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Is freshly squeezed juices so useful and do they remove toxins?

'07.03.2021'

Many of us believe that drinking freshly squeezed fruit juices is a good way to get a mega dose of vitamins. But is it true? And how do these juices affect the sugar and insulin levels in our blood?

Freshly squeezed fruit juice has become the basis of many diets - especially for those people who do not have enough time to take care of their food, but are worried about the problems of healthy eating, writes Jessica Brown for Air force.

They also say about fruit juices that they help to lose weight and cleanse the body, remove toxins and toxins. All this, of course, makes the business of juices very prosperous and very profitable. For example, the global market for fruit and vegetable juices in 2016 was estimated at 154 billion US dollars, and it is expected to continue growing.

But is consumption of juices really as beneficial as we think?

Fructose (a naturally occurring sugar) can be found in all fruits and fruit juices. It is unlikely to harm your health - unless it contributes to the consumption of excess calories. The fiber contained in any fruit is preserved intact, and the sugar contained in it is enclosed in the cells of the fruit. Therefore, our digestive system takes time to digest these cells, after which fructose finally enters the bloodstream.

But it's not at all the juice.

With and without fiber

“Most of the fiber has been removed from fruit juice,” says Emma Alvin, Senior Clinical Consultant at Diabetes UK.

That is why - unlike fruits - fructose in juices is ranked as free sugars, exactly the same as those found, for example, in honey or added to food.

The World Health Organization recommends that adults consume no more than 30 g of added sugar daily (equivalent to 150 ml of fruit juice). The problem is that fructose from the juice (because fiber is removed) is processed by the body faster.

Sudden jumps in blood sugar levels cause the pancreas to secrete insulin to restore its stable level.

Over time, this mechanism may wear out, thereby increasing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

In 2013, researchers analyzed 100 health data from thousands of people collected between 1986 and 2009 years. They found that consumption of fruit juices is associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Scientists have concluded that because fluids pass through the stomach into the intestine faster than solid foods, fruit juice causes faster and more serious changes in insulin and glucose levels (despite the fact that the nutritional value of juice is comparable to unprocessed fruit).

In another study, researchers discovered a link between fruit juices and type 2 diabetes, examining the diet and diabetic status of more than 18 thousands of nurses over 70 for years.

Scientists believe that one of the possible explanations for this is the absence of certain components in the juices, which are in the whole fruit, for example, fiber. Juices made not only from fruits, but also from vegetables, contain more nutrients and less sugar than pure fruit, but they still lack valuable fiber.

High fiber diets are believed to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension and diabetes. It is recommended to consume at least 30 grams of crude fiber daily.

Total excess

In addition to the fact that the consumption of fruit juices is associated with the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, many studies confirm that juice is harmful if an excess amount of calories passes into the body.

Analyzing 155 research, John Seavenpiper, an associate professor at the Department of Healthy Nutrition at the University of Toronto (Canada), tried to understand whether foods and drinks that we consider healthy affect the risk of diabetes or coronary disease - just like deliberately harmful sweet carbonated drinks .

He compared studies that examined the effects of the consumption of sugars containing fructose (including sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, honey, etc.) with control diets without or with low sugars. What was his purpose? Separate the effects of consuming too many calories from the effects of consuming foods containing various free sugars.

A Canadian scientist discovered that when food contained too many calories from sugars (including fruit juice), the level of sugar and insulin in the blood quickly changed, which cannot be considered useful.

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However, when the total calories did not exceed the recommended, the consumption of whole fruits (and even fruit juice) revealed its advantages.

Seavenpiper concludes that the recommended 150 ml of fruit juice per day is an acceptable rate.

The work of a Canadian scientist concludes that foods containing fructose may in the long run help control blood sugar levels, but only if they do not lead to excessive calorie intake.

In the latter case, the blood sugar and insulin levels may increase. This may be because, according to the study, fructose has a relatively low glycemic index, while diets with a high glycemic index are known for insulin resistance.

