Fruit Juice or the Whole Fruit

The citrus board isn't really that concerned about whether you choose to eat an orange or drink a cup of orange juice. The growers probably prefer that you go with the juice because it's more processed, which means they can charge more for it. But putting cares of major fruit conglomerates aside, which is better for your body - whole fruit or fruit juice?

The Winner is: A draw

The Reason: Oranges and orange juice, apples and apple juice, blueberries and blueberry juice, cranberries and - you get the idea - have benefits. As long as the juice is 100% juice, with no added sugars, both it and the whole fruit used to make it are packed full of antioxidants and are good sources of slow-digesting carbs. If you find that second part surprising, you're in the old school that believes that fruit juice is an excellent accompaniment for post-workout creatine.

Science - and the glycemic index of foods - has since shown that, although it's a liquid, fruit juice doesn't go through your body any faster than whole fruit. But there is another issue involved in the choice between fruit and fruit juice - fullness.

Whole fruit must be chewed, and it does contain way more fiber (in the example of orange versus orange juice, its 4 grams in the orange to juice's half a gram); both of these factors have an impact on appetite. Research has shown that the act of chewing actually enhances satiety following a meal. Fiber further slows fruit's passage through the digestive track and that means feeling fuller longer.

For these reasons, we recommend that you pick whole fruit for a midday snack (along with protein, of course) - it will tide you over longer than juice will. However, for your pre-workout slow carbs, juice is a better choice, if just for its convenient factor. Add a scoop of vanilla whey protein powder to a cup of orange juice, shake, and you have all you need to carry you through a grueling appointment with the iron.


Posted by Sandra Prior

Sandra Prior runs her own bodybuilding website at http://bodybuild.rr.nu