Many people include packaged fruit juices in their diet hoping to get the goodness of the whole fruit or freshly squeezed fruit juice. Do you also prefer to sip packaged fruit juice with your breakfast or as a snack? You might not want to if you know that they could be as harmful as sugary sodas. We’ll explain why.
1. It is loaded with sugar and artificial
Have you ever realized that every time you buy a packed fruit juice it tastes the same, but that’s not the case when you have the whole fruit. The flavor and taste varies a lot. It’s because it contain sugar in high amounts with added fruit juice and flavoring additives. All the ingredients in it are accurately measured to make sure every pack of juice produced tastes the same. This even makes packed fruit juice high in calories. 1 glass of packed orange juice contains approximately 110 Calories whereas a whole orange fruit is not more than 62 Calories. Also, the fruits could be grown under artificial circumstances or with harmful chemical additives to have flavor and size uniformity.Read more to know which is the healthiest orange juice brand?
2. Low in nutrition
While packing a fruit juice it is passed through various heat treatments to ensure a higher shelf life. And, because of this, many nutrients get destroyed. For example, Vitamin C is heat sensitive and when we heat any fruit juice vitamin C gets destroyed because of the heat. Many naturally occurring digestive enzymes within the fruit also get damaged because of these treatments. Packed fruit juices also contain preservatives which may have a carcinogenic affect on your body.
3. Low in fiber
Whole fruits are loaded with fiber which provide bulk to your diet and may help you in avoiding digestive problems like constipation. Juice lacks in the healthy fiber which is present in the whole fruit. Along with the fiber, many other nutrients get discarded. Packed fruit juice contains a negligible amount of fiber. This happens because packed fruit juice has to pass various processes to make it a clear juice.Read to know about importance of fiber rich foods.
4. Affect your overall health
Fruit juice elevates blood sugar more quickly than any whole fruit, and in most cases, the level of sugar in packed fruit juice is higher than that found in most whole fruits. Because of high sugar content and high calorie content, if any packed juice is consumed in excess, it can lead to weight gain.Get information on how to gain healthy weight. It can be dangerous for diabetics too.
Always choose whole fruits instead of juice to get the goodness of any fruit. And a good alternative to juice is a homemade smoothie with your favourite fruits. At least you don’t miss out on the essential nutrients and fiber.