Today I'm dropping another surprising opinion on you- I'm a HUGE fan of — wait for it — juice! But not just any old juice like 95% of the juice-like products you'll find in the grocery store. I'm talking about pure, unadulterated, additive free, organic juice. I'm also not advocating drinking juice anytime or in any amount; it must be used strategically so it can work with your body and not against it (more about that kind of thing here).
Juice has been demonized as empty, liquid calories, a sugar bomb, and other much more harmful slander. However, is it all really true or is it just a side effect reflecting the "fake" juices on the market and the sugar-hating society in which we live? Here's my take and 5 reasons why I drink juice almost every day...
1) Pure unadulterated juice is easy, nutrient dense calories.
Your body LIKES calories. Your body NEEDS calories to fuel cellular energy production, regulate your metabolism, build/heal/repair tissues, and help facilitate everything you do. A lack of calories is so harmful, in fact, that the body will actually adapt very quickly by lowering the body's output if you don't get enough; including reducing the body temperature, slowing the metabolism, weakening digestion, slowing hormone synthesis just to keep you alive longer on less calories. Living on limited calories is not a proper lifestyle for optimal health and happiness. Calories are your friend, particularly those calories that actually contain nutrients!
2) Chances are you can't eat 10 oranges every day, but you CAN drink them!
Supplements are not without risk, and of little need when you can easily gather those nutrients from real food. I would much rather drink some organic, 100% orange juice everyday to help get enough vitamin C, magnesium, folate, and potassium than take a supplement.
A 2015 study by the Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition found that "Citrus juices are excellent sources of vitamin C and contribute other key nutrients such as potassium, folate, magnesium and vitamin A. Orange juice intake has been associated with better diet quality in children and adults. OJ intake has not been associated with adverse effects on weight or other body measures in observational studies in children and adults."
If you don't care for orange juice or citrus juices, then apple juice, pineapple, and grape juice are readily available options as well. Lita Lee, Ph.D. who is a chemist, enzyme therapist, nutritionist, author and lecturer even claims "Fruit juices are high in salicylates so it’s like drinking organic aspirin (very anti-inflammatory)." She also maintains juice as a key component to a pro-thyroid diet.
3) Juice is EASY to digest.
One of the most common problems my clients have is some level of digestive distress that decreases digestive enzyme activity in the small intestines (read: bloating, bathroom misery, discomfort & fatigue). When digestive juices are weak, more complex carbohydrates will be difficult to digest, and that will often cause bloating. While the gut is being repaired, it is best to focus on easier-to-digest carbohydrates (shown below), until digestive juices properly increased. This is because the stomach may have a hard time breaking down the bonds between disaccharides and polysaccharides. This is why monosaccharides are the best carbohydrates choice in the interim, because they require little digestion.
That is where juice comes into play! It’s absorbed very easily in the small intestines without needing a lot of digestive enzyme action making it a great tool when used properly.
4) Its FAST FOOD!
Juice is so easy to drink on the go. I usually add in a few pastured egg yolks and collagen (like this) in with mine, blend and drink on the go! A perfect blood sugar balanced meal in a glass.
5) Vitamins & minerals.
Where do you choose to get your vitamins and minerals for optimal nutrition? Do you choose fortified foods, risky synthetic supplements or ignore them all together? One glass of Pulp Free Organic OJ from Uncle Matt’s contains the following daily values (based on a 2,000 calorie diet): 13% potassium, 2% calcium, 120% Vitamin C, 15% folate, 10% thiamine, 6% Vitamin B6 and 4% niacin.
One more little orange juice tidbit for those of you readers who are keen on "happy hour." According to Dr. Ray Peat, PhD, drinking alcohol with fructose containing juice (like orange juice) is better than drinking alcohol alone, due to the fructose's help to stimulate the detoxification of the ethyl alcohol from the body.
When choosing juice you should be aware of the following:
-Organic, 100% juice without vitamins and additives is not cheap, just like organic fruit isn’t.
-Always read your labels. Watch out for juices that use "flavor packs." Tropicana, Minute Maid and Simply Orange have been accused of this. And surprise, both Simply Orange and Minute Maid are owned by the Cocoa Cola Company...
-If your digestion is poor, try “pulp free” versions.
-Citrus sensitivities are common in those with digestive weakness, so if citrus doesn’t fit your fancy try pineapple juice, apple cider or coconut water as they are usually easy to find in the supermarket.
Do you drink juice or do you think it's bad for you? Please share in the comments!
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References:
- Critical Review Food Science & Nutrition. 2015 Apr 1:0. 100% Citrus Juice: Nutritional Contribution, Dietary Benefits, and Association with Anthropometric Measures. Rampersaud GC1, Valim MF.
