Issue 123 juices and smoothies

FOOD & DRINK

JUICES AND SMOOTHIES: WHAT ARE THE CURRENT TRENDS? Priya Tew Freelance Dietitian, Dietitian UK Priya runs Dietitian UK, a freelance dietetic service.

She provides 1-2-1 support for clients with eating disorders, IBS and weaning.

Dietitian UK works with various companies and brands as well as providing media work.

For full article references please email info@ networkhealth group.co.uk

The drinks market is exploding with a plethora of beverages that are marketed as being healthy and able to boost our body’s functions.

This year seems set to bring the most outlandish drinks yet.

As nutrition professionals, these are things we need to stay educated on, so here is a summary of some of the latest juicing and plant water trends.

Juicing is always going to be second best compared to eating the whole fruit. However, it can be a useful way to encourage people to increase their fruit and vegetable intake and to include a range on micronutrients in their diet.

The green smoothie or juice is still in and is positive as it encourages people to eat their greens, reduces the amount of fruit used in juices and increases the nutritional content of their diets.

Choosing smoothies over juices will improve the fibre content, or when making juices at home, the pulp from the juice can be added into soups, pasta sauces and stews.

With homemade juices or juice bars where there is no pasteurisation, there can be a slight risk of food poisoning. At risk groups are people with a weakened immune system, the elderly, pregnant ladies and infants. Any bacteria on the outside and inside of the fruit, can become part of the finished product.

To reduce the risks, all equipment used and the outside of fruit and vegetables need to be washed.

Beetroot juice: Becoming more popular is Beetroot juice. Beetroot is a rich source of fibre, folate and manganese, potassium, iron and vitamin C. It also contains thiamine, riboflavin, vitamin B-6, pantothenic acid, choline, betaine, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, copper and selenium. Watch out as this one will turn urine pink/red.

Evidence: Beetroot juice is rich in inorganic nitrates, it has a higher

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antioxidant and polyphenol content compared to other fruit and vegetable juices.1,2 A meta-analysis and review of 16 cross-over trials, with a total of 245 people, found a significant reduction (-4.4mm Hg) in systolic blood pressure with beetroot juice.3 A systematic review of 47 studies found that nitrate supplementation including beetroot juice was associated with a modest improvement in time to exhaustion tests, showing that there could be some benefits for endurance exercise.4 This needs further testing to see how much is needed to elicit the benefits.

Charcoal juice: Charcoal juice is as ridiculous as it sounds. Meant to bind with toxins to speed up their elimination from the body and to rehydrate you better than water.

Evidence: None.

Risks: It can affect the absorption of some medicines and care should be taken for pregnant and breastfeeding women.

GUIDELINES ON JUICES AND SMOOTHIES

After the update to the Eatwell Guide, the message on fruit juices is that one 150ml glass of fruit juice can count as a portion, just once a day.

This makes perfect sense in terms of the high sugar content and low fibre.

Presumably, this will be the same for vegetable juices too. Of interest is the bought smoothie recommendation.

Many of these state that they contain

‘The government’s 5-A-Day guidance states that an individual smoothie product can only count as one portion maximum toward your 5-A-Day. This is because the process results in an end product with very little fibre, compared with the raw ingredient.

more than one portion on the bottles; however, the public health message is that we again only count these as one portion a day due to their low fibre content - they are often filtered or sieved to remove ‘the bits’.

There is no guidance on how to judge the portions of fruit and vegetables in a homemade smoothie which can be very different. Smoothies made at home can contain nuts, seeds, nut butters, oats as well as fruit and vegetables, so can be higher in fibre, thus altering the effects of the sugar content of the smoothie. Dietitian Rosie Saunt, (See: www.rosie-saunt.com/?p=2083) asked Public Health England to clarify their guidance on smoothies counting towards the 5-A-Day message. The response was as follows: ‘The government’s 5-A-Day guidance states that an individual smoothie product can only count as one portion maximum toward your 5-A-Day. This is because the process results in an end product with very little fibre, compared with the raw ingredient.

Part of the reason why fruit and vegetables form such an important part of a person’s diet is their fibre content. Therefore, without receiving enough fibre, you are unable to achieve your 5-A-Day. ‘However, this advice generally covers bought smoothies rather than homemade ones - many

commercial smoothies are filtered or sieved, which means it is common that some of the fibre is removed.

Provided that you are using as much of the edible fruit as possible, without sieving, and blending it only as much as is required to make the correct consistency, and consume all the juice and bits, your own homemade smoothies may count as more (depending on how many fruits or vegetables you use and the quantities).

‘Since extraction of juice from fruits or vegetables reduces the fibre content and releases non-milk extrinsic sugars, fruit or vegetable juices are not counted as more than one portion in a day, however much is drunk. Therefore, advice to consumers is that fruit juice should be limited to no more than one 150ml portion a day.’

