Fruits

What Whole Fruits Have That Fruit Juices Lack?

Fruit juices are gaining popularity in packaged and fresh form due to the fast lives and packed schedules. The breakfast tables are found incomplete without the pitcher of juice whether fresh or canned. The juice diets are also recommended to those looking for healthy solution to their weight loss needs. Juices can be extracted from vegetables and fruits to have vitamin packed drinks. Researchers have mentioned many benefits of these power packed juices but when it comes to whole fruits, there is no match. The nutrition experts have always found whole fruits better than juices and that stands true for all fruit types. Whatever the type of fruit, it may offer better health when consumed whole.

The research carried out by the experts on whole fruits and juices have brought to light many factors that apparently distinguish between the two.

fruit and juicesImage Courtesy: flickr.com/photos/50924664@N04/5036263437/

What makes whole fruits better than juice?

Many people may come up with an argument that when fruit is juiced up, there may be no changes in its vitamin and mineral content then why are fruits considered better than juice? The answer is simple and explained here for you.

Fruit Skin And Its Benefits

Most of the fruits have edible skins and these skins have equally astonishing benefits. The edible skins of fruits like apricot, figs, apples, prunes, grapes, blueberries, raspberries, plums, strawberries and pears are all having distinctive properties that give them their varied colors. The skin of the fruit comes in direct contact with external atmosphere and sunlight. When the fruit skin is exposed to sunlight, it undergoes various changes and gets its original color through pigmentation. These pigments are formed because of light absorption and are actually flavonoids and carotenoids that are antioxidants which will give your health an instant boost.

The skin of a fruit is usually removed when the juice is extracted from the fruit. Thus, the fruit looses on its vital nutrients when you juice it up. When the fiber rich skin is removed from the fruit to prepare juice, the enzymes supporting the sugar digestion are also removed making this juice unhealthy for consumption.

Fruit Pulp And Its Benefits

Another important part of the fruit is its pulp. The pulp is what one consumes from the whole fruit. When the pulp is strained to make juice, the fiber from the pulp is also removed. The vitamins of the fruit are trapped in the fruit pulp. The vitamin C in orange is found in the orange pulp part of the fruit while the flavonoids are present in the white part of the orange. When the juice is extracted from this fruit, both orange and white part turns into the waste product. Hence, lot of nutrients are wasted in the process.

The fiber content of the pulp is also reduced substantially in the process. For example, the apple juice extracted out of 3 to 4 apples contain only 3 to 4 grams of fiber while the same apples when consumed whole would amount to 11 to 12 grams of fiber. This clearly proves that juices are not as healthy as the fruit itself. Some packed juices may also come with added pulp to include the fibers and vitamins just as the whole fruits but this may still not be as good as the whole fruits.

Why should you have juice?

Whole fruits are any day better than the juices but when you don’t have time to enjoy a bowl full of fruits or if you face difficulty carrying the fruits in your tiffin, then a glass full of power packed juice will also do wonders. You can refresh yourself instantly by having any fruit juice on the go.

Make your fruit or juice choices depending on the availability of fresh fruits and also the time to have them. Else, simply grab a pack of juice and have it all!

Image Courtesy: humansarefree.com

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