- Peat, Ray, Ph.D. Sugar Issues. Retrieved 15 May 2015 from http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/sugar-issues.shtml
- Lee, Lita, Ph.D. To Your Health Newsletter: January 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2015 from http://www.litalee.com/shopexd.asp?id=471-Photo Credits: Uncle Matt's OJ, Depositphotos.com/glougass
cj
I still drink juice, organic if I can find it, and certainy NOT from concentrate! I mix it with mineral water, carbonated, and it is delicious....
Vicki
We rarely drink juice anymore because of all the "bad stuff" about it. I love juice! But what's wrong with concentrate? We have a large family and it's a nice, inexpensive way to still be able to drink it.
Mary
Great post, thanks
O/J has been a great for my health....and so easy to take!!
Hannah
I kind of go back and forth on this one. I do have a hard time eating enough fruits and veggies and so in that way juice is really appealing. On the other hand, I 've heard it described as "glorified sugar". I think the truth might be somewhere in between and it probably matters what else you are eating in a typical day. I can say that now that the weather is getting warmer, juice sounds more and more refreshing!
Jennifer
Yes, of course. I am sure that juice is very healthy. Especially, orange contains many vitamin. I love it. Tomato, carrot, watermelon ... are so wonderful. Juice helps us loose weight and makes my skin beautiful...
Shar
I agree with CJ that OJ and mineral water is a lovely beverage.
My question is that on your FB page, you recommend the Nutritionally Wealthy Blog and this was part of an article that was posted recently. Any thoughts on the contradiction?
8. Fruit Juice is Not That Different From Sugary Soft Drinks
A lot of people believe that fruit juices are healthy.
It seems to make sense, because they come from fruit.
However, fruit juices contain just as much sugar as sugary soft drinks like coca cola (12)!
There is no fiber in them and no chewing resistance, making it very easy to consume massive amounts of sugar.
A single cup of orange juice contains just as much sugar as 2 whole oranges (13, 14).
If you’re trying to avoid sugar for health reasons, then you should avoid fruit juice as well. It is just as bad, and the small amounts of antioxidants do not make up for the large amounts of sugar."
"
Tania
I love your response - it's bang on!
Catherine
Hi Shar,
Nutritionally Wealthy is a site with multiple guest authors, so not all opinions expressed there are those I agree with. Regardless, it's always best to know multiple sides of a topic, so you can decide what resonates with and be empowered to be the master of your own nutrition.
Hope that helps!
Abundantly,
Catherine
Ray Peat
I eat sugar for health reasons.
Melissa @ Oil Diffuser
I love my daily dose of juices and I try different fruits and mix them sometimes, orange is one of my favorite while apple and lime is also very healthy.
Ann Wooledge
Thank you for your article. For those with yeast overgrowth issues, any fruit juice is problematic. We do "juice" our own energy drink which is much healthier and without the added carb load because of the lack of fiber. We juice low sugar apples like Granny Smith, celery, beets, lemons, greens and carrots. We then use the pulp from this juicing to make "raw" crackers, meaning we mix the pulp with flax seeds, chia seeds, sunflower seeds and usually some nuts and dehydrate this mixture in our dehydrate at around 110 to 115 degrees thus reserving all of the nutrients. We score them into small cracker sizes and usually eat them with some goat cheese. The recipe is on my blog on my website. You can also bake the cracker mixture for a faster method but you will lose some of the nutrients.
Tina
I stay away from juice altogether unless of course I am juicing a piece of fruit in with some veggies 🙂
Frances J. Gonzales
Hi Catherine! Thank you for your article, it is very helpful! The thing I like the most in this is the Carbohydrate Spectrum image. I really like juice. I drink orange juice everyday, but it is Tropicana product. So, I may rethink about choosing it..... And I have a question in my mind, do you buy juice boxes or do you buy local fruits and make it into juice yourself? Which one do you think is better?
Tania
Fresh organic fruit, freshly squeezed will beat juice from a box every day of the week, especially when most 'juice boxes' sold at the market are full of preservatives and made from concentrate. However, be very mindful of the amount of sugar you're consuming by drinking juice as we were not meant to consume the large amounts of sugar that we now ingest; it's in everything! Have you ever wondered why there are so many type 2 diabetics in today's society..?
Susan
that is my favorite. i love lemon juice the most :3 thanks for useful information.
Lea Harris
I prefer fresh fruit than juice. But juice is also good for health. Thanks for great information
Lea Harrison
Thanks for sharing the info! They're totally true, I love juice and try to have different kind of them everyday.
Jean
I love juice, especially whole fruit juice I press myself at home. I started doing this when I was pregnant. I need to get out my juicer and start this again. I've always loved fresh squeezed OJ, too.
Kieran
Is Pasteurised juice bad? I keep hearing that when its pasteurised the nutrients become damaged don't know what to believe
Kate
I like to make a quick hydration drink with freeze-dried coconut water powder (with powdered mango and pineapple), a pinch of canning salt, glycine powder, a spoonful of organic OJ frozen concentrate, and warm water. It's delicious and keeps me warm!