![]() What we don’t lose, though, are the 21 grams or more than 5 teaspoons of sugar in each glass. Juicing involves the removal of most of that fibre and even the loss of some of the important vitamins. It’s also great for gut health and associated with a range of other health benefits. And third, it slows the release of the sugars from the fruit into our bloodstream, thus allowing our bodies to react and use the energy appropriately, reducing our chances of weight gain and related health challenges. Second, it makes us feel full for longer. This roughage is healthy in many ways.įirst it slows our eating down it’s easy to drink a glass of juice squeezed from seven apples, but much harder to eat those seven pieces whole. Fruits like oranges, apples and pears contain important fibre. In fact, the sugars in fruit were probably nature’s way of encouraging us to eat the fruit to begin with. When they’re wrapped in a peel or a skin, fruit sugars are not a health concern. Water is always the best drink for children but if you are stuck with what to offer your child (>12months) instead of juice, offer fresh fruit instead to role model good habits eating whole or fresh foods.įruit juice can be kept for special occasions, and offered in small amounts (1/2 cup or less), but it is not an essential part of a healthy diet for kids. So reducing intake of fruit juice is a good place to start if you want to reduce your child’s sugar intake. As fibre and other components of fresh fruit are removed from juice, the amount of sugar is more concentrated and therefore higher in fruit juice.Īs fruit juices are readily accepted by children (they taste sweet), often conveniently packaged and therefore easy for kids to drink, not letting your kids drink juice can be difficult for parents.īut fruit (and vegetable) juices account for the biggest proportion of free sugar intake from beverages among kids 2-8 years old in Australia. ![]() ![]() Based on this evidence the World Health Organisation recommends limiting foods and drinks containing free sugars, including fruit juice.įruit juices are not the same as fresh fruits and it's better for your child to try to eat fruit rather than drink it. Too much sugar in the diet is linked to dental cavities and unhealthy weight gain throughout childhood. Just because a food packet says an item is healthy or sugar-free, it doesn't mean it is. In intervention studies in children and adolescents that replace sugary drinks with drinks lower in calories, they experience less weight gain. For example one medium orange contains about 285 kilojoules and four grams of fibre compared to one 250mL juice popper which contains closer to 300-500 kilojoules and less than one gram of fibre, depending on the brand.įruit juice is classified as a sugar-sweetened beverage, along with soft drink, sports drink and other sugar sweetened beverages. This is because whole fruit is more filling, and better for your teeth.įruit juice is low in fibre and so it is easy to drink too much, compared to eating the whole fruit. While the Australian Guide to Health Eating specifies a serve of fruit can be quantified as 125 mLs juice, it recommends whole fruit is primarily eaten, rather than drinking juice. Keep fruit juice as the exception, not the rule. This is because fewer than one in 100 children consume enough vegetables, which are great provisors of healthy nutrients and don't have many kilojoules or much sugar.Įven better still is juice that is mostly vegetable juice with pulp (fibre) - but the challenge here is actually getting a child to drink it!Įating whole fruit with its fibre is better for us than juicing. What would be even better, though, is to give children juices that comprise all (or mainly) vegetables, such as carrot, celery and apple juice (my personal fave). ![]() Even though both fruit juice and soft drinks are acidic and sugary (two bad factors for teeth), and provide calories but not as much fullness as other drinks or foods (bad for body weight regulation) at least fruit juice contains some micronutrients (such as vitamin C) and other plant antioxidants. But if you’re giving your child something other than water, and milk isn’t an option then it's better to give kids fruit juice instead of drinks that are 'worse', such as soft drinks. Juice is okay sometimes, although plain tap water is the best drink for most children. We asked five experts in nutrition, dietetics, medicine and dentistry whether or not we should let our kids drink juice: Four out of five experts said no But we also know it’s high in sugar, and so can contribute to obesity and dental problems. It tastes good, often comes in convenient and child-friendly packaging, and seems much healthier than soft drinks, sports drinks or other sweet beverages. Most parents will tell you their kids love juice.
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