It’s important to choose the foods and beverages we put into our body wisely—and unfortunately, that’s not always easy. While some of the worst options to avoid may be obvious, such as fast food and salty, high-calorie snacks, there are also many unhealthy products on grocery shelves that may seem perfectly fine on the surface. But upon further inspection of nutrition labels, you may be shocked at what you find. This is the case when it comes to many bottled fruit juices.
To learn more about how fruit juice could be standing in the way of your health and weight loss goals, we spoke to health experts Krutika Nanavati, registered dietitian, and Dr. Daryl Gioffre, nutritionist. They told us that this seemingly innocent beverage is typically loaded with sugar, which could lead to inflammation, weight gain, and more. Find all of their expert insight below.
Fruit juice and weight gain
There's no denying that fruit is one of the healthiest foods out there. In fact, many delicious fruits can be great at promoting weight loss. Because of this, you may think that fruit juice makes an equally healthy beverage. Unfortunately, though, health experts agree that this isn't the case. That's because juice lacks many of the nutrients found in whole fruit—and it packs in a lot more sugar.
All of these issues and more can contribute to the issues of inflammation and weight gain. "One of the primary factors behind this phenomenon is the considerable sugar content found in fruit juice," Nanavati warns. Many people are aware that consuming an excess of sugar can result in many health consequences. And drinking large amounts of store-bough fruit juice is one sure-fire way to go overboard with your sugar intake.
"Consuming a substantial quantity of fruit juice can lead to a significant intake of sugar, which is directly associated with inflammation and the accumulation of abdominal fat," Nanavati says.
Dr. Gioffre seconds this, calling fruit juice "glorified sugar water." He explains that while fruit can be a great fibrous food to aid weight loss, the juice alone can have adverse effects. According to him, "When you drink just fruit juice, the fiber is stripped away and you can consume in one small glass of orange juice the amount of sugar and fructose found in five oranges, minus all of the innate goodness in that orange." Yikes!
As Nanavati noted, putting too much sugar in your body can also contribute to inflammation, which, over time, could be another major contributor of weight gain due to potential issues like insulin resistance and metabolic changes.
All in all, keeping your sugar intake to a minimum is a crucial part of staying as healthy as possible, especially if you want to lose weight—which means cutting back on bottled fruit juice is in everyone's best interest.
READ MORE: 2 Unexpected Ingredients That Are Leading To Inflammation And Weight Gain, Nutritionists Warn
