sugar response to fruit intake and provides ancillary benefits to gut health.
As we documented in our recent review of Naked Juice, there is medical evidence that eating whole fruits has anti-obesity effects while drinking fruit juice does not. There is also medical proof that whole fruit consumption can reduce the risk of developing type-2 diabetes, while this effect may not occur with fruit juice consumption.
Eating whole fruits is generally a more cost-effective option as well. Squeezed cleanses cost $29.99 for one day at the time of writing this article. A consumer could easily purchase 5-10 servings of whole fruit for less than that price.
Is “Cleansing” Unscientific?
“Cleansing” is a term that is poorly defined in health circles, and we consider it to be generally unscientific. The liver and kidneys detoxify and cleanse the blood efficiently, and we haven’t come across any medical evidence that drinking juices purifies the blood or body in any way beyond what the body already naturally does.
We will credit Squeezed for avoiding any health claims about “detoxification” on their site, but we would prefer if the brand just sold their juices without branding their products as “cleanses” because this suggests a health claim that is ill-defined.
The term “cleansing” in this brand’s marketing suggests that these juices should be consumed as a replacement for food. For consumers interested in Squeezed juices, we would recommend simply adding them to the diet for their nutrition but not as meal replacements unless otherwise recommended by a doctor.
Squeezed Customer Complaints
Squeezed has a customer review rating of 1/5 stars on the Better Business Bureau (BBB) website, which is the lowest possible rating.
There are many customer reviews mentioning becoming “violently ill” after consuming the juices. We cannot verify the accuracy or authenticity of any of these reviews, but we do consider it to be a red flag that the business hasn’t responded publicly to any of these reviews.
Typically, when a customer leaves a review claiming harm from a product on the BBB site, the business will respond to try to resolve the situation, or at least better understand the customer’s circumstance. The fact that Squeezed chooses not to do so worries us.
Doctors Review Juice Cleanses
One of the most popular YouTube videos on the topic of juice cleanses comes from a channel called “The Doctors” and has garnered over 170,000 views at the time of writing this article. The medical experts on the show discuss whether juice cleanses are effective and safe:
