To many people, it’s a “health” food. To others, it’s simply soda in disguise.  The truth is, according to experts, even juice that is 100% fruit juice has the same obesity related health risks as Coke, Pepsi and other sodas.

It’s time people were aware of the health risks associated with drinking fruit juices.  It’s time for the truth to come out about the link between drinking juice and obesity.  It’s pretty much the same as sugar water; there’s no need to drink juice at all.

A glass of juice concentrates all the sugar from several pieces of fruit. Ounce per ounce, it contains more calories than soda, though it tends to be consumed in smaller servings.  A cup of orange juice has 112 calories, apple juice has 114 and grape juice has 152. The same amount of Coke has 97 calories and Pepsi has 100. Roughly half of all Americans consume juice on a regular basis.

Having apple juice is NOT the same as eating an apple.  Besides having 3 to 4 times more sugar; the body is not equipped to process the sugar that is concentrated in a glass of juice.  So, eating fruit is good. Drinking juice is not.

A little history:

Juice is a relatively recent addition to the human diet. For thousands of years, people ate fruit and drank water. But in the early 1900’s, citrus growers in Florida were harvesting more oranges than they could sell.  That’s when they decided to promote juice.  More oranges are used to make juice than most people eat.  At the same time, the U.S. Army was looking for a “power” drink for its soldiers.  During World War II the Army hired scientists to invent a system for freezing OJ in a concentrated form.  The patent went to Minute Maid. Other fruits and other companies followed.

So what does this mean?  Eat an apple instead of drinking one!