Originally published January 31 2005
Fruit juice, like everything else, is only healthy in moderation
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
British experts say you should exercise a little common sense before gorging yourself on fruit juice. The stuff is certainly good for you, but you can definitely have too much of a good thing, nutritionists say. High sugar levels in most juices can be problematic, especially for diabetics, so, the experts say you should avoid drinking more than two or three servings each day. And you should certainly not depend upon juice to replace all of the fruit in your diet.
Figures published this week showed Britain now consumes 2.2 billion litres of juice drinks a year - around 36 litres for every man, woman and child.
But experts from the British Dietetic Association said people should eat a range of fruit and vegetables too.
The examination of the fruit juice market by research company Mintel looked at pure fruit juice - both fresh or from a concentrate - and drinks that contain a percentage of juice.
It found orange and apple juice still account for more than 70% of the market in terms of volume but demands are changing.
The market for exotic juices, such as kiwi, passion fruit and berries grew by 133%.
But experts from the British Dietetic Association issued a note of caution.
The BDA's Ursula Arens said: "Small quantities of fruit juice are a helpful way to get more vitamins, but the British diet is not particularly low in vitamin C.
"If you look at a typical serving size, you are getting a lot of calories very quickly.
As being overweight is more of a public health problem than a shortage of vitamin C, people need to view these drinks with caution."
And Dr Frankie Phillips, also of the BDA, added: "It's the same as for any food - moderation is the key.
"With fruit juice, unsweetened juices such as orange or apple are fine and will count towards having five portions of fruit and vegetable a day."
Dr Phillips said fruit juices only count as one portion a day, no matter how much someone drank, because the aim was to encourage people to eat a variety of fruit and vegetables to get a range of nutrients.
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