Vegetable juice: here's what you need to know when buying your veggies in a bottle

Trying to get your daily five servings of vegetables but not always succeeding? Then consider turning the cap on a bottle of vegetable juice. If leafy greens or cruciferous munchies are eluding you, vegetable juice can be a quick, easy way to get anti-disease antioxidants such as lycopene and lutein into your body. The more lycopene you consume (it's the stuff that gives tomatoes and other fruits the red color), the greater your chances of reducing the likelihood of heart disease and cancer.

How do you pick the healthiest juices on the shelf?. Follow the criteria below.

It's pure vegetable juice. "Always choose juices made from 100 percent vegetables, says Andrea Glancohp RD, and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association. Fruit/veggie combos are usually more caloric than straight vegetable juice because fruit has a higher concentration of calories and sugar. Try to find a juice with 50 calories or fewer per 8-oz. serving. Also, vegetable juices do not raise your insulin level the way fruit juices do, allowing you to consume more vegetables (and, in turn, their vitamins) without the hassle of cooking.

It has fiber: The more fiber a juice has, the better. Giancoli suggests aiming for 2g or more per serving, but says, "Even 1g is good for juice since fiber is typically extracted when processing it."

The sodium is under control. Always check the label for sodium levels, especially in canned versions, says Giancoli. "Fresh bottled juices usually don't have a lot of sodium, though make sure your choice is pasteurized to avoid food-borne illnesses." As a guideline, try to choose juices with no more than 200mg of sodium per 8-oz. serving.

While eating vegetables is the most nutritious way to go, drinking them is a handy stopgap--and far better for your body than grabbing a soda.

Fresh-tasting KAGOME's TRUE VEGETABLE GARDEN juice has 23mg of lycopene, 60 calories, 290mg of sodium and 2g of fiber per 8-oz. serving.

BIOTTA's VEGETABLE JUICE is made from freshly harvested and certified organic vegetables. With 2g of fiber and only 50 calories per serving, it can be a handy (but salty, about 600 mg) snack.

BOLTHOUSE FARMS' VEDGE tomatoes are juiced within 7 hours of being picked and then mixed with nine other vegetables. The result is loads of vitamins A and C and 2g of fiber, all of which is more than adequate for a juice and enough to overlook the sodium (458mg).

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