Orange Juice May Not Be Better Than The Whole Fruit

Orange juice in the morning is what we usually drink for breakfast. We gulp it down before we start our day. And tell ourselves that I have the energy and nutrition I need for days daily tasks.

Orange juice, we buy it by the gallons. We also tell our children never to forget to drink a glassful of orange juice every day. We say to them that it is the healthy fruit juice we should never be without.

Some of us would refrain from drinking coffee but instead would be drinking the usual morning juice. And we’re already decided that orange juice and all the fruit juices are better than any beverage out there.

But let’s take a closer look at the most common of all the fruit juices available at the groceries, the orange juice. Our fridge usually has two gallons of orange juice, as we’re too lazy or too “busy” to squeeze some fresh oranges every morning. So, we buy them in bulk and chug down two or more glasses for good measure, just to be sure to get more vitamin C.

When we buy juices, we usually look for many things such as “not from concentrate,” organic, pasteurized, and straight from the farm. In addition, you can add the type of fruit, vitamins added, number of calories and especially if there is sugar added. But all of these are non-essentials and do not matter to the “quality” of juice that you may be drinking.

In the end, all juices along the grocery aisles are all the same—factory processed, high in sugar and low in fiber. There may be some with added nutrients in it. But that’s about it. Eating fresh oranges and other fruits may be better than drinking those juices.

Fiber is what we need

The good thing about eating fruits is we add fiber to our gut, which is good for the whole body. Our body is designed to process grain, and our gut has been culturing good bacteria to prepare all the food that we are eating. The fiber that we consume is not only good for our colon but also to our whole body.

We usually associate fiber with our digestive system and our bowel movements. But according to studies, having an excellent digestive system through fiber contributes a lot to the whole body process.

Having a high fiber diet would lower your cholesterol, maintain your sugar levels, and contribute to total body weight loss. When you are eating the right amount of fiber, you will also feel satiated and therefore would eat less.

However, when you are drinking too much-processed fruit juices, you’re only feeding yourself with more sugar. You may probably be thinking that you’re getting healthier, but actually, you may soon be at the risk of getting diabetes. Plus, you will notice that you always get hungry. It is because energy from processed sugar is quickly depleted.

Unhealthy home juicing

In recent journals, many scientists and doctors are also confirming that home juicing may be the same as drinking factory processed juices. They say that home juices may be from fresh fruits. But, it doesn’t mean that these are healthier than the real fruits or vegetables, as all the nutritious fiber and pulp bits have been stripped off.

Most people loved to juice, as they usually avoid having bits and pieces run through their mouths and throats. They only like the sweetness and smoothness of the drink. Devoid of all the fiber, the fruits have just become unhealthy candies. The USDA has already noticed there’s a growing number of people that don’t get the required daily amounts of fiber.

As nutritionists would tell us, we can only get our fiber from grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables. Meat, poultry, processed foods and beverages, which include juices, cola and pastries are devoid of fiber. Processed foods are always high in sugar and preservatives that usually messes up our body functions.

Eating fruits and vegetables

You can never drink a whole serving of fruit unless you blended it and made a smoothie out of them. Smoothies are healthier than drinks from juicers, as it still retains all the fiber of the fruits and vegetables you’ve put in.

However, the health benefits of the fruit are still lessened, when you drink smoothies as opposed to when you eat it. You may be asking why, when none of the fruit has been thrown away. Well, the answer lies within the transformation of the fruit into slush. Wherein, everything has been blended and therefore can easily be digested. The drink would be any other sugar rush—fast absorbable sugar.

Eating is still the best way to consume all the health benefits of every fruit. The fiber in the fruit once in the digestive system can release promptly, the sugar, nutrients, and vitamins to our body. Also, a recent study says that many of the enzymes and other micro-nutrients that our body needs reside in the pulp, fibers and pith of the fruit and definitely vegetables.

So besides the roughage, we can get a lot more from the fiber in fruits and vegetables.  I think that these foods were designed by nature to have edible fibers, for us to enjoy their many health benefits.

Is there healthy juice like orange juice?

Oranges like other citruses contain hesperidin, a flavonoid concentrated in the pulp and inside the peel. Studies have shown that hesperidin can lower blood pressure, promote good cholesterol and also has anti-inflammatory properties.

And yes, without the fiber and pulp bits, we may not get the right amounts of hesperidin. So eating and chewing fruits will be the best way to get the necessary enzymes for our body. We suggest, if you can’t avoid juices, especially oranges, then it will be best to do it your own and squeeze them.

Our Advice

If you want to stay fit and healthy, eat healthy foods and do some regular exercises. Most orange juice nowadays contains more sugar than what we expected. And artificial sugar is what we are talking about. So ditch out those ready to drink orange juices and choose to drink freshly squeezed orange juice.