This is an archived article and the information in the story may be outdated. Please check the time stamp on the story to see when it was updated last.
By opting for the healthy juice blend or smoothie at the grocery store–either as a meal replacement or soda substitute–you may feel like you’re making the *best* nutrition decision possible. To start, you’re avoiding sugary sodas, and hey–who doesn’t need to sneak in a few extra servings of fruit and vegetables. Right?
You couldn’t be more wrong! Health experts warn that store-bought fruit smoothies are incredibly deceptive when it comes to the total sugar, carb and calorie content, and they can actually do more harm to your body than good. Yikes! Here’s what they have to say:
High In Sugar, Carbs & Calories
To start, they have an alarmingly high sugar, carbohydrate and calorie content that you wouldn’t believe. “Fruit juice blends and premade smoothies can appear to be full of nutrients and seem like an easy way to reach your health goals, but they are often much higher in calories and carbs than consumers realize,” registered dietitian and founder of Busy Gal Nutrition, Laura Gaston tells us.
“These drinks tend to pack almost as many calories as a full-size meal, but lack the staying power without adequate protein so they leave consumers feeling hungry much sooner,” she warns. Oh, that’s terrible!
Misleading Labels
Don't believe those "No Sugar Added," and "All Natural" labels on the front of their bottles--you should always flip them over to check the actual ingredients, because those front-of-bottle labels can be deceiving.
"Premade smoothies are often very high in sugar, despite no-sugar-added labeling," health practitioner Amy Spindel, BCHN, of Food With Thought tells us.
"For instance, a premed smoothie can contain the equivalent amount of sugar in a single-serve bottle of Coca Cola, both measuring in at an astounding 14 teaspoons!" Say it ain't so!
Spikes Your Blood Sugar
"The danger with fruit juice blends and store bought smoothies is they provide a high amount of quick digesting carbohydrates that can spike blood sugar," Holly Klamer, MS, RDN, of My Crohn's and Colitis Team tells us.
"This spike in blood sugar can then come crashing down leaving you feeling hungry shortly after," she continues. Aka, defeating the purpose of having them as a meal replacement.
Low Fiber Content
You should always opt for fresh fruit over juice blends because of the fiber content, health experts agree.
"The difference with fruit juice blends compared to eating fruit is the fiber is taken out of the juice and can also be for commercially made smoothies," Klamer advises.
"If you buy something that was juiced it will lack a lot of the natural fiber that the fruit has as it’s lost in the pulp," celebrity health and wellness Joey Thurman, CES CPT FNS, of kuudose tells us.
"When you purchase one of those store-bought smoothies often the longer they are on the shelf the less nutrients they will have, this doesn’t make them bad, just less nutritious."
