Contrary to what many people actually believe, turning a real fruit into fruit juice is not quite the same! Fruit juice, though tasty and refreshing, is not as healthy as the whole fruit. When a whole fruit is pressed or squeezed to make juice, some of the nutrients, most notably fiber and the water-soluble vitamins, are lost in the process.

Taking orange as an example, orange juice makes a good example of the health difference when you focus on the issue of its pulp. The white pulpy part of the orange is the primary source of its flavonoids. Flavonoids are colorful pigments that support numerous metabolic processes in the body. The juicy sections of the orange contain most of its vitamin C. In the body, both flavonoids and vitamin C work together and support health through their interaction. As the pulpy white part of the orange is removed during the processing of orange juice, the flavonoids in the orange are lost in the process. This loss of flavonoids is one of the reasons for eating the orange in its whole food form is better, even if you only end up eating a little bit of the white pulpy part.

However, that doesn’t mean juice is a terrible choice….after all, it’s still a great way to get your daily quota of vitamins and minerals. The problem is, a lot of what food marketers try to sell us as “juice” is in fact contain only a small percentage of real fruit juice, and added sweeteners (sucrose or high fructose corn syrup! Manufacturers also have found that mixing a lot of water and sugar with a tiny bit of fruit flavoring and calling it “juice” is a great way to get health-conscious consumers to splash out their cash!

The outcome of consuming large amount of these juices, as you know therefore, is lots of unwanted calories and/or even leads to obesity!

It is therefore important to check through the labels of the fruit juices for it’s ingredients and nutritional content, before you jump onto the bandwagon that fruit juices are supposedly healthy! Watch out for the fat and sugar content, plus calories!

Remember staying fit and healthy is about having the right nutritional supplement and dieting balance.