They Say: Fruit Juice as Bad as Soda
If you think you are making a better choice for your kids by serving fruit juice instead of soda, you are only partially right. Drinks such as orange juice, apple juice and grape juice may offer more vitamins, minerals and other nutrients than soda, but they also contain a lot of fructose, high levels of which have been linked to heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. In fact, a single glass of apple juice contains the fructose equivalent of six apples.
What’s more, juice contains more calories than soda: A cup of orange juice has 112 calories, apple juice has 114 and grape has 152. A same-sized serving of Coke or Pepsi has only about 100 calories.
According to Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist, the small amount of positive health benefits gained from drinking juice are far outweighed by the negatives. But if fruit juices pose the same obesity and other health-related risks as soda, why haven’t we seen campaigns to remove them from schools like we have with sodas?  Probably because parents view fruit juices as nutritious and therefore are less likely to set limits on the amount their children drink.
But even if parents aren’t setting limits, the American Academy of Pediatrics is. In 2001, the APA’s nutrition committee revised its policy regarding fruit juice, recommending that kids ages 1 to 6 drink no more than one 4 to 6 ounce service of juice a day. Older kids should have no more than two servings.
When it comes to fruit, experts say kids are better off skipping the juice and eating the fruit itself. Not only does this eliminate the high levels fructose, but eating a solid food rather than drinking a liquid gives the stomach a fuller feeling, which can help prevent over consumption.
Do you limit the amount of juice your kids drink?
Photo: oddharmonic/Flickr
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Tags: apple juice, coke, diabetes, diet, fructose, fruit juice, grape juice, health, Heart Disease, kids diet, kids' health, obesity, orange juice, pepsi, sandy maple, soda, soda in schools
11 Comments
JCF commented on Nov 18 09 at 11:53 amYes, we set limits. Juice does not appear in our household. Occasions on which my son has had juice–at a kid-friendly wedding recently he had a juice box, when we go to Trader Joe’s about once a week, he generally gets the little sample cup of whatever beverage they are sampling (cider, tea, etc.). I give him maybe an ounce and it keeps him happy while I shop. My grandma freaks out that I am depriving him of something (what? I don’t know), but he doesn’t know what he is missing and thinks the occasional bit of juice is a big treat.
PlumbLucky commented on Nov 18 09 at 1:51 pmSame tune, maybe in a different key, but still the same song as JCF. Not in our house, gets it once in a while as a “treat”.
Kikiriki commented on Nov 18 09 at 3:43 pmSame here - we’re a strictly milk-and-water house with the occasional treat of juice (I like my sugar in cookie form, thank you). If you save it as a treat, you can use it as something to drink when they’re sick, when they might not want to drink otherwise. My daughter will happily drink (watered down) juice when she’s under the weather.
My FIL claims that he doesn’t ingest sugar because he wants to stay healthy, yet he eats granola bars every day and drinks juice like it was going out of style.
GP commented on Nov 18 09 at 3:50 pmWe have loose limits. My kid just started on juice boxes and its mainly as a lunch thing at preschool 2 days a week, but occasionally she’ll want one at home. I kind of think the juice thing is a little much. It’s still FRUIT JUICE. Everything in moderation. I try to avoid it late in the day, though so she’s not keyed up on any sugar.
Manjari commented on Nov 18 09 at 5:21 pmI only give my kids milk and water at home, but I have let them have juice at a few birthday parties and other situations. They would rather have milk anyway.
My husband and I both love to have OJ with breakfast, but I don’t drink it very often b/c of the extra calories.
Amy commented on Nov 18 09 at 5:40 pmSure, I limit juice. But to equate juice with soda, which often contains caffeine AND contains no nutrients, is ridiculous.
Knitty commented on Nov 18 09 at 6:14 pmI hate to break this to Dr. Robert Lustig, but “juice is bad” is hardly new information. I’ve been reading studies linking juice to obesity for well over a decade now.
TolaniLucia commented on Nov 18 09 at 9:23 pmI my household we are all thin, healthy and active people who drink loads and loads of juice. We love juice. And juice loves us. Hurray for juice. Not juice drinks but real good old juice!
Bunny commented on Nov 19 09 at 10:47 amSomething about this article smells kind of fishy. No mention at all about how while juice is full of nice vitamins, soda includes no nutritional value whatsoever? Juice is not “just as bad” as soda - it’s just less good than fresh fruit.
tim commented on Nov 30 09 at 11:09 amWe are killing ourselves with what is marketed as “healthy stuff.” Don’t be fooled, read more than just the label.. They have ways of telling a lie truthfully….
Marj commented on Dec 03 09 at 10:24 pmI get that it’s sweet and not as good as water. But do we have villify juice?
