Squeezing Truth Out of Juice Myths

(CBS)  You may think juice is really good for you, but it turns out that may not always be the case.

On "The Early Show," CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton cleared up some myths about these drinks that are believed to be healthy.

Myth: Juice is a healthier choice than soda.

Ashton said juice can contain more calories than some sodas.

A cup of apple juice, she said, can contain 117 calories while a cup of cola contains just 91 calories and is also less caloric than orange juice (105 calories). A cup of grape juice has 154 calories. There's also more than 37 grams of sugar in a glass of grape juice, compared with cola's 22 grams.

"If you just go by calorie to calorie and put them head to head...you could be getting a lot more bang for the buck in terms of calories, obviously sugar, in the juice versus the soda," Ashton said.

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But what about natural sugars in juice versus chemicals in sodas?

Ashton said, "At the end of the day, you're talking about calories in the form of sweet, empty calories. It's really not adding to your nutrition so you might want to skip it or minimize."

Myth: Drinking juice is just as nutritious as eating the fruit.

When you drink the fruit, Ashton said, you often lose the fiber content that is found in the skin. By eating an apple, you can get up to 15 times the amount of fiber of drinking apple juice -- three grams of fiber vs. 0.2 grams of fiber. In a cup of grape juice, you get very little fiber, about 0.3 grams.

When you eat the actual fruit, the fiber content is more than four times that amount.

Myth: It is less fattening to drink juice than skim milk.

If we're talking about skim milk, Ashton said, it has very little fat in it while most juices have no fat.

However, milk has less sugar, which can pack on the pounds, and more protein. So, for dieters, Ashton said, the higher protein in milk may help satisfy hunger better than fruit juices. Some juices might be more caloric -- grape juice has more calories than even two-percent milk, which has about 30 fewer calories than a cup of grape juice.

Fortified juices can give you the same calcium as milk, but they lack protein that you can get from milk.

However, if you have juice-junkies at home, Ashton cited the health Web site WebMD, and reccommended avoiding anything described as a juice cocktail, juice-flavored beverage, or juice drink. Most of these products contain only small amounts of real juice, she said. The main ingredients are usually water and some type of sugar, such as high-fructose corn syrup.

Nutritionally, these drinks are similar to most soft drinks -- rich in sugar and calories, but low in nutrients.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, to be labeled as a fruit juice, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandates that a product be 100 percent fruit juice. For juices reconstituted from concentrate, the label must state that the product is reconstituted from concentrate.

Any beverage that is less than 100 percent fruit juice must list the percentage of the product that is fruit juice, and the beverage must include a descriptive term, such as "drink," "beverage," or "cocktail." In general, juice drinks contain between 10 percent and 99 percent juice and added sweeteners, flavors, and sometimes fortifiers, such as vitamin C or calcium. These ingredients must be listed on the label, according to FDA regulations.

Children are the single largest group of juice consumers, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Children younger than 12 consume 28 percent of all juice and juice drinks. By 1 year of age, almost 90 percent of infants consume juice.

So how much juice should children be allowed to drink?

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends juice be introduced into the diet of infants not before 6 months of age. Infants should not be given juice from bottles or easily transportable covered cups that allow them to consume juice easily throughout the day. Infants should not be given juice at bedtime.

Intake of fruit juice should be limited to 4 to 6 oz. for children 1 to 6 years old. For children 7 to 18 years old, juice intake should be limited to 8 to 12 oz. or two servings per day.

[SarahJaneRD]

As a registered dietitian, any diet or nutrition advice that recommends excluding a certain food or food group is a red flag. This is neither a healthy nor realistic lifestyle approach to eating. Instead, it is taking a diet mentality. Since I am also a consultant to the food and beverage industry, I know that all foods can be included in a healthy lifestyle, and that striving for balance and moderation is a more realistic and healthier approach than striving for complete elimination. My clients have the most success when they realize that they can have a moderate amount of a food they love each day (like juice, sodas, or chocolate) as long as they are also balancing their intake of these foods with daily physical activity.

[JuiceProductsAssociation]

As a registered dietitian who has worked closely with at risk populations, I was extremely alarmed by Dr. Ashton's claim that juice is "not healthy" because it is a caloric beverage. In fact, 100% fruit juice is a nutrient dense beverage and a far cry from the "empty calorie" label your program gave it this morning. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee noted that levels of vitamin C, folate and potassium are often higher in certain 100% fruit juices than in their whole fruit counterparts. Additionally, calcium-fortified juices can provide an excellent source of calcium in the diet, particularly for those who are lactose-intolerant. Some juices are now fortified with vitamin D as well, another key nutrient for bone health thanks to its role in helping the body absorb calcium. But even beyond these nutritional benefits, which are readily displayed on the Nutrition Facts Panel, 100% fruit juices provide phytonutrients ? compounds in fruits, vegetables and other plants that may have disease-preventative and health promoting potential. Although phytonutrient content is not listed in the Nutrition Facts Panel, there is strong support for the role fruits and vegetables play in reducing chronic disease risk. Simply discussing "healthful choices" under the umbrella of caloric density is not scientifically accurate - or fair to consumers.

Moreover, the segment was introduced as providing "new research" on fruit juice when in fact, the segment was not research focused. The preponderance of evidence does not support a link between 100% fruit juice consumption and weight status in children or adolescents - a fact that was reiterated by the 2010 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee during their most recent public meeting on November 5th.

Today?s moms and dads are inundated with an overload of nutrition information ? much of it conflicting ? and discerning fact from fiction can be confusing. Asking parents to rethink a choice that is categorically healthful simply adds to that confusion.

Sincerely,
Sarah Wally, MS RD
Juice Products Association