Benefits of fruit juice
Do you know that only about ten to twenty percent of adults get the recommended nine servings of fruits and vegetables daily? Do you know what this means for the other eighty percent who don’t fulfill this requirement? This means that they are at a higher risk of developing certain chronic diseases like cancer, stroke cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, the list goes on.
This is where fruit juice comes in to play a major role in our diet.
Fruit juice is an important part of the diet because it provides nutrients vital for good health and disease prevention. One glass of 100% fruit juice is an important source of fluids and can provide vitamins, folate, Phyto-nutrients potassium and antioxidants that provide short as well as long term health benefits. Maintain your body’s vitamin and mineral supply by including a glass of fruit juice each day as part of your diet. If you don’t have access to fresh fruits and does not have a sufficient supply in your diet, drinking fruit juice can count towards your serving of fruit for the day. One glass of100% fruit juice will provide you with the vitamins and minerals that a fresh fruit would and can boost your diet to help you function at your best each day.
Fruit Juice provides Vitamin C
Fruit juice is a rich source of vitamin C, which is considered as one of the safest and most effective nutrients. Vitamin C helps boost your immune system by mopping up damaging free radicals. Though not considered a cure, a good intake of vitamin C will give the body a higher resistance to the common cold. If the flu virus is already present in your body, it will help your immune system recover more quickly. Research has also shown that vitamin C may provide protection against immune system deficiencies, infection, cancer, harmful effects of pollution and cardiovascular disease. In your body, vitamin C combines with metals and makes them harmless so they can be easily excreted from the body.
According to researcher Mark Moyad, "Vitamin C has received a great deal of attention, and with good reason. Higher blood levels of vitamin C may be the ideal nutrition marker for overall health. The more we study vitamin C, the better our understanding of how diverse it is in protecting our health, from cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, eye health [and] immunity to living longer."
In order to maintain a strong immune system, healthy teeth, bones and skin you need plenty of vitamin C and every glass of juice provides 200% of the recommended intake.
Fruit Juice contains Potassium
In addition to Vitamin C, orange juice is also a rich source of potassium, an essential mineral for fluid balance, nerve transmission impulses, carbohydrate metabolism and protein synthesis, reduction of kidney stones, catalyzing of metabolic reactions, and controlling skeletal muscle contractility. Individuals with high blood pressure should especially consume recommended intakes of fruit juice because potassium also helps maintain lower blood levels. Research has also revealed that an inadequate potassium intake may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, particularly stroke.
If you want to be less susceptible to certain types of diseases, drink more fruit juice.
Fruit juice is rich in Folate
Folate is essential for growth and development and helps in the synthesis of DNA. It is the genetic material that sits at the heart of every cell, and reduces the risk of neural tube defects during pregnancy. Folate can also help decrease heart disease and stroke and a glass of orange juice can provide up to 40% of the recommended folate intake you need. In the event that you are pregnant, ensure that you maintain the recommended folate intake, and you will have a healthy baby.
Fruit juice provides energy
Do you exhaust quickly when engaged in some form of physical activity? Overcome this problem by drinking a glass of 100% fruit juice before your next exercise routine. Juices like orange, apple, pineapple and grapefruit all have a low Glycemic Index, which means they release glucose gradually into the bloodstream to provide long-lasting energy. Rather than a cup of coffee, drink a glass of fruit juice tomorrow morning and experience the difference it makes in your energy level through the day. The carbohydrates in a low glycemic index food break down more slowly than in a high glycemic index food, causing a more gradual rise in blood sugar levels. Research has also revealed that low glycemic index foods help people manage diabetes and may help with weight management. In 1999, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) recommended that people base their diets on low-GI foods in order to prevent the most common diseases such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and obesity.
Fruit juice has Antioxidants
Free radicals which are produced continuously in cells as they burn oxygen during normal metabolism contain a charge as a result of an unpaired electron. If left alone, free radicals will oxidize body cells and DNA in their quest to gain an electron and become stable. Antioxidants protect the body cells from being destroyed by these free radicals. In the body, vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene are major antioxidants. Because each of them has a different role, one cannot completely substitute for the other and a deficiency of one may impair the action of other antioxidants. Therefore it is recommended that you drink different kinds of fruit juice, to ensure that you have an adequate amount of the various antioxidants.
Although it’s good to know that fruit juices can be included in a healthy diet and a glass of fruit juice counts towards a serving of fruit each day we encourage you to eat lots of fruits because of their fiber content. We also encourage you to get physically active everyday as it will increase your blood volume and circulation, thereby increasing the amount of oxygen, vitamin and minerals delivered to all parts of your body.
Sources:
Australian Fruit Juice Association: Keep on keeping healthy drink juice December 2007
Dudek, Susan G. Nutrition essentials for nursing practice. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2007.
Shane Landon Fruit Juice, Nutrition and Health - A Review August 2006