Fruit Smoothies - A Healthy Option

[Ardesco]

I don't know why people feel the sugars in fruit are any less bad than sugar from sugar cane. (Having said that, I think that the demonisation of suqar is equally unbalanced.) The reason people like fruit juice is because it is liquid sugar without the bad reputation. Ask a dentist what he thinks of fruit juice.

From my limited understanding of the subject it is processed sugar which is bad as it is absorbed into the body quicker and more concentrated. If you were munching on unprocessed sugar cane it would be pretty much the same as munchin on fruit (although it will have a slightly higher sugar content) but once it has been processed it is much worse for you.

I personally find sugar something that needs to be controlled. If my little boy has too much sugar in his diet he is totally off the walls, giving kids lots of sweets to shut them up is so the wrong thing to do. It just makes them hyper and even more annoying if you are trying t get a bit of peace and quiet.

Final reason to control sugar intake is diabeties. I would hate to not be able to eat what I want (within reason) and the idea of going blind really scares me.

[RSoles]

processed sugar

Rum!

[Shimano105]

Hear hear Ardesco.

The main culprit behind obesity is not saturated fat (which is generally bad for you but won't necessarily make you fat) but refined SUGAR.

This crap is in everything processed which is why your average person today is such a bloaty pig.

I was getting a tad lardy a few years ago (too much beer - sugary - and convenience tulipe) and I cut out biccies, ate more fruit and reduced the pintage.

Worked wonders for me I tell you, dropped 2 stones (with plenty of cycling of course).

[DaveB]

either Pusser's

or Stroh 80

http://www.stroh.co.uk/

RS

Bacardi 151

[IR35 Avoider]

I don't know how much difference it makes whether sugar is processed or not. (Wikipedia says this is controversial.)

On my bag of Tesco apples today I see that one apple contains 17% of RDA for sugar, so in the unlikely event you ate and drank nothing else with sugar in, six apples would take you over your quota for the day. I wonder how many apple's worth of sugar there is in a glass of apple juice?

[Paddy]

I assume what applies to fruit juice applies to these.

In that case I probably agree that they taste nice.

I learnt to give up fruit juice when dieting, as for anyone with a limited calorie budget it makes far more sense to eat unprocessed fruit. I guess fruit smoothies are closer to completely unprocessed fruit, but the pre-mashing by the blender must decrease the time taken for your body to absorb it all as sugar, compared to unprocessed fruit, and that's not an improvement.

People have lots of irrational prejudices about food, and I think the positive image of fruit juice is the product of one of these. One to three glasses a day, taken at mealtimes, by a person who doesn't have to worry about their weight or blood sugar levels is fine, but other than that I don't think fruit juice is particularly healthy. It may contain some redeeming vitamins that aren't present in full-fat coca-cola, but I don't know why people feel the sugars in fruit are any less bad than sugar from sugar cane. (Having said that, I think that the demonisation of suqar is equally unbalanced.) The reason people like fruit juice is because it is liquid sugar without the bad reputation. Ask a dentist what he thinks of fruit juice.

Fruit Jucice IS sugar. If you becaome thirsty drinking fruit jusice will up the blood sugar levels and make you even more thirsty.

[IR35 Avoider]

Fruit Jucice IS sugar

That's what I was trying to say in all those paragraphs - I think your version gets the message over better.

[hattra]

either Pusser's

or Stroh 80

http://www.stroh.co.uk/

RS

Gosling's Black Seal

Served in a Dark 'n Stormy or a Rum Swizzle (or anything else for that matter)