In recent years orange juice has received some negative press due to its perceived high sugar content.
But researchers at Nutrition Research Australia have been able to provide data from a study, which shows there’s a need to look at the whole product and the benefits it can provide.
Tim Casserati is the director of translational science at Nutrition Research Australia and says while vitamin C might be the obvious and most well-known health benefit from 100 per cent orange juice – it also contains many micronutrients and anti-inflammatory properties.
“When we look at the data for 100 per cent juices – all juices, what we find is there is actually more benefit than there is harm,” he said.
“The strongest evidence is that there’s benefits for heart health and anti-inflammatory effects.
“Some of the benefits for heart health was a reduction in blood pressure and also a reduction in inflammatory markers.
“When we think about juice we automatically think, high sugar, low fibre but when we actually dive into what’s in juice, it’s an incredibly complex mixture of a range of different plant chemicals.
“We know that it has good micronutrients profiles so that’s comparable to whole fruit so that’s things like vitamin C, folate, potassium – we know that these micronutrients can support health.
“Vitamin C has many effects in the body, it can support immunity, while potassium can help lower blood pressure so these micronutrients are high in juice and can play a role in health.”
Mr Casserrati says juice also contains bioactive compounds, particularly polyphenol.
‘These are compounds found in plant foods like fruits and vegetables that give them their flavour and colour and they’re often known as antioxidants, but they have a lot more function in the body than antioxidants,” he said.
“They can have pre-biotic affects which means they can feed the good bugs in our guts, they also can have heart protective properties, anti-diabetic properties or support our brain health.
“Interestingly, 100 percent orange juice is one of the richest sources of these polyphenols in our diet.”
This podcast is hosted by Kerrie Lush-Robertson and produced by Citrus SA.