So, the message is that unsweetened 100% fruit juice, vegetable juice and smoothies can only ever count as a maximum of one portion of your 5-A-Day. If you have two glasses of fruit juice and a smoothie in one day, that still only counts as one portion. Your combined total of drinks from fruit juice, vegetable juice and smoothies should not be more than 150ml a day (i.e. a small glass). For example, if you have 150ml of orange juice and 150ml smoothie in one day, you’ll have exceeded the recommendation by 150ml. www.NHDmag.com April 2017 - Issue 123

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FOOD & DRINK PLANT WATERS

Birch water, made by tapping the tree, is usually flavoured and marketed as being a lower sugar alternative to coconut water, however, some versions have added sugar. It contains 7.5kcals per 250ml serving and the nutrients manganese, potassium, zinc and xylitol. Claims are made about it cleansing and detoxifying the body, for which there is no evidence.

Maple water is also made by tapping the tree. Usually this would be boiled down to make maple syrup, so you can imagine it has a sweet taste, containing 3-4g sugar per 250ml serving. Claims are made about it being anti-inflammatory and helping muscle recover, post workout amongst numerous other claims, but these are not backed up with evidence. It does contain plenty of manganese and we know that maple syrup has around 50 phytonutrients and good antioxidant activity, but this watered down will not be in the same league.5 Cactus water has a bold claim of helping with hangovers after a one-off study on 64 adults found that the risk of severe hangover was reduced by 50%, so this could be a popular one.6 Made from prickly pear extract and concentrate, water and flavouring, cactus water contains betalains, antioxidants which have been shown to hinder LDL oxidation when cactus pear fruit pulp was consumed.7 Watermelon water contains beta-carotene and potassium, vitamin C, lycopene and the amino acid L-Citrulline, which is converted to L-arginine in the body.

It is used as a sports performance aid and supplementation has been shown to reduce fatigue and improve endurance in exercise.8 In a few small cross-over studies, watermelon extract has been found to reduce systolic aortic blood pressure and could be a helpful aid in hypertension.9,10 Whether this would also be the case for watermelon water is unknown.

Aloe Vera water is sweetened with agave, with added flavourings, making a standard serving 60-70kcals. It contains vitamins A, E and 30% of the DRI for vitamin C. There is some limited evidence for Aloe Vera sap, but the watered down version has no real research conducted on it.

Artichoke water is said to be high in vitamin A, B and C, magnesium and antioxidants, the top two being cynarin and silymarin. Artichoke water is a yellow-green colour and made by mulching whole artichokes, the stem, leaf and heart. The manufacturers say it can help lower cholesterol and aid with weight loss, but there is no research to support this.

Coconut water has been popular in the UK. Used for rehydration purposes in developing countries and as a sports rehydration drink by some due to the level of electrolytes it contains. It also contains B and C vitamins, calcium, magnesium and potassium. It doesn’t provide much more benefit to exercisers over water and a banana, but it also won’t do any harm for those who prefer it.

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All these drinks come with a hefty price tag, with either extremely limited or no evidence.

Some varieties will have added sugar, so are not as virtuous as they first sound.

However, some of these juices and smoothies could make good alternatives to water for people wanting a change or wanting to replace a soft drink.

Table 1: Composition of alternative waters Energy/Kcals

Carbohydrates/g

Sugars/g

Other nutrients

Birch water

3kcals

0.8g

0.8g

Maple water

10kcals

2.4g

2.4g

Manganese 0.19mg

Aloe Vera water

39kcals

9.6g

4.6g

Vitamin C 26mg 32% RDI

Watermelon water

40kcals

6.6g

5.3g

Vitamin C 60%, Manganese 8% and Vitamin A 4% of RDI.

Coconut water

19kcals

3.7g

2.6g

Magnesium 6%, Vitamin C 4% and Calcium 2% of RDI.

Advertisement

Almost two-thirds of parents say their children manage a maximum of just three portions of fruit and vegetables a day A new consumer survey of 2,000 parents has revealed that 60% of them say their children only manage three or less of their five-a-day1.

A 150ml glass of pure fruit juice is an easy way to get one of your 5-a-day, but the new data found 17% of parents said they never give their children pure fruit juice and a substantial majority (94%) of parents surveyed did not know that a 150ml glass of orange juice contains all your RDA of vitamin C.

of Vitamin C, with more than half of parents questioned (55%) not knowing about any of its benefits2.

Health professionals play a crucial role in helping parents aim for the 5-a-day target and use their expertise to clarify confusing nutritional issues. Interested in hearing more about the latest fruit juice research? Get in touch with Kimberly.Haider@porternovelli.co.uk

Indeed, the new data revealed an alarming lack of knowledge about the health benefits 1 2

Survey of 2003 parents carried out by Censuswide and commissioned by the British Fruit Juice Association (March, 2017) That it is important for healing wounds, protection from viral and bacterial infections, immune system support, prevention of scurvy, cell lifespan and lowering cholesterol

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