Fruit vs Fruit Juice

Mindful_Trent
Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
edited September 21 in Food and Nutrition
Although fruit juice is certainly better than soda (usually), it's definitely better to consume the whole fruit - here are some differences between the whole fruit and the juice for some of the most popular choices, from this article http://healthland.time.com/2009/08/07/calorie-counter-fruit-vs-fruit-juice/

Another great article if you're interested in reading more is here: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=24

ORANGES
One 8-oz. glass of orange juice has close to 2.5 times the sugar and just one-third the fiber of a typical piece of fruit. The stats from caloriecounter.com: the small juice contains 112 calories, 0.1 g dietary fiber, and 20.8 g sugar, while the fruit has 45 calories, 2.3 g dietary fiber, and 9 g sugar.

APPLES
An 8-oz. apple juice has roughly twice the sugar but less than one-tenth the fiber of a medium-sized apple. The stats: juice has 120 calories, 0.3 g dietary fiber, and 27.2 g sugar; the fruit has 72 calories, 3.3 g dietary fiber, and 14.3 g sugar.


GRAPES
A glass of grape juice contains — once again — about 2.5 times as much sugar as the same volume of fruit (one cup of grapes), although with about half as much fiber. The stats: juice has 154 calories, 0.3 g dietary fiber, and 37.6 g sugar; a cup of grapes has 62 calories, 0.8 g dietary fiber, and 15 g sugar.


PINEAPPLES
An 8-oz. juice has not quite twice the sugar contained in the same volume of fruit (one cup of diced pineapple), with roughly one quarter the fiber . The stats: juice has 140 calories, 0.5 g dietary fiber, and 34 g sugar; a cup of fruit has 74 calories, 2.2 g dietary fiber, and 14.4 g sugar.


Verdict: If you’re not getting enough fruit and veg otherwise, juice is certainly better than nothing, since it does contain many vitamins and nutrients. But if you have the choice, go for a piece of fruit and (if you’re thirsty) a glass of water.

Edited to add: If you do drink fruit juice, make sure you buy 100% juice with no added sweeteners - it's already sweet enough - no needed to add more sugar! :drinker:

Replies

  • XFitMojoMom
    XFitMojoMom Posts: 3,255 Member
    I'm curious tho, is this juice from concentrate or fresh pressed juice? As I understand it, fresh press is as a piece of fruit, however you lose a lot of the fiber you'd get from eating the fruit.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
    I'm curious tho, is this juice from concentrate or fresh pressed juice? As I understand it, fresh press is as a piece of fruit, however you lose a lot of the fiber you'd get from eating the fruit.

    The article doesn't say, but I looked up the nutrition stats for 100% juice for a few of these, and they seem to match what the article listed for nutrition info. I think the reason calories are higher for the juice is that you have to use more fruit to get one 8-oz serving of just juice (so serving of a whole apple = 1 apple, but 1 serving of apple juice (8 oz) contains more than just one apple's juice).

    The article did mention that juice still has a lot of the nutrients and vitamins of whole fruit, it's just missing the fiber , and since you need more of it to get the amount of juice you want, you end up with more calories and more sugar.
  • annie008
    annie008 Posts: 43
    I usually drink a 15.2 oz of Naked brand juice after I workout. Some are mixed with veggies some just are pure fruits. They do say "no sugar added".
  • Jolly2000
    Jolly2000 Posts: 12
    I do prefer fruit than juice unless it was orange or grapefruit
    I like orange juice and grapefruit juice unsweetened
  • kennedar
    kennedar Posts: 306 Member
    If I am going to have juice, I usually press it myself. What acountant boi said is correct. One apple tends to make about 1/2 cup of juice. The same goes for orange or grapefruit. This is why the sugar is much higher, plus all the fiber is in the pulp.
  • recipe4success
    recipe4success Posts: 469 Member
    Good post :)

    I think the important thing to remember is that 1/2 cup of juice (4 ounces) is one fruit serving.....a good way to demonstrate how much is packed into that 1/2 cup!

    I drink juice myself about once a week, usually on saturday. I try to avoid it otherwise as it is packed with sugar. HOWEVER in the winter here, when all the fruits we have at the store are apples, oranges, and bananas, one gets tired of those and then i tend to drink more juice :)
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