- Juice is potentially ‘just as bad’ as sugary, sweetened drinks, say doctors
- 250ml of apple juice typically contains 110 calories and 26g of sugar
- 250ml of cola typically contains 105 calories and 26.5g of sugar
- People who drank 500ml of grape juice every day for three months had increased insulin resistance and a larger waist circumference
- Experts say the recommended amount should be no more than 150ml a day
Fruit juice should not be classed as one of our five-a-day because some versions contain almost as much sugar as sodas, scientists have warned.
Researchers from Glasgow University say that drinking fruit juice is potentially ‘just as bad for you’ as sugary, sweetened drinks.
They have asked the UK government to change its guidelines and have also recommended that labels should be placed on fruit juice containers telling people not to drink more than 150ml (¼pt) a day.
A 250ml serving of orange juice contains 115 calories – and many people drink more than this, with many 500ml servings available in high street cafes.
Even pure fruit juice is said to contain a large amount of naturally-occurring sugar – but people end up drinking too much of it because they do not see it as unhealthy.
Professor Naveed Sattar and Dr Jason Gill, from the university’s Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, say viewing juice as a fruit equivalent was ‘probably counter-productive’ as it ‘fuels the perception that drinking fruit juice is good for health’.
Writing in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal, Professor Sattar, professor of metabolic medicine, and Dr Gill identified a possible link between high fruit juice intake and an increased risk of diabetes.
The researchers believe cutting fruit juice intake could have ‘major health benefits’ such as a fall in obesity and heart problems.
HOW SOFT DRINKS COMPARE
- Fruit juice has a similar energy density and sugar content to other sugary drinks.
- For example, 250ml (almost ½pt) of apple juice typically contains 110 calories and 26g (0.91oz) of sugar.
- 250ml of cola typically contains 105 calories and 26.5g (0.93oz) of sugar.
- An apple, on the other hand, contains around 50 calories – and you get the benefit of fibre, creating a feeling of fullness and aiding digestion.
To read more, please read the article on the Daily Mail
