Fruits: Can You Have Too Much of a Good Thing When Juicing?
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| Fruits: Can You Have Too Much of a Good Thing When Juicing? |
Are all fruits created equally? Can you have too much of a good thing? Which fruits are best? Let’s find out.
Fruits, generally, are good for you. But not all fruits are created equal.
While some have huge health benefits, others don’t pack quite the nutrient punch you might imagine.
Some are higher in calories and sugar but contain lots of nutrients, others are lower in sugars but also less rich in vitamins and minerals.
The nutrients, vitamins, sugars and calories in fruits differ hugely.
Here we have taken a look at five fruits that you should include in your juicing diet – but which should always be consumed in moderation.
Pineapples
Packed full of vitamin C, manganese, potassium, and thiamine, pineapples are undoubtedly rich in nutrients.
Not only that, they are also pretty great for your digestion too – thanks to the rare enzyme bromelain, which helps flush out excess in your digestive tract.
However, despite these clear health benefits pineapples are also brimming with sugar.
In fact, one cup of pineapple chunks can contain as much as 16 grams of sugar.
These sugars might be natural (fructose and glucose to be precise) but too much will see your insulin levels spiking.
Save this tangy fruit for a treat day or in small quantities to make one of those less tasty juices zing.
Mangoes
Mangoes are on the red list for diabetics and weight-watchers alike due to the high amount of sugar they contain. One mango can contain 31 grams of sugar on average.
And they’re fairly dense in calories and carbohydrates too. But on balance, it’s worth noting that mangoes are also filled with soluble fibre as well as vitamins C, A and B6.
Scientists have also suggested their store of phenolic and carotenoid compounds offer protection against several types of cancer.
So it’s not all bad. The sweet juice of a mango can be enjoyed every now and again, guilt-free – particularly when juiced with grapefruit (only 8 grams of sugar in each half).
Bananas
Earlier this year Paignton Zoo in Devon announced they were mixing up the menu for their monkeys.
The chimps waved goodbye to their old favourite, bananas, and saw them replaced with leafy greens. So should you be doing the same?
The zookeepers claimed that bananas grown for human consumption are full of calories and sugar – and they’re not wrong there, with a medium banana containing around 14 grams of sugar.
But that doesn’t mean they should be avoided at all costs. They’re also filled with potassium and are easily digestible. Plus that sugary goodness can be a great boost before the gym!
Remember, though, that bananas don’t yield all that much juice so pair them with watermelon – made up of nearly 82 per cent water – to balance sugar levels and juiciness.
Grapes
A small cup of grapes? No harm, no foul. But too much more and you could pushing it on the sugar, calories and carbs.
One cup has more than 27 grams of carbohydrates and almost 15 grams of sugar.
However, some grapes are worse sugar culprits than others.
White seedless grapes have the highest sugar content among the grape family.
While black grapes have a much lower GI level than their white and red cousins, meaning they enable better blood sugar balance and an improved regulation of insulin.
But no matter the colour, grapes in general can help to lower the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease so they’re not to be dismissed.
Blend them up with blueberries in a cold press juicer (click here to read more on cold press juicers) – centrifugal juicers can struggle to extract juice from soft berries and fruits – to get a good dose of antioxidants in there, too.
Apples
We wouldn’t dare dispute that age-old saying about an apple a day,particularly since they’ve been found to be full of dietary fibre and to regulate blood sugar.
However, their sugar levels are undeniably high. As Dr Norman Walker wrote in his book Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices,
“Fruit juices are the cleansers of the human system, but the fruit should be ripe.
An apple a day will keep the doctor away, if we also eat plenty of other raw food. But fruits, with only three or four exceptions, should never be eaten during the same meal in which starches and sugars are included.”
One large apple can contain as much as 36 grams of carbohydrates on average – that’s the equivalent of 7 to 9 teaspoons of sugar.
Combining these with other sources of starch or sugars could be counter productive, if you are using apple juice as part of a weight loss plan.
Also, while apples may keep the doctor away, the same can’t necessarily be said for keeping your dentist at bay.
Going heavy on the apples and you will need to take a more vigorous approach to brushing your teeth to prevent decay.
As ever, moderation rules the roost. Balance your fruit intake correctly and your health will only see a turn for the better.
Vitality4Life have a great list of recipes for fruit juicing available here
What kind of fruits do you like to include in your juicing diet?
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