What if I told you fruit juice was no healthier than a glass of soda? You'd probably call me crazy, right? Well this isn't coming from me, folks. A number of experts, including clinical nurse specialist JJ Virgin, have made that very declaration.
Confused? Don't worry; in just a few points we'll clear this all up and you'll know exactly what makes commercial fruit juice so bad.
Health expert Corrie Pikul says that when manufacturers strip a fruit of its skin and pulp, the resulting juice is 'distilled down to its sweet essence.' In other words, you wind up with a very high amount of natural fructose in fruit juice – 5 to 8 teaspoons per cup, to be exact.
Now, just because that sugar's natural doesn't mean it's good. Au contraire, in fact.
"Research shows that it's the fructose part of sweeteners that's the most dangerous," writes Dr. Jonny Bowden. "Fructose creates insulin resistance and significantly raises triglycerides (a risk factor for heart disease). It also increases fat around the middle which in turn puts you at greater risk for diabetes, heart disease and metabolic syndrome."
So does that mean eating fruit is also dangerous? No.
"When you eat fruit, the amount of fructose you ingest is significantly lower than in sweetened beverages," says Dr. Mark Hyman. "The metabolic effects of it are different because the increased intake of fiber, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and antioxidants helps slow absorption and improve metabolism."
Speaking of fiber...
High sugar content isn't the only parallel we can draw between fruit juice and soda. There's also acidity to consider; both soda and fruit juice wear away at your tooth enamel over time, putting you at a significant risk for developing cavities.
Of course, this is made worse by the high sugar content in fruit juice, which will feed bacteria that in turn creates even more acid in your mouth.
3 Reasons To Stop Buying Fruit Juice
#1 – Sugar
Health expert Corrie Pikul says that when manufacturers strip a fruit of its skin and pulp, the resulting juice is 'distilled down to its sweet essence.' In other words, you wind up with a very high amount of natural fructose in fruit juice – 5 to 8 teaspoons per cup, to be exact.
Now, just because that sugar's natural doesn't mean it's good. Au contraire, in fact.
"Research shows that it's the fructose part of sweeteners that's the most dangerous," writes Dr. Jonny Bowden. "Fructose creates insulin resistance and significantly raises triglycerides (a risk factor for heart disease). It also increases fat around the middle which in turn puts you at greater risk for diabetes, heart disease and metabolic syndrome."
So does that mean eating fruit is also dangerous? No.
"When you eat fruit, the amount of fructose you ingest is significantly lower than in sweetened beverages," says Dr. Mark Hyman. "The metabolic effects of it are different because the increased intake of fiber, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and antioxidants helps slow absorption and improve metabolism."
Speaking of fiber...
#2 – Fruit Juice Has Very Little Fiber
You know all those little white pulpy bits that come with an orange? That's where the fiber lives. According to World's Healthiest Foods, that pulp is usually removed during the fruit juice manufacturing process. The same goes for the apple juicing process, during which the fruit's skin – a large source of fiber – gets removed. Even if you buy fruit juice with pulp, it's very unlikely the amount of fiber that pulp provides will come near to what the fruit originally contained.#3 – Fruit Juice Is Highly Acidic
High sugar content isn't the only parallel we can draw between fruit juice and soda. There's also acidity to consider; both soda and fruit juice wear away at your tooth enamel over time, putting you at a significant risk for developing cavities.
Of course, this is made worse by the high sugar content in fruit juice, which will feed bacteria that in turn creates even more acid in your mouth.