“Eating unprocessed fruit is always better than juicing it, but if you supplement fruit and vegetables with juice in your diet, that's okay. However, it is wrong to use juices to quench your thirst and drink them in large quantities, ”says Sivenpiper.

So, we know that fruit juices can serve as one of the causes of diabetes, if the diet is over-calorie. However, it is far less clear how, in the long-term perspective, juices affect the health of those who have normal weight.

“There's a lot we don't yet understand — in particular, how high blood sugar levels without gaining weight might affect diabetes risk,” says Heather Ferris, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Virginia, USA. "How well and for how long the gland is able to handle excess sugar depends in part on genetics."

But, according to studies, the risk of exceeding the daily calorie intake (2000 for women, 2500 for men) increases when we drink juices.

Numerous studies show that consuming juice does not make us eat less other foods.

“Plus, it's pretty easy to drink a lot of juice — and that's extra calories,” emphasizes Emma Alvin. “And when the calories go up, the body gains weight.”

The Importance of Peel and Bones

However, the results of one study published last year can help us learn how to drink juices with more health benefits.

The scientists used a blender that they called a “nutrient extractor”. Unlike conventional mixers, it processes the entire fruit, including the seeds and rind. In two groups of participants, they compared the effect of consuming a mixture of different fruits and a peeled mango (with a high glycemic index, giving rise to blood sugar) - both after the “extractor” and when eating the unprocessed fruit.

Those who drank the fruit mixture that passed through the nutrient extractor had lower blood sugar levels than those who ate the whole fruit. In the case of mango, there was no difference in blood sugar levels.

There was another, smaller study, where scientists did not set out to compare the results obtained by consuming juices prepared by different methods.

Its author, senior lecturer at Plymouth University, Gale Reese, said that perhaps the content in the juice of processed fruit seeds affects health. However, according to her, it is still difficult to make a final conclusion about the usefulness of such juices.

“I would still recommend following the advice of drinking 150 ml of juice a day. But if you have a nutrient extractor at home, a suitable blender, then juices from it will help keep your blood sugar more or less stable, ”she says.

However, Ferris doubts that the content of processed bones in the juice will affect the sense of fullness (although it will help digestion).

“If the juice contains fiber, it slows down its absorption. But you still get excess calories because it is easy to digest. However, compared to regular juice, this is a step forward, ”she says.

Another way to get the most out of fruit juice is to make it from ripe fruit, says Roger Clemens, a professor of pharmaceutical science at the University of Southern California.

It is important to keep in mind that different methods of obtaining juice can be more or less useful in the case of different fruits - simply because of their different physical characteristics, Clemens discovered.

For example, the main part of phytonutrients (biologically active substances) in grapes is contained in pits, while in the pulp of berries there are very few. And most of the beneficial compounds in oranges are in the peel, which is lost with the traditional squeeze method.

On the subject: Making the most of apples: why fruit is better eaten with peel

Detox? What detox?

Another reason for the growing popularity of fresh juices can be called the opinion that they help detoxify the body, the so-called detox.

However, the only medically recognized use of the word “detox” refers to the elimination of harmful substances from the body such as drugs, alcohol and poison.

“The very concept that a juice diet detoxifies is a misconception,” says Clemens. "Every day we consume substances that can be toxic, and our body copes with them, with everything that we eat."

And juice is not at all the solution to the problem of getting all the necessary nutrients.

“Different parts of the fruit (like the peel of an apple) contain a lot of nutrients that don't get into the juice,” warns Ferris. "All you have left is sweet water with some vitamins."

In addition, she adds, this is an unfortunate way to reach the recommended five fruits per day.

“People try to eat five servings of fruits or vegetables a day and don't realize it's not just about vitamins,” she says. "It's also about reducing the amount of carbohydrates, protein and fat in our diets and increasing the amount of fiber."

In general, although drinking juice is better than living a day without any fruit, there are limitations.